Bible Synapse
Tribute penny (denarius of Tiberius)
Coin · AD 14–37 · Time of Jesus · also called Tribute penny, Denarius of Tiberius
See it on the map and timeline
- Date
- AD 14–37 (the coin type (reign of Tiberius))
- Found
- Struck at Lugdunum (Lyon), Gaul (a coin type known from many examples). Struck at the mint of Lugdunum throughout Tiberius' reign (RIC I² Tiberius 26 and 30).
- Now
- Classical Numismatic Group (example shown, sold)
- Passages
- Matthew 22:15–22, Mark 12:13–17, Luke 20:20–26
What it is
A silver denarius of the emperor Tiberius, struck at Lugdunum in Gaul. One side shows his laureate head with the legend TI CAESAR DIVI AVG F AVGVSTVS, “Tiberius Caesar Augustus, son of the divine Augustus”. The other shows a seated woman holding a branch and a sceptre, usually identified as his mother Livia, with the words PONTIF MAXIM, “chief priest”.
How it connects to the Bible
Asked whether it was right to pay tribute to Caesar, Jesus said, “Shew me the tribute money”, asked whose image and inscription it bore, and told them to give back to Caesar what was Caesar's. The Gospels call the coin a denarius (the King James “penny”), and since Tiberius was emperor at the time, this common type is the coin most often identified as the one shown to him.
What scholars debate
Some scholars argue that denarii were scarce in Judaea at the time, and that the coin could have been another issue, such as a silver tetradrachm of Antioch or an earlier denarius of Augustus.