Judaica - Gerlitz Shekel - "Shekel Israel" - Chalice and Flowering Branch - Machatzit HaShekel Tradition Token - ...

Judaica - Gerlitz Shekel - "Shekel Israel" - Chalice and Flowering Branch - Machatzit HaShekel Tradition Token - Early 19th Century An early token of the "Gerlitz Shekel" type, dating to the early 19th century, featuring the traditional chalice and flowering branch designs together with stylized Hebrew inscriptions. The piece belongs to the broad family of European "Shekel" tokens created as imaginative representations of the ancient Jewish shekel, at a time when the true appearance of ancient Jewish shekel coinage of the Second Temple and Jewish Revolt periods was not yet well known in Europe. The Gerlitz Shekel tradition developed in Europe beginning in the 15th century and is traditionally associated with Georg Emmerich of Görlitz, who traveled to the Holy Land as a pilgrim in 1465. Over the following centuries numerous variations were produced throughout Europe and became familiar among both Christian and Jewish communities. The Judaica association of this piece does not necessarily indicate that this particular token was issued by Jews or originally intended specifically for Jewish use. However, Gerlitz Shekel tokens were also used among European Jews, including as symbolic tokens for Zecher Le-Machatzit HaShekel, for charity and Purim gifts to the poor, as amulets and commemorative pieces, and in some instances to represent the five sela'im required for Pidyon HaBen. Obverse: A stylized chalice from which rises a scrolling floral ornament, surrounded by a stylized Hebrew inscription characteristic of Gerlitz Shekel imitations. Reverse: An upright flowering branch or tree with leaves and buds, surrounded by a stylized Hebrew inscription. This is not an ancient shekel or an official legal-tender coin, but a later token belonging to the Gerlitz Shekel tradition. Dark gray metal; the precise metal composition cannot be established from the photographs alone. Considerable wear, scratches, marks and signs of handling consistent with its age are visible.