The Paleo-Hebrew Script in Achaemenid, Hellenistic andEarly Roman Jewish Coinage
Keywords:
Paleo-Hebrew, Numsimatics, Palaeography, Yehud Coinage, Phoenician CoinageAbstract
Despite the dominance of the square Aramaic script in most contexts, Jewish minting authorities almost exclusively used the Paleo-Hebrew script for Hebrew and Aramaic coin legends from the Achaemenid period until the Bar Kokhba Revolt. This paper reconsiders the dominant interpretation of the script as a ‘nationalistic’ reflection of an assertive Judean identity and an archaising gesture designed to evoke the First Temple period, arguing instead that a more complex combination of factors contributed to its use.
The paper begins by analysing the iconography of Jewish issues during this period, which drew heavily on Hellenistic, Phoenician, Roman procuratorial, and other local artistic traditions, and arguing that a purely ‘nationalistic’ understanding of the coins’ Paleo-Hebrew legends consequently presents interpretative problems. I then suggest that a nationalistic interpretation is also complicated by the Paleo-Hebrew script’s close similarity to the Phoenician script, which was widely used in Phoenician municipal coinage (particularly during the Achaemenid and Hellenistic periods).
The paper then proposes new explanations for the script’s adoption. Firstly, I suggest that, during the Achaemenid, Ptolemaic, and Hasmonean periods the Paleo-Hebrew script was partly selected precisely for its similarity to Phoenician. As such, during these periods, it not only reflected a local identity, but also engagement with regional commercial and cultural networks. Secondly, I propose that the script’s adoption by rebel authorities during the Jewish Revolt did not only communicate pride in Jewish history, but also the need for the rebel administrations to project authority and legitimacy by using conventional designs.
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