Pomegranate or Poppy What Lies between the Cornucopias on Hasmonaean Coins?

The Hasmonaean rulers struck coins, exclusively in bronze, beginning with John Hyrcanus I (135-104 BCE; Hendin 2020). Their most common denomination was a coin with a diameter averaging 15 mm and close to 2 g in weight, which is widely identified with the prutah (PRWTH) of rabbinic literature (Jacobson 2014: 141). In accordance with a strict interpretation of the Second Commandment, which was then the norm, Hasmonaean coins avoid human images (Hendin 2007-2008: 79-82). In place of a ruler portrait, usually found on east Greek coins of that period, there is a Paleo-Hebrew inscription naming the governing authority, the high priest and governing council (HBR), enclosed in an olive wreath alluding to their authority (Hendin 2007-2008: 85-86); see figure 1. The reverse of this coin displays a motif consisting of a splayed pair of cornucopias filled with agricultural produce astride a fruit or seedpod on a straight stalk. Filled cornucopias are commonplace on Hellenistic and Roman coins and their symbolic meaning was understood throughout the classical world as indicating fecundity and well-being. Accordingly, cornucopia motifs are rooted in classical Greek rather than Jewish tradition. Specifically, the cornucopia alludes to the horn of Amaltheia, the she-goat wet nurse of Zeus in Greek mythology, a symbol of prosperity and abundance generally associated with good fortune (agathe tyche; Jacobson 2013a: 139). It is worth noting that the coins of the Seleucid king Alexander II Zabinas, featuring a splayed and intertwined pair of filled cornucopias (SC II, nos. 2235, 2237), were struck in 125-122 BCE, at about the time that the comparable Hasmonaean motif made its debut. Figure 1. Judaea, John Hyrcanus I. Jerusalem mint, after 125 BCE. ae prutah (13 mm, 2.03 g). Olive wreath, with fruit, enclosing Paleo-Hebrew inscription: YHWHNN/HKHN HGD/L VHBR HY/HWDYM = John the high priest and the assembly of the Jews with Greek letter A above / Pomegranate or poppy seedpod on a stalk between facing, filleted cornucopias, filled with fruit and ears of grain. TJC, no. A7; Hendin, no. 1132. The A' may refer to Alexander II Zabinas. Photographs by David M. Jacobson.

Automated summary

The coins of the Hasmonaean rulers in ancient Judaea were minted in bronze with strict adherence to the Second Commandment, eschewing human images and instead featuring olive wreaths and Paleo-Hebrew inscriptions on the obverse, and cornucopia motifs on the reverse, symbolizing prosperity and well-being rooted in classical Greek tradition.