Hoard of Gold Coins and Magical Gemstone
- September 1 2021 - September 1 2022
- Curator: Liza Lurie
- Dsigner: Rivka Myers
- Permanent Exhibition Galleries, Archaeology Wing
An unusually large hoard of 108 dinars and fractions ensconced in a magnificent pottery vessel was uncovered in the floor of a Crusader fortress in Apollonia, revealing that Fatimid coins were still in use in this region some 250 years after the end of Fatimid rule. It was probably hidden during the fortress’s last days, just before the Mamluk army led by the Sultan Baybars captured and destroyed it.
A large gemstone bearing a magical inscription was also retrieved on the site. The only stone of its kind ever found in an archaeological excavation in this region. The talismanic inscription forms an ideogram – a code in which part of the first line apparently refers to chapter 19 of the Quran, Surah Maryam (after Mary, mother of Jesus), which was believed to have protective powers.
Photo: Lora Lachman
Photo: Ofrit Rozenberg
- Apr 18May 02May 06May 09May 16May 20May 23May 27May 30
- May 06May 20May 27
- May 02May 06May 09May 16May 20May 23May 27May 30
- Apr 19Apr 20Apr 27May 03May 04May 07May 10May 11May 17May 18May 21May 24May 25May 28May 31
- May 07Jun 25
- May 07Jun 18
- Apr 18May 02May 09May 16May 23May 30
- Apr 18May 02May 09May 16May 23May 30
- Apr 18May 02May 09May 16May 23May 30
- Apr 16Apr 18Apr 30May 02May 09May 16May 23May 30
- May 09May 16May 23May 30