Coins of the First Century Roman Governors of Judaea and their Motifs

This article examines the motifs on the coins struck in Judaea under the auspices of local Roman governors (prefects and procurators) between the dismissal of the ethnarch, Herod Archelaus, in 6 CE and the eve of the First Jewish Revolt which broke out in 66 CE. Although the governors were only designated by the title procurator from the mid-first century onwards, this series of coins is conventionally referred to as “procuratorial.” All are bronzes minted in Jerusalem in a single denomination, generally identified as the prutah, and bear aniconic motifs. Because they carry year dates, we know that these coins were issued fairly sporadically and the possible reasons for this are reviewed. The coin types are analysed and their respective origins and meanings identified. An attempt is made to assess the extent to which their motifs support the picture presented in the literary sources of the changing political climate in both in Judaea and Rome over the period in which these coins were minted.