Fit for a Queen

During excavations at the City of David National Park in Jerusalem, excavator Rivka Langler spotted an object while sifting soil near the Givati Parking Lot. “I saw something shiny and realized it was a gold coin,” says Langler. “At first, I couldn’t believe it…I’ve been excavating for two years and kept waiting for my moment, and now it finally arrived.” 

Upon further investigation, the coin was found to be a gold 1/4 drachma minted between 246 and 241 B.C. for Berenice II, wife of Ptolemy III of Egypt. Researchers believe the coin was likely minted in Alexandria as a bonus for soldiers returning from the Third Syrian War. With only 20 other examples worldwide, the specimen—the first found in an archaeological context—is a remarkable historical rarity. “Until now, the prevailing view was that Jerusalem remained a small, weak town. This coin, along with other finds from the mid-3rd century BCE, shows the city was already recovering during the Persian period and grew stronger under Ptolemaic rule,” says excavation directors Yiftah Shalev and Efrat Bocher. “Jerusalem was not desolate and isolated but a city renewing itself and reestablishing ties with the great powers of the time.”

The obverse depicts Berenice with a diadem, veil, and necklace, and the reverse features a cornucopia—an ancient symbol of prosperity and fertility—with two stars and a Greek inscription reading “of Queen Berenice.” The inscription is one of the most unusual aspects of the coin; it is one of the earliest examples of a Ptolemaic queen shown with her title. 

The coin will be displayed publicly in September at the 26th annual City of David Research Conference.

About Berenice II

Known by the title euergetis (“the benefactress”), Berenice II was born around 267 B.C. and was one of the most prominent queens in the Hellenistic world. She initially ruled Cyrenaica (eastern Libya) after her father’s death, and she secured her rule by marrying Demetrius the Fair. His reign was short-lived, and Berenice then married her half-cousin Ptolemy III, bringing Cyrenaica under Ptolemaic control. She played an active role in politics and was venerated as a goddess. She once dedicated a lock of her hair as a religious offering, inspiring the naming of the constellation Coma Berenices. In 221 B.C. she was assassinated on the orders of the regent Sosibius after her son, Ptolemy IV Philopator, took the throne.