Aside from the regular pre-holiday turmoil and current strained international relations, two things of note took place last week of particular interest to collectors and investors. First, a piece of cardboard sold at auction for $7.2 million. Printed in 1914, the small card featured a red, monochrome picture of baseball great Babe Ruth.
It was the rookie card for the Babe when he played with the minor league Baltimore Orioles in the defunct “International League.” The only baseball cards to have commanded higher prices are a 1910 Honus Wagner for $7.25 million and the king of them all – a Mickey Mantle rookie card from 1952 which sold for $12.6 million in 2022. All would make for one heck of a Christmas gift....
Last week’s other significant event was gold hitting an all-time high of $2,130 per ounce. It has since backed off but mostly remained above the magic $2,000 level. That could be the new floor for the precious metal. Time will tell.
Dialing the clock back 2,000 years, gold was every bit as coveted as it is now. Probably even more. Most coins from around the year “one” were struck from bronze/copper or silver. Only a few, such as a Roman aureus, were minted in gold. Those lucky or rich enough to own an aureus might have seen the image of infamous Emperor Nero. On the reverse majestically stands Jupiter, king of the Roman gods. Such gold coins trade now for between $15,000 and $30,000.
While Christmas has curiously morphed from a spiritual observance to the gifting of Barbies; Legos; remote-control drones and the like, we can still climb into the “WayBack Machine” to get a glimpse of and actually hold a piece of the Holy Land of two millennia ago. That’s possible through affordable copper and silver coins from the time of Jesus.
Of the three most recognized coins connected with Jesus, the “Widow’s Mite” is the most abundant. It is a tiny bronze “Lepton” coin that was tantamount to a penny in ancient times. As people made their offerings, Jesus observed “a poor widow who threw in two mites.”
According to Mark 12: “Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury. For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.”
Those Widow’s Mites are still abundant and available. Depending on condition, the coins currently sell for $25 to $50.
The second notable coin would be the silver Roman denarius. It is called out in both Gospels of Mark and Matthew. When asked about paying an “Imperial tax” to Caesar, in Mark 12:15, Jesus instructs his disciples to bring him bring him a denarius to inspect. After seeing a portrait of Caesar on the coin, Jesus then says (Matthew 22:21), “Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's.”
Again, depending on the condition including wear, corrosion and centering of the strike, a Roman denarius from the time of Jesus can be acquired today for between $300 and $500. Might one existing today be one that passed through the hands of Jesus? Anything’s possible.
Finally, perhaps the most famous of all biblical coins is the Phoenician “Shekel of Tyre.” At roughly the size of a modern-day half dollar, a shekel was then worth about a week’s wages. As the biblical account goes, Judas was paid, “30 pieces of silver” to betray Christ. Minted from 126 B.C. to 57 A.D., and as the only coin accepted at the Jerusalem Temple, it has been determined the Shekel of Tyre is that which was used to pay Judas.
The present-day collector value of a Shekel of Tyre in very nice condition ranges from $1,500 to $3,000. While it’s impossible to know if any around today are one of the original 30 paid to Judas or handled by Jesus, again, it’s entirely possible.
CAVEAT: Just as there were thieves and scallywags in ancient times, excellent counterfeits of such coins abound today. If buying, always insist on an accompanying NGC, PCGS or other recognized certificate of authenticity!
In the end, while not overtly cheap, in a somewhat affordable way, owning any of these coins is the very definition of “holding biblical history in your hands.” Not a bad thing to be able to do at Christmas.
For more collecting information and advice, log on to: http://prexford.com/.