The word “Fouree” is the word used for a counterfeit coin.  “Fouree” is based on a French word that means “filled.” These counterfeit coins were usually filled with bronze but then covered with silver or gold. Some are of very high quality so it may be that the same workers who made the officially minted coins also used their skills and tools to make counterfeits.  One way to know if you have a counterfeit is that its weight differs from the coins it is mimicking. But usually because of the age of these coins they have lost some of their silver/gold coating and you can see the bronze below.

There is a reference to counterfeit coins in the scriptures. Matthew 12:35 talks about evil (counterfeit) treasure.  This passage is a call to be pure in intention all the way through and not just “shiny” on the outside.  The person who is good treasure is the same all the way through and so goodness flows from them.

Ruler: Augustus

Date: 4BC-6AD

Denomination: Fouree

Obverse: Augustus

Reverse: Gaius & Lucius

Reference: Imitates Sear 1597

Aretas IV, the Nabataean ruler, has numerous connections with the New Testament.  It was his daughter who married Herod Antipas.  This is the marriage that Herod ended in order to marry Herodias. It was against this divorce and remarriage that John the Baptist preached and was eventually beheaded.  It was also Aretas IV who was trying to capture the Apostle Paul when he was at Damascus.  Paul escaped by being lowered from the city wall in a basket.  We could also consider Aretas IV as a candidate for being one of the Kings of the Magi story since his kingdom was nearby, he reigned during the needed dates and his lands are somewhat “to the East.”

Ruler: Aretas IV
Date: 9BC-40AD
Denomination: AE 18
Obverse: Aretas & Shuquilat
Reverse: Cornucopia “X”

The scriptures mention that it was a denarius that was shown to Jesus of Nazareth when he was asked the question about paying taxes to the Roman Emperor.  (Mk 12:14-17) This has led many to believe that it is the following coin that was shown to Jesus.  This is possible since it is a denarius and it is of the emperor Tiberius who reigned at the time.  But since the scriptures only use the word “denarius”  and does not tell us exactly whose image was on the coin, then it could also have been a silver coin minted by Augustus.

Note I prefer to call it the Tribute Coin because the usual term “Tribute Penny” could be misleading in indicating its worth. A denarius is what a person would earn for a full day’s pay and therefore is rather valuable.   The denarius is the coin of choice for use by people in the western part of the Roman Empire and would have been a rather rare coin in the eastern part of the Roman Empire and this includes the area of Judea. 

Ruler: Tiberius

Date: 14-37AD

Denomination: Denarius

Obverse: Tiberius r.

Reverse: Livia

Reference: H.916  Sear 1763

One of the Greek words used in the New Testament for “money changer” can be translated to mean “to cut.”  This is a reference to how a money changer could make change. If they had the right coinage then their work was easy. But sometimes they needed to create the right change so they would cut a coin to the size they needed.  The coins below will show what I mean. We can see the coin as it was minted and then a second coin, of similar style, that has been cut in half.

Ruler: Augustus/Agrippa

Date: 10AD

Denomination: Dupondius

Obverse: Augustus/Agrippa

Reverse: Crocodile/Palm Tree “PP”

Reference: Sear 1731

Ruler: Augustus/Agrippa

Date: 10BC – 10AD

Denomination: Dupondius

Obverse: Augustus/Agrippa

Reverse: Crocodile/Palm Tree

Reference: Sear 1730

The reverse of this coin shows a crocodile that is chained to a palm branch. This is a celebration of the capture (chained) of Egypt (crocodile) in 30BC.

I have included a coin from Byblos in the exhibit not specifically because of I think this coin was on the money changers table, but rather because of its special meaning. Byblos is a city that focused their trade on a specialized market – the selling of papyrus for writing. Even the name of the city celebrates this specialty; “Byblos” is the Greek word for “book.”  It is this Greek word that gives us the name “Bible” because the it is a collection of “papyrus” or “books.”

The coin shows a war galley with soldiers inside (hoplites). Under the war galley is a mythical sea creature called a Hippocamp. On the reverse is a lion attacking a bull. The Phoenicians invented many shipbuilding techniques so a war galley theme would be a sign of national pride. The lion attacking could either be a reference to a deity or to a king.

City: Byblos, Phoenicia

Date: 333-320BC

Denomination: Dishekel

Obverse: Galley

Reverse: Bull & Lion