An Arab-Byzantine Coin of Yubna (Iamnia)

Abstract

A new coin bearing the mint name Yamniya in Arabic is understood to represent a transcription
of the Greek name of Yavne. In Greek sources of the Early Roman period and until the Muslim
conquest Iamniya was the name both of the city of Yavne and its port. The Yamniya coin may
actually have anteceded the Arab-Byzantine coin reading Yubna. This would make it the first
coin ever minted by Yavne (or its port). Alternatively, the name Yamniyah could suggest that
the coin was struck by a different minting authority from the Yubna issues.