https://www.ebay.com/itm/H1-LOT-OF-...ah-67-68-AD-/265293396987?hash=item3dc4b7fbfb I don't have a budget for these now, but they look like an interesting stash
Wow. A dozen of them - $4 shipping from Israel to the US. I wonder if these need an export license? A couple years ago I lucked into one of these in my local dealer's junk bin, which leads me to believe these are not exactly uncommon, though quite interesting historically: Judea, First Jewish War Æ Prutah Year 3 (68-69 A.D.) Amphora with two handles and lid with paleo-Hebrew inscription Year Three around / Vine leaf on branch with paleo-Hebrew inscription The Freedom of Zion around. Hendin 664; Meshorer 204. (3.70 grams / 18 mm) AZ Nov. 29, 2019
They certainly need paperwork from the Israel Antiquities Authority. Before the pandemic this would have taken no more than a week or so.
I picked one up at a local coin show almost 2 years ago (15 September 2019). If memory serves me, I paid around $20 for it. This was before I kept better records . Not as nice as the ones in the picture. But nowhere near the cost
This week on Coinsweekly : https://coinsweekly.com/will-israel-put-an-end-to-the-antiquities-trade/ And about this seller: (reply #11 and #13): https://www.cointalk.com/threads/wh...eller-real-or-fake-coins.385519/#post-7853579
Two things. The ending of trade in antiquities from Israel is NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN. The Jewish Diaspora is depending on a flow and extremely hungry for a connection to their roots and it is a founding interest of the State of Israel to promote and serve that historical connection between the Land of Isreal and the Jewish people. As for the vendor, I know nothing specific of him, but the pointed thread, IMO, is weak and has several inaccuracies, the first of which is that antiquities are highly regulated. They are not. There are licenses, and those that are licensed have broad license to deal. And if you have ever been to the country, Antiquities are everywhere. They flow out of every corner of the country. Unless they strip search ever passenger on every airline, they will never end the open sales and dealings from the country. When they DO this, they are looking for bombs, not widows mites... One more thing. Israel is flooded with archeologist. The market and the archeologist are highly integrated, and co-dependent... as it should be. Museums have little to worry about with Israeli artifacts. Tourists have more to worry about with fake 10th BCE oil lamps.
BTW - I am not in any way validating the vendor. I might ask someone on staff for an opinion. I thought the coins looked very real and nice. The price is somewhere in the market value. It is just unusual to see so many at once, outside of Jerusalem's old city Ebay will not protect you from forgeries. A solid verifiable history on pedigree, as ALWAYS, would be essential as a starting point to determine if the coins are fake or not.
