During the first half of the First Century A.D., following the exile of King Herod Archelaus, Judea was ruled by a series of Procurators appointed by the Rome. The lands of Ancient Israel were annexed to the Roman province of Syria, with the administration centered in the city of Caesarea. Some of the Procurators, such as Antonius Felix, struck their own coins. Although these coins were technically minted under Roman authority, they take into account the religious beliefs of the Jewish population and display no graven images, lest the rebellious population be offended. Felix ruled from 52-59 A.D., although he only minted coins during two of those years. Today, Felix is perhaps best remembered as the Procurator before who St. Paul was brought to trial. "And after certain days, when Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was a Jewess, he sent for Paul, and heard him concerning the faith in Christ." - Acts 24:2
The coins of Antonius Felix are intimate memorials of Ancient Israel. They knew the scent of spice-stalls, heard the ranting or merchants, and smelled the sweat and dust of daily works. They were alive to the sounds of Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek and Latin voices haggling over prices in the marketplaces or offering prayers to YHVH, Jesus, or Jupiter in temples. Mounted in a modern 18 Karat gold setting, this pendant is a gorgeous memorial to one of the most fabled times words have recorded, when the Jewish people struggled to be free from Roman occupation and when the teachings of the Jesus Christ were spread by the first Saints. We can still feel the power of these events resonate in the energy of this ancient coin.