The Jews probably paid the Roman tax in Tyrian coins, and the coin shown to Jesus in Mark 12.15 was most likely a tetradrachm, a silver coin minted at Antioch, the administrative capital of the Roman province of Syria.
None have been found in the hordes of coins discovered in Jerusalem and surrounding areas. She is generally thought to be Livia, Tiberius’ mother.Īfter investigating the matter, I came to the conclusion that the coin for the Roman tax could not have been a denarius because there is no evidence that denarii circulated in Judea at that time. It has the head of Tiberius on the obverse and a seated woman on the reverse. The Roman tax was generally thought to be the common silver coin, called a denarius, which was minted at Lugdunum (Lyon) in Gaul during the reign of the Emperor Tiberius. They did not have the Emperor’s head on them. The silver coins required for the temple tax were minted at Tyre, which was the commercial centre of the region. The taxes had to be paid in silver coins, but the Romans allowed the Jews to mint only bronze coins and, according to Jewish law, it was forbidden for them to make coins with human images on them. After asking whose head was on the coin he said, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” In the Roman province of Judea at that time, the Jews paid a tax to the Romans and a tax for the upkeep of the temple in Jerusalem. Its mission includes using coins, manuscripts and other items in religious education, and I have enjoyed taking displays to a number of church schools in recent years.įor Christians the most famous coin is the one held by Jesus in Mark 12.15. It is a non-profit organisation and the director is The Very Rev’d Dr Gregory Jenks, Dean of Grafton. Since retiring from medical practice, I have been able to spend more time on my coin studies and I have become a researcher for the Centre for Coins, Culture and Religious History.
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