Judea, King Herod Agrippa I, Bronze Prutah

Struck in Jerusalem between 41-42 CE, the authority of this coin reached far beyond the city itself. Herod Agrippa I was raised alongside the imperial court of Rome, allowing him building close ties with Gaius Caligula and later Tiberius Claudius. These relationships carried him from poverty and political obscurity to kingship, restoring local rule in Judaea under Roman oversight following the exile of his uncle, Herod Antipas, who is remembered for his role in the trial and execution of Jesus Christ.

On the obverse, the prutah avoids Roman portraiture, instead depicting kingship through a fringed royal canopy. The reverse features three ears of barley, tying the coinage to the land itself; barley is the first grain harvested in spring and would have been instrumental to Passover preparations. Agrippa’s rule depended on this balance between tradition and Roman support.

Agrippa I died suddenly in 44 CE under mysterious circumstances with some sources suggesting he was poisoned and others yet suggesting he was “devoured by worms” for blasphemy. Nevertheless, his death ended this brief period of semi-independent rule, and Judaea returned to direct Roman control.

Each includes a Certificate of Authenticity and is guaranteed genuine.