The quarter shekel coin, dated to 69 AD, is one of only four of its kind known to exist
Posted on 09/13/2022 11:47:25 AM PDT by SJackson
The quarter shekel coin, dated to 69 AD, is one of only four of its kind known to exist
It took nearly 20 years of dogged detective work and a trail which crossed continents before the case of the missing $1m relic could be closed.
"A cherished piece of history [is] finally going home," said a US official at a ceremony marking the occasion.
That piece of history is a small silver coin rich in symbolism, minted during a Jewish revolt nearly 2,000 years ago.
Looted in Israel in 2002, it was eventually tracked down, seized and is being returned to where it came from.
The saga began when the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) learned from informants that the coin had been taken by Palestinians from a hoard unearthed in the Ella Valley, south of Jerusalem.
The IAA says it spent the next decade and a half trying to locate the coin, which passed through illicit antiquities markets in Israel, Jordan and the UK. It was eventually exported to the US for sale at an auction in Denver, Colorado, in 2017.
The IAA alerted US Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), which then took administrative custody of the coin. The investigation was passed to the Manhattan District Attorney's Antiquities Trafficking Unit (ATU), which obtained a court order to repatriate the coin based on information from informants in five countries along with help from authorities in Europe and the Middle East.
The coin was handed over on Monday in a ceremony at the Manhattan District Attorney's office attended by US and Israeli officials, including Israel's ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...
ping
Who said gold and silver money are “barbarous old relics?”
Given all the effort they put in to find it, I would say even government recognizes its value.
It sounds like it was dug up and no one knew it was there.
I’m surprised the usual suspects aren’t shrieking that it rightfully belongs to Palestine.
oy vey
There’s the makings of a truly tasteless joke here, but I’m not going to make it...
If only four are known to exist, where is the rest of the “hoard” that was dug up?
Sounds like it would make a good film. As long as the PC was kept out of it.
...a small silver coin rich in symbolism, minted during a Jewish revolt nearly 2,000 years ago.
Thanks SJackson!
A quarter Shekel is worth $1 Million?
That’s super duper INFLATION!.....................😜
How much was the interest on the loan of it?
If you have to ask, you can’t afford it.
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