A 1,700-year-old hoard of coins discovered in Israel provides new evidence of the final Jewish revolt against Roman rule.
Archaeologists uncovered the hidden coins during excavations inside the remnants of a newly discovered public building dating back to the Late Roman-Early Byzantine period in Lod (also known as Lydda), a city in what is now central Israel, which the Romans renamed “Diospolis”, according to a statement from the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA).
Silver and bronze coins that may have been hidden during the revolt. (Photo: Dafna Gazit, Israel Antiquities Authority).
Although the building was destroyed at the time of the revolt, the remaining foundations protected 94 silver and bronze coins dated from 221 to 354 CE. Whoever hid them may have “deliberately placed” them inside the building with the hope of returning to retrieve them when the situation calmed down.
Mor Viezel, an excavator from the IAA, stated: “This is essentially an emergency treasure, meaning a stash that people hide in anticipation of a catastrophic event.”
Many of the coins were minted during the Gallus Revolt (351 to 354 CE), a chaotic period when the Jews revolted against the rule of Flavius Claudius Constantius Gallus, the half-brother of Constantine the Great (the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity) and the governor of the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire at the time. Lod was just one of many Jewish communities that rose up as the Romans burned and destroyed buildings in several cities.
Shahar Krispin and Viezel, excavators from the IAA, remarked: “This building, destroyed down to its foundations, is a clear indication that the revolt was violently and brutally suppressed, rather than just a local uprising as some previous studies suggested. From Talmudic works, we know that Lod was one of the most important Jewish centers after the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem.”
In addition to the coins, researchers also found “impressive artifacts made of stone and marble” inscribed with Greek, Hebrew, and Latin texts. One item currently under further study references the name of a Jewish man from a priestly family.
However, it remains unclear how the Jews utilized the building prior to its destruction in the revolt. Joshua Schwartz, a professor and chairman of the IAA, commented: “It is difficult to determine whether this magnificent building served as [a] synagogue, classroom, meeting room for elders, or all three functions combined.”
