Judaea, Bar Kokhba Revolt. Silver Zuz (3.22 g), 132-135 CE. Hybrid

Judaea, Bar Kokhba Revolt. Silver Zuz (3.22 g), 132-135 CE. Hybrid year 1/2 (132/3-133/4 CE). 'Sma' (Paleo-Hebrew) within wreath of thin branches wrapped around eight almonds, with a medallion at top and tendrils at bottom. Reverse: 'Eleazar the priest' (Paleo-Hebrew), fluted jug with handle on left; in right field, palm branch. Hendin 1384; Mildenberg 3 (O3/R1); TJC 235. Lightly toned. Superb Extremely Fine. Estimate Value $4,000 - 5,000
The Brody Family Collection; Ex NFA XXV (29 November 1990).
This hybrid zuz mules two obverse dies of different years of the Bar Kokhba War. The wreathed obverse die with the abbreviated name of Simon bar Kokhba belongs to the second year (132/3 CE) while the jug obverse die belongs to the first year and names Eleazar the priest. It has been suggested that Simon's name is abbreviated here (and on other coins) in such a way that it could also be read as the word shema ("hear"), the first word in Deuteronomy 6: 4 ("Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord is One.") which is the centerpiece of morning and evening Jewish prayer known as the Shema Yisrael. Based on this view it has been further proposed that the Shema prayer served as a rallying cry for the Bar Kokhba rebels.