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Home Widow's
Mites Judaean Roman
Byzantine Tiny
Coins Greek
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Widow's Mite in Olive Wood Box, from
Bethlehem
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The bronze lepton of Alexander Jannaeus was the
smallest denomination of coins circulating during the life of Jesus.
Though minted before 78 BC, they circulated widely for centuries, even as
late as the 4th century AD. Historians have concluded that these
were the coins mentioned in the famous biblical story of the poor
widow. The monetary value of these coins was extremely
small - some
sources say that a loaf of bread cost 200 leptons - but their symbolic and
historical significance is substantial.
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These leptons have not been cleaned or
otherwise altered, and still
carry the dust from their find spot near Bethlehem. The metal bears
a thick, beautiful colored patina, developed by centuries in the earth.
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click
to enlarge |
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click
to enlarge |
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No two ancient coins are exactly alike. Like most ancient coins, these leptons were hand
struck from hand-carved dies, and are almost always poorly centered and of
uneven thickness.
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We offer a select examples of the Alexander Jannaeus lepton in
an olive wood presentation box.
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*Price includes
shipping in USA. International orders may incur additional charges. |
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