The Lakewood Scoop this week met with a person who may be in possession of priceless coins – and something nobody alive today has ever seen.
The project started about two years ago, when this man – who wishes to remain anonymous for security reasons, along with a team, went on a mission to search for Jewish artifacts.
Over the course of the two years, the team located random Jewish artifacts buried underneath ancient buildings – buildings which were hundreds years old, and foundations thousands of years old.
But about six months ago, they located something which shocked them.
While digging deep beneath an ancient foundation in the Middle East – in a location Halachically considered a part of Eretz Yisroel – they discovered earthenware.
Upon examining the earthenware, they realized there were ancient tarnished coins inside. They began going through the coins, and located ancient Zuzim and other currency used thousands of years ago.
But then came the shock they werenโt expecting.
Hundreds of silver coins were located, minted with markings described in the Gemarah as the coins Avraham Avinu used to purchase Meโaras Hamachpeila. The coins, only shown partially in the attached images – show designs in the form of branches of a Bachur and Besulah on one side, and a Zakein and Zekeinah on the other, the way the coins were described in the Gemarah. In addition, the coins contained the word โEishelโ written in Ksav Ivri. (Note the Aleph, Shin and Lamed in Ksav Ivri.)
The coins are each approximately 23 grams of silver, and are approximately 1 1/2 inches wide.
They began counting the coins, counting exactly 400 silver coins in total. That was the exact number of coins Avraham Avinu gave to Efron – described in this weekโs Parsha – to purchase the burial plot for the Avos and Imahos.
โIt was chilling,โ the finder told TLS. โTo know that these coins could have actually been minted by Avraham Avinu is astonishing.โ
Could they really be the coins?
According the maps we reviewed of the area where the coins were located, they could be, as the area could have easily been traveled by Efron, and many others who frequented Eretz Yisroel at the time.
โWe donโt know forsure, but if these are the coins, there are no words,โ the person said. โWe are currently working with professionals in Israel and beyond to determine the age of the coins and to authenticate other markings.โ
I thought the oldest coins were from Lydia 800 bce. Before that, gold and silver were weighed out. At least as far as historians know about.
So much for those who call the Torah a “fairy tale”.
Stunning find, takes my breath away.
Can’t wait until this becomes public!
Ranks up there with one of the most incredible archeological discoveries.
I’m dancing!!!!!!!!!
Sounds illegal
This sounds like a purim prank and its not even chanukah yet.
According to Rashi in Bava Kama no images were on the coin. Just the words Zakein and Zekeina and on the other side also just words. I think. But very shaichโฆ..
Ancient coin presses were not so precise. Seems like the machines we used to put lugs into and it gave back one of these. The guy who put 400 in must have a lot of free time or some really excited kids.
I think I found Paros 7 cows in my farm
Whether these coins are really Avraham Avinu’s coins, I don’t know, but let’s say they are, did Efron Cherish Avraham Avinu’s coins so much that he saved them as a segulah, like the people who would saved the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s dollars, and then put other dollars in charity in place of the ones he gave them to give to charity? Efron doesn’t sound like a “segulah” kind of guy to me. He sounds like the kind of guy who would want to use the dough, not save it for a segulah. Although he profited extra cash from the deal and was then able to spend other money in its place, still, I don’t know.
There are computer programs and minting machinery which stamp out those metal pancakes, inscribe them and make them look old.
Is it the same people whom made that prank about the DIBUK 20 years ago?
Was thinking the same thing as Jus’ Sayin. I would think efron spent the money that he got from avrohom
Not bloody likely( read in British accent)
Thatโs a discovery that should have been announced 6 months ago.
The timing with this weeks Parsha is quite a coincidence
If you believe this I have a bridge to sell you.
The finder purposely waited to announce it during this Parshah.
But feel free to skip to the next story on the page ๐
23g coins were used during Bais Rishon, each containing TWO shekolim of silver by weight.
Such coins were recently found near Yerushalaim, although they look quite different from these.
Kโsav Ivri was used for a long time after Churban Bayis Sheni, so that alone doesnโt point to any time period.
Letโs see how fast these coins could be correctly identified, before the Ministry of Antiquities gets involved, and takes them away.
ืืื ืงืื ืฆื ืขืืื ื
ืช”ืจ ืืืืืื ืืืืข ืฉื ืืจืืฉืืื? ืืื ืืฉืืื ืืฆื ืืื (ืจืฉ”ื- ืืชืื ืืฆื ืืื), ืืืจืืฉืืื ืขืืจ ืืงืืืฉ ืืฆื ืืืจ (ืจืฉ”ื- ืืืฆื ืฉื ื ืืชืื ืืจืืฉืืื ืขืืจ ืืงืืืฉ). ืืืืืืื ืืืืข ืฉื ืืืจืื ืืืื ื? ืืงื ืืืงืื ื (ืจืฉ”ื- ืืืจืื ืืฉืจื) ืืฆื ืืื, ืืืืืจ ืืืชืืื (ืจืฉ”ื- ืืฆืืง
ืืจืืงื) ืืฆื ืืืจ
If this discovery is authenticated – There are no words to describe its magnitude.
We see in front of our eyes the exactitude of a description in the Gemara (even when describing Avraham’s coins), the precise knowledge and wording of Rashi (ืืชืื is only said by Yerushalayim’s coins, not by Avraham’s coins), and perhaps even the actual coins used in Avraham’s transaction related in the Torah.
I cannot wrap my mind around the impact of this discovery. As exciting as it is though, it is humbling that Hashem is sending us so many messages and Chizuk in our generation, while previous generations didn’t need any of these proofs to profoundly believe in every word and letter of Torah and Chazal.
According to Rashi, Bachur and Besula are Yitzchak and Rivka, so those coins couldn’t have been the ones used in Avraham and Efron’s transaction, since Rivka wasn’t in the picture yet.
However according to many other Meforshim, including Tosfos Rabbeinu Peretz based on Bereishis Rabbah, the Bachur and Besula side are also Avraham and Sarah, so these could possibly have been the ones.
Regardless of whether or not Avraham’s coins were used in the actual Maaras Hamachpela transaction, we shouldn’t loose sight of the fact that the Gemara is describing with precision the design of coins from over 2,500 yrs prior! As Rav Avigdor Miller would say this is not only jumping us back to the time of the Gemara and Rishonim, but to the times of Avraham Avinu himself!
The Matnos Kehuna says that the coins were minted prior to Misas Sarah, and that the picture of Rivka was drawn Beruach Hakodesh. That would answer how even according to Shitas Rashi they could have been used in the transaction with Efron.
Also 400 gold coins was a fortune of money in those days I would think Efron would have invested it in a new field or donkey futures, not kept it in earthenware never to be spent.
Conclusion: FAKE NEWS!!
Sounds to good to be true. A clever fraud.
I doubt these are the same coins Avraham Avinu gavr to Efron( he prob spent it)
However it probably is from those times THIS IS PROB THE BIGGEST STORY THE SCOOP HAS COVERED EVER!
Iโll bet these coins are worth hundreds of millions If not a billion.
The people who found this are legit , reliable and professional people
Yerei shomayim
They would not make up something like this
And they have many antiquities
I have a bridge to sell you.
Murphy made this up and posted this in order to distract from the pro-jack articles…
We can’t properly see, in any of the pictures, the full letters. Can we see such a picture, please?
And may I also ask for the entire clear images of the branches and all, and also an explanation of how those images represent Zaken, zekena, bachur & besula. Thank you.
The branches are representations of faces (think of the Gedolim who don’t want to be pictured).
The Bachur UBesula have profiles facing each other on the first picture (Bachurim Vegam Besulos).
The Zaken Uzkeina combine as one head with two profiles on the other side of the coin (reminiscent of how Adam and Chava were created at first).
The word Eshel appears on the 4th pic, on the trunk of the tree.
If this discovery turns out to be legit, there could be volumes written on all the aspects of these coins. Way too long and too early to elaborate on this now.
It’s obvious why clear images can’t be released at this point. Otherwise every Judaica store will have them in stock as soon as shipping resumes from China!
May sound obvious to some, but the tree theme and the word Eshel reference to the Possuk ืืืืข ืืฉื. According to one Pshat in the Gemora he planted a Pardes. In a similar vein, in Shmuel, the Metzuda translates Eshel as a tree.
Also, the branch design for the faces is a very clever way of circumventing the Issur of ืื ืชืขืฉืื ืืืชื ืืืืื ืืกืฃ ืืืืืื ืืื ืื ืชืขืฉื ืืืชื.
Is this the same group that has been promoting the bit coins?
looks like coins from the bar kohba period
That’s why it says Efron in the Torah without a va”v, to show that he had no benefit from the coins! Efron chaser!
To all those who are bringing up different deโos in Chazal and the Rishonim
The finders made perfectly sure that among the 400 coins there are some that satisfy every conceivable shita. Nobody wishes to be machria the machlokes.
Coins in image is fake. Not counterfeit…. fake.
Pcs of silver in Abrahams time was actual pcs of silver not coins. Silver coins first minted in Lydia and Tyre.
Sorry.
Counterfeit vs. Copy
A copy coin is a coin that uses a design from a popular coin. These coins may or may not be made of precious metals, and the intention here is to replicate bullion or rare gold coins. They will typically indicate that they are copy coins, so that they do not deceive consumers.
A counterfeit coin is a fake coin that is made to intentionally deceive a buyer out of his money. Although these coins may be made of precious metals, they are generally made with only a fraction of what a proper gold coin would be made out of. For instance, the coin may only consist of 60 percent gold, rather than the proper percentage of 91.6. Other times, fake bullion coins are base metals that are stamped and plated in a precious metal.
The fake coins are sometimes hard to spot at first, but by acquainting yourself with real bullion and rare gold coins, you can help to protect yourself from becoming a victim of gold coin fraud
Sorry, most of these commenters know so much about money. LOL.
What Avraham Avinu paid to Efron was a mere pittance compared to all of Efron’s holdings.
I thought I found a coin from Bayis Rishon until an expert told me it was an arcade token from Great Adventure.
I’ll bet in 5 weeks, you’re going to post the story about how In Egypt, the archaeologist found the bones of the seven fat cows.
You’re living in a dream world. There are probably tons of cow bones, and there’s no way of knowing if dug-up bones are the bones of the seven cows, unless they are found near each other, which I suppose, is possible, but not likely. But keep on dreaming; if it satisfies your hunger for exciting news.
Ummm….. The point of such comments is the cows never existed, it was a dream.
If these coins exist and are silver then they are worth in total about $7084 based on the current rate of of 77 cents per gram. They are more than likely not from Avraham Avinu’s era, but it is fun to imagine so. ืคืชื ืืืืื ืืื ืืืจ
These โcoinsโ are a total fake, itโs amazing that anyone thinks they are genuine, let alone from 4000 years ago.
– During the time of Avraham Avinu, Ksav Ivri was not used and was not known. Ksav Ivri was used in the Roman era in the times of Bayis Rishon. So no, these coins canโt possibly be from Abraham, the text simply doesnโt match the time period. Nothing to discuss here.
– There is not even the slightest depiction of anything which the Gemarah describes the coins to look like. Also, if the coins said โEishelโ on them, then Chazal would have said so. They didnโt.
– The fact that exactly 400 coins were found is an obvious sign that they were faked and planted by some scammer (perhaps even hundreds of years ago). Thereโs no logical reason why Efron wouldnโt use the coins, as already mentioned by many above. Unknown to the scammer, even 1 coin found would have been a huge historic discovery, and would hold tremendous value. No need for 400! Appears like he wasnโt too smart and thought that it would be perceived as legit since it matches the text of the Bible. In reality it raises more suspicion.
So, this is nothing but a bad fake from some time agoโฆ