US Returns Ancient Coins to Israel: A Hasmonean Prutah and an Ashkelon Tetradrachm
This week, a formal repatriation ceremony was held in New York for two priceless artifacts that had been illegally smuggled out of Israel and discovered at American auctions. The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office officially handed over the coins to representatives of the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), thereby concluding a years-long investigation into international antiquities trafficking.
One of the returned relics is a bronze prutah from the reign of the last Hasmonean king, Mattathias Antigonus, minted between 40 and 37 BCE. This artifact holds exceptional significance for historians, as it bears one of the earliest known depictions of the Temple Menorah and the Table of Showbread. The second coin is an extremely rare silver tetradrachm from the Persian period, minted in ancient Ashkelon. To date, science knows of only two such coins in the entire world, making its return a momentous event for the archaeological community.
The journey of these treasures back to their homeland began with the proactive efforts of the IAA’s Antiquities Robbery Prevention Unit, which tracked suspicious auction lots in the United States. It was revealed that the coins were unearthed by looters during illegal excavations, after which they were secretly smuggled abroad to be resold to collectors. Thanks to close cooperation between Israeli experts, the Manhattan Antiquities Trafficking Unit, and US Homeland Security Investigations, the sales were thwarted and the artifacts were confiscated.
The leadership of the Israel Antiquities Authority emphasized that such repatriations are not merely a legal victory, but a restoration of historical justice. Now that the coins have returned to Jerusalem, they will be studied by specialists and will eventually become part of museum exhibitions. This case has once again confirmed that the international net is closing in on the illegal antiquities market, and unique heritage is increasingly returning to its people rather than remaining locked away in private safes.
