Journey Of The Magi Album - Silver Tetradrachm

Every Christian knows the story of the Wise Men as told in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter two:

In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the child who has been born King of the Jews? For we observed His star at its rising, and have come to pay Him homage." When King Herod heard this, he was frightened and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:

'And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.'

Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage." When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid Him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another path.

According to early tradition, there were three Wise Men:

Balthazar, from Babylonia;
Gaspar, from India; and
Melchior, from Persia.

Gaspar is thought to have been the court astronomer and advisor to King Azes II of the Bactrian Empire. A descendant of the fierce Scythian warriors that struck terror in the hearts of the ancient Greeks and Persians, Azes' realm stretched from portions of Afghanistan, through Pakistan, to include the portions of India closest to the Middle East. Bactria was an affluent, sophisticated kingdom with extensive trade routes into China, as well as with the lands to the west, around the Mediterranean Sea.

This region still had an elite descended from those Greeks who followed Alexander the Great on his conquests. This explains the use of Greek coin denominations, as well as the persistence of Greek inscriptions on those coins.

This silver tetradrachm of Azes II was minted in the years preceding Christ's birth. Coins identical to this one were most likely carried by Gaspar on his long journey to Israel to find the Messiah foretold by the Star of Bethlehem. This is your chance to own an historical ancient coin guaranteed genuine that was part of the world during the very beginning of the Christian era!