Ophel Medallion

That's Ophel, not awful, nor offal, but Ophel.
While I was doing my daily history posts a while back, the Ophel Treasure came up, and I've always been a sucker for treasure.
So of course I had to do some research, starting with Wikipedia, http://ift.tt/1MJXybs

Quote:

The Ophel treasure is a 1400 years old collection of 36 gold coins and a large gold medallion discovered in 2013 on the foot of Jerusalem's Temple Mount by archeologist Eilat Mazar. The medallion is engraved with Jewish symbols like a seven branched menorah, a shofar and a Torah. Mazar dated her findings to the Persian conquest of Jerusalem in 614. CE After the Persians conquered Jerusalem, many Jews returned to the city and formed the majority of its population. According to Lior Sandberg, numismatics specialist at the Institute of Archaeology. "The 36 gold coins can be dated to the reigns of different Byzantine emperors, ranging from the middle of the fourth century CE to the early seventh century CE. “The cache was abandoned most probably after the Persian conquest of Jerusalem and after the Persians changed their attitude to the Jews and allowed their expulsion from the city. The fact that the gold was not properly hidden nor taken back attests to the tragic circumstances that led to its abandonment.”Sandberg wrote.[/

... Wikipedia




Holy Smokes! That medallion is about the same size as Dave Winfield's Giant Penny. Idea Time...

Attached Images

Ophel Medallion.jpg (235.7 KB)