50 Lirot Chaim Weizmann

Issued the year Israel first began producing commemorative gold coinage in earnest, this piece honors Chaim Weizmann, the chemist and statesman who served as Israel's first president until his death in 1952. Weizmann had spent decades cultivating British political support for a Jewish homeland — his work on acetone synthesis during World War I gave him direct access to Lloyd George and Balfour, a relationship that contributed materially to the 1917 Balfour Declaration.

KM#40 was struck at the Jerusalem mint with a relatively modest authorized mintage, primarily targeting collectors abroad. Israel's early gold issues were explicitly tied to foreign currency generation.