ANCIENT Biblical Coin of The Magi,Bronze Tetradrachm of Azes II,35 BC-5 AD,Album

Description

ANCIENT Biblical Coin of The Magi,Bronze Tetradrachm of Azes II,35 BC-5 AD,- Includes Story, Certificate and Album.The larger Magi Coin.
Greek Indo Scythian bronze tetradrachm
Obverse: King Azes II on horse; Reverse: standing figure Zeus; Kharoshthi script
Weight: 7.7-9.8g; Diameter: 19.5 mm -21mm
Album open measures: 11” x 7.5”
Album folded measures: 5.5” x 7.5”
This Azes II bronze tetradrachm played a major role in the history of Early Christianity.
Now when Jesus w as born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men
from the east to Jerusalem , Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the
east, and are com e to worship him . . . . And, lo, the star, w hich they saw in the east, w ent before them , till it came
and stood over w here the young child was. . . .When they saw the star, they rejoiced w ith exceeding great joy.
And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and
worshiped him : and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and
frankincense, and myrrh. (Matthew Ch.2, KJV)
"The wise men of the east" were guided by the Star of Bethlehem. Christian tradition has set their number as three,
called them Magi, and named them Caspar or Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar. The term Magi is derived from the
Greek "magos"—the same root as "magic". They are interpreted today to have been court astrologers from the east
who studied and interpreted signs in the sky. The EPIPHANY commemorates their visit. Biblical scholars have
debated their identities for centuries. Many scholars believe Caspar (or Gaspar) to have been a representative sent
by "The Great King" Azes II of ancient Bactria to the Holy Land to pay homage to the newborn J esus. His travels
were almost certain to have been financed by these very same bronze tetradrachms issued by Azes, who ruled the
area which is now modern Afghanistan from 35 BC to 5 AD—during the time of the birth of Jesus. This remarkably
well preserved, 20 00 year old, genuine bronze tetradrachm depicts Azes II on horseback, and shows a standing
figure of Zeus on the reverse.
Azes II was king of Bactria—present day Afghanistan—from 35 BC to 5 AD. He was a political descendant of
Alexander the Great, who brought Greek culture to the east. The obverse legends of his coins were written in
Greek, the reverse is in Indian script, making his coinage among the earliest bilingual coins. The bronze
tetradrachm was based on the original classical Greek coin denomination that was introduced more than 5
centuries earlier. The coins were hand-made by ancient artisans by placing a blank disk, heated to make it soft,
between blocks of iron carved with reversed designs, and striking the upper block hard with a hammer. This
resulted in imperfect, but remarkably detailed coins considering the crudeness of the method. Much of Azes’s
coinage was issued before the birth of Christ, but some had to have been struck on the day of Christ's birth, and all
were in circulation when Christ lived.
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