A Silver and Gold Ring With Ancient Widows Mite Biblical Coin, ca. 103 - 76 BCE

A very fine bronze “Widow’s Mite” (prutah) of the Judean King and High Priest Alexander Jannaeus, beautifully mounted in a modern silver and gold ring. The coin was minted during the Hasmonean period, a brief era of Jewish independence between the Old and New Testaments.  It remained in circulation into the time of Christ, and is famously referenced in the Gospel story of the widow’s offering.

The obverse shows a star of eight pellets within a diadem, surrounded by the ancient Hebrew inscription YHONATHAN H MALEK (“Alexander the King”). The reverse bears the Greek legend BASILEWS ALEXANDROU around an anchor, a symbol of stability and authority.

Elegantly set in a modern silver ring with a textured decorative band and a smooth gold bezel that accentuates the ancient bronze surface. The mounting allows the coin to be worn comfortably while preserving its integrity as an authentic ancient artifact.

The widows offering:  The lesson of the widow's mite or the widow's offering is presented in two of the Synoptic Gospels (Mark 12:41–44 and Luke 21:1–4), when Jesus is teaching in the Temple in Jerusalem: "Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the offering box. He also saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. He said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. For they all offered their gifts out of their wealth. But she, out of her poverty, put in everything she had to live on." Luke 21:1-4

Medium:  Bronze, silver, gold

Dimensions:  US ring size 6 (UK: L 1/2; France: 52; Germany: 16 1/2; Japan: 12), Bezel diameter: 5/8 inch (1.58 cm)

Condition:  The coin in in fine condition.  It has been set in a modern silver and gold ring.

Provenance:  Private New York collection. 

QUESTIONS? Just click the Contact Us tab on your right.