NEWPs: Mega Colorful Israel Pidyon Haben Set

Zohar

These come in sets of 5 and some sit in a wooden box. These compose a single set which was uniquely toned. I took it in trade and will now sell my other set of 5.

I am working on a select set of Israeli coins here, focused on quality regardless of scarcity - https://coins.collectors-society.com/WCM/CoinCustomSetView.aspx?s=1511

1971 10 Lirot. Pidyon Haben. These coins were specially issued by the Bank of Israel for the Ceremony of the Redemption of the First-Born Son. Exodus 13:1-3 tells us that a son who is the firstborn of his mother belongs to God; or more specifically, to the Kohen (priest) who serves in the worship of God. It is stated, we "redeem" the child, or buy him back. The redemption price is stated in the Torah as five Sheqalim of silver. The ceremony generally takes place when the baby is 31 days old. A set of 5 coins guaranteed to contain 117 grams of Pure Silver in accordance with the biblical ordinance of the Redemption of the Son.

TwoKopeiki

Beautifully matched set, Z!

lordmarcovan

Wow. The reverse on the third one has pretty much ideal toning. All fantastic, and star-worthy.

Israel's stark modernism on their designs is not my usual cuppa tea, but I tip my hat to these very impressive pieces nonetheless.

asheland

Very nice indeed!

brg5658

@lordmarcovan said:
Wow. The reverse on the third one has pretty much ideal toning. All fantastic, and star-worthy.

Israel's stark modernism on their designs is not my usual cuppa tea, but I tip my hat to these very impressive pieces nonetheless.

I agree, massive eye appeal -- even if the design is

marcmoish

@brg5658 said:

@lordmarcovan said:
Wow. The reverse on the third one has pretty much ideal toning. All fantastic, and star-worthy.

Israel's stark modernism on their designs is not my usual cuppa tea, but I tip my hat to these very impressive pieces nonetheless.

I agree, massive eye appeal -- even if the design is

agreed massive EA is right - re. the design for the issue it is cool, every country has their look...I am not totally fond of it either..great grades period! Love it.

coinkat

These coins seem to capture a Mid Century Modern look to the extent it exists on coinage. Very nice examples. Not to end the post on a downer, but one just cannot help but wonder how many of these modern Israeli commems have survived. Think about the spikes in silver over time and then look at the original mintage of some of these coins... And don't overlook the reeded edge examples. I could only guess but that guess would be just that.. A guess. So the surviving population could be lower than most would think. These will develop a greater following... It is merely a question of time.

Zohar

@coinkat said:
These coins seem to capture a Mid Century Modern look to the extent it exists on coinage. Very nice examples. Not to end the post on a downer, but one just cannot help but wonder how many of these modern Israeli commems have survived. Think about the spikes in silver over time and then look at the original mintage of some of these coins... And don't overlook the reeded edge examples. I could only guess but that guess would be just that.. A guess. So the surviving population could be lower than most would think. These will develop a greater following... It is merely a question of time.

coinkat - definitely many were melted and poorly preserved. I scanned ebay for these and there isn't much to pick from. For now, I will hunt down the nicer specimens.

TomB

Fabulous set and I agree that the design on the coins reflects quite well the design of quite a bit of architecture from the time.

Zohar

Here is where they toned

Stork

You could probably sell the box to some of the toning nuts

They are really neat!

marcmoish

@Zohar said:

coinkat - definitely many were melted and poorly preserved. I scanned ebay for these and there isn't much to pick from. For now, I will hunt down the nicer specimens.

You should be good to go then as I don't believe there are many collectors yet putting together eye popping top grade modern Israel coinage.

Is the box worth anything ?

Zohar

Its of value for ones looking to gift a set per the above to a newborn

EVillageProwler

Very attractive coins.

What is the significance of 31 days and 117 grams of silver?

Zohar

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pidyon_haben

In the Hebrew Bible the laws (see mitzvah) concerning the redemption of the first-born male are referred to in Exodus, Numbers and Leviticus:

Exodus 13:13–16 Every firstborn of man among your sons, you shall redeem. And it will come to pass that if your son asks you in the future, saying, “What is this?” you shall say to him, “With a mighty hand did God take us out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. And it came to pass when Pharaoh was too stubborn to let us out, God slew every firstborn in the land of Egypt.

The redemption price was set at 5 shekels for each of 273 surplus firstborn Israelites over and above the Levite totals (there was no separate census for firstborn Levites):

Contemporary religious authorities believe that the Shekel HaKodesh (Holy Shekel) of the Temple was larger and of purer silver content than the standard Shekel used for trade in ancient Israel. Halakha requires that the coins used have a requisite total amount of actual silver. There are varying opinions as to the correct amount of silver, they fall in between 100 grams and 117 grams. Coins which do not contain the requisite amount of silver do not result in a valid redemption.

This redemption ceremony is performed when at least thirty days have passed since the child's birth.

pmac

I know enough Hebrew history to get myself into trouble. To whom are the five coins paid? The Levites, being the priests of the tribes, by the lack of their census, did not have to abide by this tradition?
BTW, the coins are spectacular. Thanks for sharing the meaning of them.