053: Phoenicia. Tyre, after 126 BC. AR Shekel-Tetradra - eBay (item 320247623858 end time May-26-08 11:06:43 PDT) Back to My eBayCatalog:The Pre Long Beach Sale - World Sale eBay Live Auctions:Coins > World Coins > Live Auction Seller eBay:Coins & Paper Money > Coins: Ancient > Greek 053: Phoenicia. Tyre, after 126 BC. AR Shekel-TetradraItem number: 320247623858 You are signed in Bidding has ended for this item This item has been added to My eBay for Guests. As a guest, you can: Track up to 10 items on this computer in My eBay Receive an email reminder for this item a few hours before it ends View larger picture Closed at:US $2,100.00 Estimate:US $700.00 - US $900.00 History:41 bids Lot number:53 (View all lots) Auction Date:May-26-08 10:00:00 PDT Auction Currency:US $ (U.S. dollar) Currency Calculator High Bid:Live Auction Floor Bidder Item location:Beverly Hills, CA 0% APR until Jan 2009 - new eBay MasterCard You can also: Email to a friend Meet the seller Seller:i-lgoldbergcoinsandcollectibles( 2233) Feedback:99.2 % Positive Member:since May-09-01 in United States See detailed feedback Ask seller a question Add to Favorite Sellers View seller's other items Buy safely 1. Check the seller's reputation Score: 2233 | 99.2% Positive See detailed feedback 2. Check how you're protected If paying with a credit card, see your card issuer's terms Description (revised) Prev LotNext Lot Hover thumbnail to view large image below. Click thumbnail to view full image in new window. Phoenicia. Tyre, after 126 BC. AR Shekel-Tetradrachm (14.3 g), struck 89/88 BC. Laureate, skin-clad bust of Herakles-Melkart right. Reverse: Eagle standing left on prow, palm branch at shoulder, club and date in fields (year 38). BMC p. 242, 132; Hendin 917. Good centering with virtually complete devices. Sharp, even strike, softly lustrous and choice. NGC graded Uncirculated. Even in its waning years of influence and power, Tyre's signature coinage of silver shekels continued to function not only as a local currency, but a regional one as well. Its lengthy history of regular issuance, plus its reputation for consistency of silver fineness and weight, served it well, not only in commerce but in other respects in addition. The ancient custom among Jews of giving a half a shekel to God (Exodus 30:11-16), evolved into an annual payment or "tax" made to the Temple in Jerusalem. Furthermore, records indicate that such payments were acceptable only in Tyrian shekels or half shekels -- again, because of their reliable weight and purity. So to modern eyes, the irony of the situation is that the Judean priesthood, servants of a monotheistic faith, whose Deity spurned idolaters and forbade the worship of graven images, in essence accepted the tithes on behalf of Jehovah with coin bearing pagan devices and deities! Estimated Value $700 - 900. Ex Shirley Barr Sage Collection, published in her Biblical Numismatics: Thirty Pieces of Silver, pl. XXII, no.14. Our item number 115708 Notices This item is an "eBay Live Auction". This means that each item will not close at a specific time like a regular ebay auction. Because this is a live auction the lot will be opened in a format like a real auction house floor. Bids can be placed real-time during the auction via ebayliveauctions.com and icollector.com. Please note, bidders may place bids before the auction up to 1 hour prior to the start of the auction. This is the recommended method of bidding if you have a slow internet connection or do not have the experience bidding in a "live" sale. Due to the speed of the auction, we highy recommend a DSL or cable connection . Once the auction has started, only live bids are accepted. Please do not call to place bids during the auction as they will not be accepted. The "Auction date and time" displayed by ebay has been known to be wrong. Please check our auction information page for actual start times on ebayliveauctions.com. These start times pertain to when the auction opens, not the individual lot. We typically run approximately 150 items per hour, so you can estimate from that when your item may be displayed. We will not be held responsible for ebay down time or internet problems. If ebay goes down, we will try our best to wait a sufficient amount of time for it to come back up. In the event that we cannot require ebay, all ebay bids during that downtime will not be honoured. There is a 20% commission charge added to each and every lot. Images & text re-used by permission, courtesy of Ira & Larry Goldberg Auctioneers, Beverly Hills, CA