One Shekel Worth $1.1 Million – at Auction
One Shekel Worth $1.1 Million – at Auction
An unidentified American East Coast collector plucked down $1.1 million for an ancient Judean shekel coin at a New York auction. The coin was sold by a collector from the Los Angeles area who paid $240,000 for it in 1991, giving him a five-fold profit in 21 years.
The silver coin was dated to the year 66, four years before the destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans. The modern shekel, which does not contain silver, is worth a fraction more than 26 cents.
Read more of the article at One Shekel Worth $1.1 Million – at Auction – Inside Israel – News – Israel National News.
Story by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu – Israel National News; Photo from Israel Museum
Roman-Era Sword Uncovered in Ancient Ditch
A sword used by a Roman soldier during the brutal pacification of the Jews and the destruction of the Temple at Jerusalem nearly 2,000 years ago, has emerged from an ancient drainage tunnel beneath the city, Israeli authorities announced this week.
Excavated since 2007, the tunnel, which was used by Jewish rebels as a hiding place from the Romans, has also yielded a stone object adorned with a rare engraving of a menorah, the seven-branched temple candelabra that was the symbol of ancient Judaism.
The 60-centimetre (23.6-inches) long weapon, still in its leather scabbard, is the third Roman sword found in Jerusalem.
Read More at Roman-Era Sword Uncovered in Ancient Ditch : Discovery News.
Story by Rossella Lorenzi – Discovery; Photo by Clara Amit – Israel Antiques Authority
Posted in History News | 
Archeology, Artifacts, Isreal, Jerusalem, Jewish, Middle East, Roman, Weapons | 
The British Mandate for Palestine
On July 24, 1922, the Council of the League of Nations – the predecessor of the United Nations Security Council – gave its blessing to The British Mandate for Palestine, taking one of the first legal steps toward the eventual establishment of the State of Israel. The decision was taken in the wake of World War One and was greatly influenced by the colonial system in place at the time. As the war ended, the victorious Western powers decided the former territories of the Ottoman Empire, chiefly Palestine, Transjordan, Syria and Lebanon were to be placed under European receivership “until such time as they are able to stand alone.”
The British Mandate for Palestine put under the mandatory powers of Great Britain: Palestine and Transjordan, known today as Israel, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Temporary in nature, the Mandate was designed to be a preparatory step toward the establishment of independent states, among them “a national home for the Jewish people.”
Read More at This Week in History: T… JPost – Features – Insights & Features.
Story by Michael Omer-man – The Jerusalem Post; Photo from Jerusalem Post Archives
Archaeologists Discover High Priest’s Bell?
Archaeologists have discovered a rare gold bell with a small loop at its end. 
The finding was made during an archaeological excavation in the City of David National Park (near the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem) by the Israel Antiquities Authority in cooperation with the Israel Nature and Parks Authority and the Ir David Foundation.
The directors of the excavation on behalf of the Antiquities Authority, archaeologists Eli Shukron and Professor Ronny Reich of Haifa University, said after the finding, “The bell looked as if it was sewn on the garment worn by a man of high authority in Jerusalem at the end of the Second Temple period.
Read More at Archaeologists Discover High Priest’s Bell? – - News – Israel National News.
Story by Elad Benari
Lawrence of Judea
T.E. Lawrence—better known in Britain and throughout the Middle East as Lawrence of 
Arabia—was a lifelong friend of Arab national aspirations. In 1917 and 1918 he participated as a British officer in the Arab revolt against the Turks, a revolt led by Sharif Hussein, later King of the Hedjaz. He was also an adviser to Hussein’s son Feisal, whom he hoped to see on the throne of Syria. For generations of British Arabists, Lawrence was and remains a symbol of British understanding of and support for the Arab cause. Virtually unknown, however, is his understanding of and support for Jewish national aspirations in the same era.
In mid-December 1918, a month after the end of World War I, Lawrence was instrumental in securing an agreement between Emir Feisal and the Zionist leader Dr. Chaim Weizmann. The meeting was held at the Carlton Hotel in London.
Read More at The Cutting Edge News.
Story by Martin Gilbert
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