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Hiker discovers "rare" Roman gold coin in Israel

Xinhua, March 14, 2016 Adjust font size:

A 2,000-year-old gold coin, bearing the image of the Roman Emperor Augustus, has been found by a hiker in northern Israel, authorities said Monday.

According to a statement by the Antiquities Authority, the coin was minted by Emperor Trajan in 107 CE, as part of a series of nostalgic coins dedicated to the Roman emperors that ruled before him.

The Antiquities Authority said the find was believed to be "the second such coin of its kind now known to exist."

Until now, a similar coin on display in the British Museum "was apparently the only one of its kind known in the world," the Antiquities Authority said.

The "identical twin brother" was discovered recently by Laurie Rimon, from Kibbutz Kfar Blum in northern Israel, while hiking in the eastern Galilee.

According to numismatist Danny Syon, the coin "is rare on a global level. On the reverse, we have the symbols of the Roman legions next to the name of the ruler Trajan, and on the obverse - instead of an image of Emperor Trajan, as was usually the case, there is the portrait of the emperor 'Augustus Deified'."

Donald T. Ariel, head curator of the coin department at the Israel Antiquities Authority, believes the coin may reflect the presence of the Roman army in the region some 2,000 years ago, possibly in the wake of efforts to subdue Jewish insurgents in the Galilee.

"Historical sources describing the period note that some Roman soldiers were paid a high salary of three gold coins, the equivalent of 75 silver coins, each payday. Because of their high monetary value soldiers were unable to purchase goods in the market with gold coins, as the merchants could not provide change for them," said Ariel.

"Whilst the bronze and silver coins of Emperor Trajan are common in the country, his gold coins are extremely rare," he said.

So far, only two other gold coins of this emperor have been registered in the State Treasures, one from Givat Shaul near Jerusalem, and the other from the Qiryat Gat region, in southern Israel. Endit