PERSIA AR SIGLOS ACHAEMENID KINGS, XERXES I - DARIOS II, 485 - 420 B.C.E.
Carradice Type IIIb A/B, Good Very Fine, toned, 15.8mm, 5.42 grams
Obverse: Persian king or in kneeling-running stance right, holding spear and bow
Reverse: Incuse punch
An affordable example, nicely centered and well struck with some graininess.
Biblical Coin which circulated around the time of King Ahaseurus and Queen Esther of the Purim story in the Biblical Book of Esther.
This denomination is 1/3 of a Persian Shekel. This amount is probably what Nehemia was referring to when he asked the Judaean populace for a 1/3 shekel donation for the rebuilding of the Temple precincts, i.e. 1/3 of a Persian shekel was exactly the same weight as 1/2 of a Judaean shekel, the half shekel Temple tax (Machazit HaShekel) at the time.
