Ancient Roman Coin ID Help

thecoinjunkie

Hello,

A friend recently came across this coin in their holdings and was wondering what it was. Not being very well versed in ancients, I was hoping someone here could lend a hand with an ID. These are their pictures of the coin. My limited research has it coming up as a Roman Festus coin. Many thanks!

7Jaguars

Hmm, not my area but looks to be from Levant and not mainline Roman. Provincial - Palestine or ??

Sapyx

"Festus" was procurator (governor) of Judaea; this is a Roman Provincial coin from Judaea, from the time of governor Festus, while everyone's favourite emperor Nero was on the throne in Rome. The coins don't actually name the governor, only the emperor: "NERONOS" is on one side, within a wreath, and "KAISAROS" (Caesar) on the other, surrounding the palm branches. The only other recorded information on the coin is the date: LE, meaning "Year 5" of Nero's reign, corresponding to AD 58-59.

These small bronzes are often called "prutah", and generally regarded as being more or less equivalent to a Roman quadrans. The coin is listed in David Hendin's "Guide to Biblical Coins" as number 1351. Emperor Nero isn't mentioned by name in the Bible, but Governor Festus is (Acts 25:9-12).

It's not the coin normally marketed as a "Widow's Mite", since it dates from well after the lifetime of Jesus, but it is technically a double-mite denomination.

thecoinjunkie

Wow, that is absolutely amazing! Many thanks for the detailed description and more importantly, the history behind this coin. The wealth of knowledge on these boards is nothing short of remarkable.