This is my bag of coins that I carry in my Bible and tablet case. I take them with me when I'm going about on church business. I give them to folks when I feel that they are in need of a little inspiration. This is a fairly new bag that I'm using. My previous one was green velvet. It started to split on the edges and I was afraid the coins would begin falling out. Most of these are later Judaean pruta of Herod Agrippa but there are many others mixed in. I purchased these as a bulk lot from a well known Vcoin dealer.
That's nice. I am secular myself, but one time about 20 years ago, I gave a talk at a local church and they invited me to join. I was living in a small town and sent fliers to all of the churches offering to deliver a lecture with examples on "Coins of the Bible." The Methodists took me up on it. I spoke to the men's club. They sent me home with breakfast and I brought my wife back. She did not last as long as I did (too Catholic), but I enjoyed the services for about six months or so. One thing that I recommend is to pursue The Churches of Asia. Everyone falls for the 30 Pieces and the Widow's Mite and maybe if they read more the Temple Tax, but, largely those coins are for consumers who click. If you like numismatic research and Biblical studies, my opinion is that the Churches of Asia offer a wide range of opportunity. Similar to that would be Paul's Journey. When Paul and Luke traveled to Rome, they stopped at places such as Athens. An Athenian tetradrachm, especially a late date one, not a Classic, would be a nice addition. And then you could add the relevant Roman coins of the time. My point is that all of that is much cheaper - and I say more rewarding - than plunking down the bucks for a "Thirty Pieces" Melqart of Tyre.
LOVE your style @Deacon Ray !!! Excellent point. I recently tried to replace a long since sold Shekel of Tyre that I originally purchased about 20 years ago and found one of a lower grade bidding over the about $700.00+ I originally paid and sold for $1,500.-----although that latter example was dated to the time of Christ and stated to have been minted at the Jerusalem mint whereas mine was struck at Tyre and dated circa a bit later.
Have you ever read Ken Bressett's book "Money of The Bible"? It's a great book loaded with all kinds of coins of the Bible era and facts about them. It's a great read. It's available from Whitman Books and it's not expensive.
Thanks for the kind words! Good question about whether any of the kids are into coin collecting! I wouldn't be surprised. They're great kids! Many of them volunteer every year to help serve food to the homeless on Christmas Day.
That's definitely a nice gift for sure. I'd also flip some of those and that way they can also read about the coin.
Thanks Mike! I haven't read it but I've seen it (I think) on the Barnes and Noble website. I'll have to order a copy.
Here: http://www.coinshowradio.com/archives/37 check out my review of the book from coinshowradio.com
Wow! This is not the book I thought it was. This one looks great! I'll definitely have to order a copy. Thanks again, Mike!
Many thanks, Kaparthy! Churches of Asia is a great idea! A lot of us "Bible" coin collectors tend to focus on the Widow's Mite, the Pontius Pilate Procurator coins, and the 30 Pieces of Silver. I purchased Widow's Mites (Lepta and Pruta) when I started out. Since then I've bought a copy of the Sylloge Nummorum Graecorum from The Collection of The American Numismatic Society Part 6 Palestine-South Arabia by Ya’akov Meshorer and I'm using it as a shopping catalog.
