A Numismatic Survey at Ḥorbat Bet Zekharya and Possible Evidence for the Fifth Battle of Judah Maccabi

Abstract

This paper reports on 92 coins, dating from the Persian to the Mamluk periods, uncovered during the 2022 survey season at Ḥ. Bet Zekharya in the northern Hebron Hills. The analysis of this numismatic assemblage, along with additional miscellaneous artifacts, significantly enhances our understanding of the site’s historical development. Notably, the discovery of a coin from Side (Pamphylia) and three lead sling bullets may provide archaeological support for the historicity of the Battle of Bet Zekharya, the fifth Maccabean–Seleukid battle (163 BCE).