Pontius Pilate Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ===Coins=== {{main|Roman Procurator coinage#Pontius Pilate}} [[File:Prutah Of Pontius Pilate.jpg|thumb|Bronze prutah of Pontius Pilate (worn, clipped, 15mm, 1.97g.). <br/> '''Obverse:''' ΤΙΒΕΡΙΟΥ ΚΑΙΣΑΡΟΣ surrounding [[lituus]]. <br/> '''Reverse:''' Wreath surrounding date [[Greek numerals|LIϚ]] (year 16, 29/30 CE). Found in Lebanon.]] As governor, Pilate was responsible for minting coins in the province: he appears to have struck them in 29/30, 30/31, and 31/32, thus the fourth, fifth, and sixth years of his governorship.{{sfn|Bond|1998|pp=20–21}} The coins belong to a type called a "perutah", measured between 13.5 and 17mm, were minted in Jerusalem,{{sfn|Taylor|2006|pp=556–557}} and are fairly crudely made.{{sfn|Bond|1996|p=243}} Earlier coins read {{Lang|grc|ΙΟΥΛΙΑ ΚΑΙΣΑΡΟΣ|italics=no}} on the obverse and {{Lang|grc|ΤΙΒΕΡΙΟΥ ΚΑΙΣΑΡΟΣ|italics=no}} on the reverse, referring to the emperor Tiberius and his mother [[Livia]] (Julia Augusta). Following Livia's death, the coins only read {{Lang|grc|ΤΙΒΕΡΙΟΥ ΚΑΙΣΑΡΟΣ|italics=no}}.{{sfn|Bond|1996|p=250}} As was typical of Roman coins struck in Judaea, they did not have a portrait of the emperor, though they included some pagan designs.{{sfn|Bond|1998|pp=20–21}} E. Stauffer and E. M. Smallwood argued that the coins' use of pagan symbols was deliberately meant to offend the Jews and connected changes in their design to the fall of the powerful Praetorian prefect [[Sejanus]] in 31.{{sfn|Bond|1996|p=241}} This theory was rejected by Helen Bond, who argued that there was nothing particularly offensive about the designs.{{sfn|Bond|1996|pp=241-242}} Joan Taylor has argued that the symbolism on the coins show how Pilate attempted to promote the [[Roman imperial cult]] in Judaea, in spite of local Jewish and Samaritan religious sensitivities.{{sfn|Taylor|2006|pp=562-563}} [[File:Coin-of-Pilate.jpg|thumb|Bronze prutah minted by Pontius Pilate in Jerusalem.<br />'''Reverse:''' Greek letters ΤΙΒΕΡΙΟΥ ΚΑΙΣΑΡΟΣ and date [[Greek numerals|LIϚ]] (year 16 = 29/30), surrounding [[simpulum]].<br />'''Obverse:''' Greek letters ΙΟΥΛΙΑ ΚΑΙΣΑΡΟΣ, three bound heads of barley, the outer two heads drooping.]] Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page