A rare, nearly 1,850-year-old bronze coin discovered off the Israeli coastal city of Haifa is on display at the Israel Antiquities Authority’s Jerusalem office on Tuesday, July 26, 2022. The coin bears the image of the constellation Cancer behind an image of the moon goddess Luna. Experts said Monday the coin was minted in Alexandria, Egypt, under the reign of Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius in the second century. The antiquities authority says it is the first time such a coin has been found off the Israeli coast. Credit: AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov
Israel’s Antiquities Authority said Monday it discovered a rare 1,850-year-old bronze zodiac coin during an underwater survey off the coastal city of Haifa.
The coin bears the image of the constellation Cancer behind an image of the moon goddess Luna.
Experts say the coin was minted in Alexandria, Egypt, under the reign of Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius, who reigned between the years 138-161 AD. It is part of a series of 13 coins featuring the 12 constellations and one of the entire zodiac wheel.
The antiquities authority said it was the first time such a coin had been found off the Israeli coast.
“These finds, lost at sea and lost from view for hundreds and thousands of years, are remarkably well preserved,” said Jacob Sharvit, director of the Maritime Archeology Unit of the Israel Antiquities Authority. He said some of these discoveries are rare and complete “pieces of the historical puzzle of the country’s past”.
A rare, nearly 1,850-year-old bronze coin discovered off the Israeli coastal city of Haifa is on display at the Israel Antiquities Authority’s Jerusalem office, Tuesday, July 26, 2022. The coin on one side bears the image of the constellation Cancer behind it an image of the moon goddess Luna. Experts said Monday the coin was minted in Alexandria, Egypt, under the reign of Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius in the second century. The antiquities authority says it is the first time such a coin has been found off the Israeli coast. Credit: AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov
A rare, nearly 1,850-year-old bronze coin discovered off the Israeli coastal city of Haifa is on display at the Israel Antiquities Authority’s Jerusalem office, Tuesday, July 26, 2022. The coin on one side bears the image of the constellation Cancer behind it an image of the moon goddess Luna. Experts said Monday the coin was minted in Alexandria, Egypt, under the reign of Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius in the second century. The antiquities authority says it is the first time such a coin has been found off the Israeli coast. Credit: AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov
A rare, nearly 1,850-year-old bronze coin discovered off the Israeli coastal city of Haifa is on display at the Israel Antiquities Authority’s Jerusalem office, Tuesday, July 26, 2022. The coin on one side bears the image of the constellation Cancer behind it an image of the moon goddess Luna. Experts said Monday the coin was minted in Alexandria, Egypt, under the reign of Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius in the second century. The antiquities authority says it is the first time such a coin has been found off the Israeli coast. Credit: AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov
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