Obverse: Prow of Galley Reverse: Greek incription, "Ethnarch," Surrounded by Wreath Herod Archelaus was the son of King Herod the Great and his wife Malthace. Upon Herod’s death in 4 B.C., his kingdom was divided amongst his sons Archelaus, Herod Antipas, and Philip with Archelaus receiving the largest portion to govern under the title ethnarch, or “national leader.” However, immediately after his accession, things went horribly wrong. Just before his death, Herod the Great sentenced two popular teachers, Judas and Mathias (as well as their students), to be burned alive for inciting their pupils to remove the golden eagle from the entrance to the Temple. An angry mob greeted the new leader, Archelaus, demanding justice for these martyrs. In order to quell this protest, Archelaus had over three thousand Jews murdered. Once calm was seemingly restored, Archelaus ventured off to Rome to have himself crowned by Augustus. During his absence, a new series of new riots were initiated by a series of messianic Jewish leaders, among them Athronges. Herod’s soldiers were unable to deal with the rebellion and reinforcements were called in from Roman-governed Syria. In the end, the rioting ceased after much more bloodshed. Herod Archelaus was such a bad leader that the citizens of Samaria and Judea jointly appealed to Rome to appoint a new leader. There request was granted and Archelaus was banished to Gaul, ending another bloody chapter in the history of ancient Israel. Origin: Israel Circa: 4 BC to 6 AD Collection: Numismatics Style: Herodian Medium: Bronze

Antique Coins
Ancient coins