Coins that carry a curse

What a great story coin!

A curseless Artuqid coin from the following reign:

Husam al-Din Yuluq Arslan (1184-1200); sometimes said to depict the mourning of Saladin. (I doubt it.)

 

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The thirty tyrian shekels judas was paid to betray jesus. Imagine if some of those coins still exist and are in the hands of collectors.

 

I doubt you can tell the differences.

 

An article in the American Journal of Numismatics by M. F. DeMely says 16 of the coins were known in the Middle Ages https://www.jstor.org/stable/43582964

There is still one in the Hunt museum in Ireland. I have not seen the real one, there is a picture of it at http://www.huntmuseum.com/collection/dekadrachm-of-syracuse-one-of-the-thirty-pieces-of-silver/ . It is a Syracusan Dekadrachm.

According to Wikipedia "A number of 'Judas-pennies', ancient coins said to be from the original thirty, were treated as relics in the Middle Ages, and were believed to help in difficult cases of childbirth."

You might be able to detect one of the 30 by bringing your shekels to maternity wards and tracking if the number of complications falls during the time they are present.

 

I was once told that the level of scholarship a few hundred years ago identified the silver coins of Rhodes as showing Jesus wearing the crown of thorns. Has anyone else heard this one and know where the idea originated?

 

The article I linked above popularized the idea. Here is a quote:

https://books.google.com/books?id=5...jo&dq=sanderus rhodes judas&pg=PA70#v=onepage

I lack the patience to track down these sources!

 

I am very doubtful of such claims.

1. . Firstly, there is absolutely no scientific evidence that could link ownership or who or what Judas' genetic build is like.
2. Even if he actually have those 30, no one can tell whether who amongst the hundreds who may have touched them actually bear traces of his DNA, fingerprints or otherwise because none were kept for reference.
3. Placing evidence on the Bible as factual is undoubtedly not something reliable.
4. History is abound with countless religious relics with dubious claims and scepticism. Some to note like the Shroud of Turin, the ark of the covenant, the holy grail, Excalibur etc..