AGRIPPA II., A.D. 48-I00.—There is an interest. ing coin in the cabinet of Mr. Reichardt (Num. Chron., N. S., vol. ii. p. 274) bearing the head of Agrippa IL, an unusual circumstance for Jewish coins (see, however, under Alexander Jannmus). The coins of Agrippa IL, struck under Nero, commemorate the name of Cwsarea Philippi, which Agrippa, in A. v. 55, had changed to that of Nero alas. There are coins of Agrippa II. struck under Vespasian, Titus, and Domitian, and upon three dif ferent eras—' that of the Chalcian era,' that ' of the tetrarchy of Philip being given to hint,' and that 'of Tiberias.' The last date of which we at present know is ET. EA. (year 35 =A. D. 95). Agrippa died in A.D. 100 (see F. W. Madden, Hirt. of ye wish Coinage, pp. 115-132).
The coins issued by the procurators from the time of Augustus to Nero do not offer sufficient peculiarities to be noticed here. There is, however, one which De Saulcy (Nom. ,dud., p. 1o2) has read IOTAA BAZIA?A? and which has been attributed by hint to Judas Aristobulus, and which Poole (art. MONEY, Dr. Smith's Diet. of Bible) has suggested as a 'probable attribution,' should be assigned to fudas Aristobulus, and the A for Antigonus. Cave doni (Bibl. Mips., vol. ii. pp. 48, So) has, however, classed this coin to Julia Augusta—Ist, because had it belonged to Judas Aristobulus the C would have been of regular shape (M); and 2dly, the inscription would have been in Hebrew, or at least bilingual, and not Greek alone. De Saulcy (Rev. Num., 1857, p. 297) has objected to this attribution, but Levy (y-fia'. p. 76, note 2) considers that it rests on good grounds. The coin may be de scribed as follows :— Obv. IOTAIA /ER within a wreath.
Rev. Two cornua-copix between which a poppy head. ./E 3.
The types of the wreath and cornua-copire occur upon other coins of Tiberius (F. W. Madden, Hist.
of Yewish Coinage, p. 142, 143).
The Jewish coinage has hitherto been thought to have closed with the revolt of Bar-cochab under Hadrian, and only two coins have been assigned oy De Saulcy (Num. 7ud., pl. x., 1, 2) to the re volt of the Jews, which ended in the capture and destruction of Jerusalem. Dr. Levy of Breslau has, however, carefully studied this latter part of the Jewish coinage, and has certainly arrived at many new and satisfactory results. The principal leaders of the first revolt are of as much importance as Bar-cochab in the second, who, according to Dr. Levy, was only an imitator of his predecessor Simon, son of Gioras.
It will not, however, he surprising if objections are raised to some of Dr. Levy's attributions, and whilst one states that the coinage of the first revolt has been too much enriched, to the loss of that of the second (Cavedoni, Nuovi Stud!, etc., p. 28), another objects because Eleazar and Simon did not act in concert (Rose, Smith's Diet. of Bible, s. v. Stickel). The absence, too, of any coins of John of Gischala, who was also a powerful leader, is very curious. The coinage of Eleazar is, however, cer tain ; and therefore there can be no reason why some of the other leaders should not have struck coins, and the attribution to Simon, son of Gioras, with analogous types to those of Eleazar, seems now almost proved. The attribution to Simon, son of Gamaliel, and Ananus, is not, however, so certain. Space will not permit us here to enter into any lengthy account either of the leaders or their coins, but we give as briefly as possible the results of Dr. Levy's researches, with reference for Utz coins to the woodcuts in our History of 7e1.vish Coinage, where the whole question is thoroughly investigated.