The Ambiguous Image of the "Mediator": Roman-Jewish Relation from the End of the Republic to the Rise of the Empire on Coins of Herod the Great

Abstract

As a historical object embodying political, economic, and cultural functions, coins silently record the characteristics of social development and collective memory. The ambiguous images on many coins issued by Herod the Great, engraved with the inscription "Year Three", reflect both Roman and Jewish cultural connotations. This ambiguity highlights Herod's role as an "intermediary" who was "neither Roman nor Jewish", striving to reconcile and balance the potential political and religious conflicts between the two sides. It also reveals the profound political and cultural contradictions hidden beneath the apparent harmony between the central and local authorities.