Judaea, Hasmonean Kingdom. Alexander Jannaeus (Yehonatan). Æ Prutah (6.20 g), 103-76 BCE. Jerusalem. 'Yehonatan the King' (Paleo-Hebrew) between the rays of star with eight rays, all within diadem. Reverse: BAΣIΛEΩΣ AΛEΞANΔPOY, inverted anchor. Hendin 1150a; TJC grp. K. Rarely seen like this. Heavy weight and with full detail. Extremely Fine. Value $500 - UP
Easily the most well known of Alexander Jannaeus' prutah coinages, this issue boldly advertises his status as king while paying attention to Jewish prohibitions against graven images of living things which had evolved since the time of the Yehud coinages in the fourth century BCE. While contemporary Seleukid and Ptolemaic kings regularly had their diademed portraits shown on their coins, Jannaeus was forced to content himself with depicting a star - apparently as a cipher for his image - surrounded by a diadem. It is unclear whether the star was meant to give a messianic flavor to Jannaeus' somewhat brutal style of kingship, but the anchor reverse casts him as a successor to dying Seleukid power in the Southern Levant.