Rare ancient Cypriot coin discovered in Israel

A rare 2,500-year-old coin minted in ancient Salamis has been discovered on a beach in Israel after a municipal worker searching for lost valuables uncovered it in the sand. The silver-plated coin was found by Avi Chaprak, deputy director of Ashdod’s beaches department, while scanning the shoreline for jewellery and other items lost by beachgoers. Recognising its potential significance, he handed it to Israel’s Antiquities Authority for examination. Experts identified the coin as a ‘siglos’ minted in Salamis, then a flourishing city kingdom under Persian rule, during the mid fifth century BC. According to Israel Antiquities Authority coin specialist Yanniv David Levy, the approximately 11-gram coin appears to be solid silver but is made from a base metal coated with silver, a technique used in Cypriot minting during periods of limited silver supplies. One side depicts a reclining ram, while the reverse features a ram’s head alongside a laurel branch and three symbols from ancient Cypriot syllabic script. Speaking to the Times of Israel, Levy said, explaining that large silver coins from the Persian period were often cut into smaller pieces for trade, making complete examples uncommon. Chaprak received a certificate of appreciation from the Israel Antiquities Authority for reporting the discovery, saying the coin belonged to “our shared heritage”. The Cyprus Mail attempted to contact the Antiquities Department on whether it would consider the repatriation of such a rare find. (Photo: Israeli Antiquities Authority)