PHOENICIA. Tyre. 126/5 BCE-65/6 CE. Shekel (Silver, 23 mm, 14.30 g, 12 h), CY 159 = 33/4 CE. Laureate head of Melkart to right, lion skin tied around neck. Rev. TYPOY IEPAΣ [KAI AΣYΛOY] Eagle standing left on prow, wings closed and with palm frond behind; to left, [Ρ]NΘ above club; to right, KP above monogram; between the eagle's legs, 𐤁 ('B' in Punic). BMC 204 var. (monogram). DCA Tyre 578. Hendin 6652. HGC 10, 357. RPC I 4663.7 (this coin). Rare. The key date in the Tyrian series, perhaps issued in the year of Jesus' crucifixion. Struck on a slightly short flan and with light marks, otherwise, very fine.



Struck in the Tyrian civic year 159 (33/4 CE), this shekel belongs to an issue contemporary with the later of the two principal dates proposed for the crucifixion of Jesus, 33 CE (cf. lot 193 above). This chronological association makes it the most historically evocative issues in the Tyrian series. The Gospel of Matthew records that Judas received 'thirty pieces of silver' for betraying Jesus, but does not identify the denomination (Matthew 26:15). Tyrian shekels have often been proposed because of their high silver content and their use in payments to the Jerusalem Temple, although this identification cannot be proven. They should not be confused with the so-called 'tribute penny' of the 'Render unto Caesar' episode, which the Greek text explicitly identifies as a denarius (Matthew 22:19).