An excavation in the City of David in Jerusalem. As part of an additional excavation, coins from the time of the Jewish revolt against Rome were discovered. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

JNS.org – Ancient bronze coins dating back to 69/70 C.E., the time of the Jewish revolt against Rome, were discovered in an archeological excavation of an ancient village in Israel. The village itself was discovered by construction workers expanding a highway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

The 114 coins contain an image of a lulav and two etrogim—two of the four species of the Sukkot holiday—and the Hebrew inscription “Year Four,” in reference of the fourth year of the revolt. On the other side of the coins another inscription reads, “For the redemption of Zion.”

“They are not referring to religious redemption, but to salvation. In other words, the minters of the coins were expressing a hope that the revolt would end well,” said Dr. Donald Zvi Ariel, head of the coins division at the Israel Antiquities Authority, according to Haaretz.