5 Pruta

Israel's first coin series, issued in 1949, was produced under extraordinary pressure — the state was barely a year old, still fighting for survival, and urgently needed a functioning currency to replace the transitional mil coinage inherited from the British Mandate. The 5 Pruta was struck at the Utrechtsche Muntkantoor in the Netherlands, as Israel had no domestic mint of its own.

Two distinct varieties exist: one with a pearl between the date digits and one without, a die difference that continues to drive meaningful price separation between them.