The New Testament Through Twelve Coins

This post is part of my series on the New Testament as illuminated by twelve coins from antiquity.

Here are coins 7 and 8 from Herod the Great and Caesar Augustus.

# 7 Herod the Great’s Eagle Coin (4 BC)

Herod the Great minted this bronze prutah featuring an eagle. This is historically significant as the coin intersects with the golden eagle incident. Herod placed a golden eagle, a symbol of Roman power, above the Jerusalem Temple gates around 4 BC. When the news leaked that Herod was gravely ill, two leading Pharisees (Judas and Matthias), incited their followers to tear down the eagle as it was a violation of the Second Commandment prohibiting graven images. The zealous Judaeans and their teachers were put to death as one of Herod’s final acts of brutal repression.