brons Israel, Lepton, second half of the 570s

Israel, second half of the 570s. Lepton (Bronze, 14 mm, 0.60 g, 12 h). ነገሠየ-[ሰረ]አለ ('ngsysrʼl' = 'King Israel' in Ge'ez) Draped bust of Israel to right, wearing tiara and holding cross in his right hand. Rev. ለአሐዘበ[ሠ]ሀለ ('lʼhzbshl' = 'Mercy to the people' in Ge'ez) Cross within circular border; below, XC. Hahn, Aksumite, 47. Hahn & Keck, MAKS, 79. Munro-Hay, AC, type 144. Extremely rare, just seven examples recorded by Hahn & Keck, of which only four are in private hands. Minor smoothing and with some edge chipping, otherwise, very fine.

From the Dr. Stephan Coffman Collection, ex Roma XXVII, 22 March 2023, 349.

The extreme rarity of Israel's bronze coins may reflect a rather brief reign; in fact, his bronze coins are among the great rarities in the Axumite series today. The 'XC' on the reverse is a nomen sacrum, symbolizing Christ.

Leu, okt. 2023, lot 336, 5500 CHF (Euro 5786)