JERUSALEM – Researchers at University of Haifa’s Zinman Institute of Archaeology uncovered a rare hoard of some 160 coins, which belonged to King Alexander Jannaeus, the second king of the Hasmonean dynasty, during a dig that took place during the Hanukkah season.
Alexander Jannaeus, whose Hebrew name was Jonathan, ruled over the kingdom of Judea from 103 to 76 B.C.
A descendent of Jewish royalty, King Jannaeus was the son of John Hyrcanus and grandson of Simon the Hasmonean, the brother of Judah Maccabee, and great grandson of Mattathias who led the revolt against the armies of Antiochus.
That famous revolt, which broke out in 167 B.C., led to, among other things, the rededication of the Temple which Jews now celebrate every year during the holiday of Hanukkah.
What a fascinating find for Hannukah. A stash of coins from the reign of King of independent Judea Alexander Jannaeus, 2nd king of the Hasmonean (Maccabean) dynasty 103 to 76 BC son of Yochanan Hyrcanus, his grandfather Simon the Great…. https://t.co/jCGWv3JJ91
— S Sebag Montefiore (@simonmontefiore) December 30, 2024
The excavation was led by Dr. Shay Bar, Dr. Yoav Farhi and Dr. Mechael Osband who made their exciting discovery on Friday morning.
Dr. Bar said, “We believe that the coins were discovered at a way station, which we didn’t know about until this excavation. The site included a purification mikvah, a pool and other buildings and was located along the Tirzah River Valley on the main road that leads to the Sartaba fortress which was built by King Jannaeus.”
Dr. Farhi, who is a curator at the Eretz Israel Museum, said it appears at first glance that all the coins are the same. Each coin has an eight-pointed star and an inscription reading “King Alexander, Year 25” in Aramaic, while the other side of the coin has an anchor and in Greek reads, “[Coin of] King Alexander.” Researchers assess the style of this coin was prevalent in 80/79 B.C.
The finding is extremely rare as very few coin hoards belonging to Alexander Jannaeus have been discovered and this marks one of the largest coin hauls of its kind ever uncovered in Israel.
Archaeological discoveries are one of the best ways of rebutting allegations of Jewish colonization of Israel, as they frequently reveal the thousands year old Jewish presence in the Holy Land.
In July 2024, for example, a rare coin from the period of the Great Revolt against Rome, minted in 69 A.D. was found to be embossed with the words, “For the victory of Zion.”
“All of our students and volunteers were very excited to find this Hasmonean relic, especially during Hanukkah. This gave the holiday an added sense of significance, especially during this difficult time for the Jewish people. I hope that people will be drawn to visit this place and it will become a protected archaeological heritage site in Israel,” Dr. Bar said.
