The Use of Languages and Scripts in Ancient Jewish Coinage: An Aid in Defining the Role of the Jewish Temple until its Destruction in 70 CE

The use of different languages and scripts in ancient coinage was always meant to pronounce and underline offcial statements of a political nature and at the same time emphasise the cultural-religious context of the coinage produced. Scripts and languages were never applied randomly, but according to deliberate considerations and intentions as well as predetermined by the context of the political actors using this medium. This article examines aspects of the different languages and scripts used in ancient Jewish coinage and take a closer look at the connection between the ancient institution of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem, the political environment and intentions of individual Jewish rulers on the basis of the use of the different coin legends at different times.