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Æ13 - Aretas IV and Phasaelis
| Issuer | Nabataean Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Year | 6 BC - 18 AD |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Obverse description | Laureate bust of Aretas IV facing right, rendered in the schematic Nabataean style characteristic of the early first century AD. The effigy displays a simplified profile with stylized hair and laurel wreath. A single Nabataean letter He (ח) appears in the left field, serving as a mint or regnal identifier. The flan is irregular and the strike somewhat off-center, typical of hammered Nabataean bronze coinage of this period. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Nabataean |
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| Additional information |
Aretas IV ruled the Nabataean Kingdom for over five decades — one of the longest reigns in the dynasty's history — and his coinage with Phasaelis, his first wife, dates to the earlier portion of that reign before she was famously divorced in favor of Herodias. That repudiation directly provoked a war with Herod Antipas, an episode recorded by Josephus and obliquely referenced in the New Testament. Coins naming both rulers together therefore belong to a specific political moment before that rupture.