Ave!

Nabataea, King Aretas and Queen Shaqilath

Æ 18mm/4.5gm     Petra Mint, ca. 20-40 AD

Con/ Good Fine; unusually crisp reverse; jet black patina with orange sand fill.

Obv/ Conjoined busts r. of Aretas, laur., and Queen Shaqilath.

Rev/ Two crossed and filleted cornucopiae; between them, Aramaic legend = 'Aretas, Shaqilath' in three lines.

Ref/ Meshorer 112, Sear GIC 5699

Seller's Note/ The ancient city of Petra was first established sometime around the 6th century BC, by the Nabataean Arabs, a nomadic tribe who settled in the area and laid the foundations of a commercial empire that extended into Syria. Despite successive attempts by the Seleucid king Antigonus, the Roman general Pompey, and Herod the Great to bring Petra under the control of their respective empires, Petra remained largely in Nabataean hands until around 100 AD, when the Romans finally took over the rent.

Aretas IV was the greatest Nabataean king, ruling S. Palestine, most of Trans-Jordan, N. Arabia and Damascus. Paul mentions Aretas in connection with his visit to Damascus (Corinthians 11:32).

FYI, the ancient city of Petra was featured in the climatic closing scenes of "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade."!