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THE STRANGEST COIN WORTH A MILLION DOLLARS

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THE STRANGEST COIN WORTH A MILLION DOLLARS

Last September, US authorities returned to Israel a Jewish silver coin dating from the First Jewish-Roman War. It is an “extremely rare” piece dating back 2,000 years and, according to the Manhattan district attorney’s office, is worth the equivalent of one million dollars.

This important piece was stolen in 2002 by a cell of antiquities thieves who had found a hoard of coins from the time of the Great Revolt near the Elah Valley in central Israel. According to the Israeli Antiquities Authority (IAA), the coin was offered at several auctions in the United States, after being smuggled via Jordan and the United Kingdom.

The coin, a silver quarter shekel, was found in 2017, when US Homeland Security agents seized it in Denver, Colorado, before it was sold. The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office then held the item until the return ceremony that took place on 12 September.

 

THE STORY BEHIND THE SILVER COIN

According to CNN, this shekel is from 69 AD and is one of at least two specimens still in existence. There are believed to be three more of this type on the black market, while the other known specimen is in the British Museum in London porno.

The IAA, as reported by Ynet.com, explained that during the Roman Empire, the emperors
allowed local rulers to mint coins according to their importance and loyalty to Rome. Therefore, the minting of silver coins was a privilege granted to very few.

However, according to Ilan Hadad, inspector in charge of trade at the Antiquities Authority, “the minting of silver coins by the rebel leaders was, in fact, a declaration of independence of the Jewish population of Israel from the powerful empire, which confronted them, and has a representational value far beyond monetary value,” as reported by Ynet.com.

THE STORY BEHIND THE SILVER COIN

According to CNN, the IAA also explained that the rebels used “Jewish motifs” on these coins to cover the emperor’s face. Although there are other coins from the same period created by rebels, Eitan Klein of the IAA’s Theft Prevention Unit told CNN that this one was “extremely rare”.

 

THE COIN’S VALUE, BEYOND MONETARY VALUE

In addition to being valued at $1 million, Klein also said the coin has great “national and scientific significance.” For his part, Colonel Matthew Bogdanos, head of the Manhattan District Attorney’s Antiquities Trafficking Unit, said that its recovery “represents a precious piece of history finally coming home.”

He also highlighted the collaboration between the New York and Israel Antiquities Trafficking Units. It is a partnership that should serve as a model for recovering plundered cultural heritage around the world,” he added, according to Ynet.com. It is certainly a hopeful story for the restoration of cultural heritage assets.

 

 

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¿Why Archaeology is so important?

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Archaeology is, quite simply, the study of past human cultures. The study of human cultures in general is anthropology, which means that archaeologists are, first and foremost, anthropologists. Where archaeologists differ from anthropologists is in their method of study. While the anthropologist enters the field to study among extant human groups, directly observing activities, recording interviews with informants, and interacting with members of the society, the archaeologist studies past human activities and behaviors primarily through observation of materials, features, and structures left behind by the past society. Archaeologists seek to explain the same cultural phenomena that anthropologists study among modern peoples; the two fields are, therefore, inseparable. In fact, archaeologists rely heavily on studies and conclusions regarding modern cultural porno characteristics and patterns in making inferences about those of past peoples. It is important to understand that archaeologists do not simply excavate, describe, and analyze artifacts and ecofacts. Although these activities are certainly practiced by archaeologists, they are not the “be all, end-all” of archaeological research.

The ultimate goal of archaeology is to make sound interpretations about past human behavior, and to look for patterns that might help us to understand cultural change. Archaeologists are able to make interpretations based on careful study of archaeological sites and the materials recovered from archaeological contexts at the site. An archaeological site is an area that was used by human groups in the past, and evidence of its occupation comes in the form of archaeological materials: artifacts, ecofacts, and features. Careful examination and analysis of artifacts (man-made tools or other objects), ecofacts (natural materials included in an archaeological site), features (man-made structures that cannot be removed from a site), and human burials allow archaeologists to piece together a scenario regarding past human lifeways, including interpretations about technologies and subsistence strategies, social complexity, group mobility, intergroup trade, health patterns, and diet.