Holy Land treasure hunt yields unique holiday gift

JERUSALEM – Elizabeth Farah, the cofounder and chief operating officer of WND, walked down a quiet lane in the capital city west of the old green line separating Arab East Jerusalem and the Israeli side of town.

Music was in the air courtesy of the music conservatory across the street from a three-story, 19th century Oriental house. She knocked on the door and was greeted by a legendary figure in the antiquities business – Lenny Wolfe.

The native of Glasgow, Scotland, greeted her with a brogue-tinged accent, which Hebrew speakers say carries over to that tongue as well.

He showed her around.

She had been in search of treasures and she had found them. The house was full of them – everywhere you looked. Clay lamps from the First Century that still work with a little olive oil. Ancient jars. Magnificent 2,500-year-old pitchers and bowls. Priceless antiquities lined the walls, covered the floors, and trimmed the tables.

Wolfe eagerly handed her treasure after treasure – many costing a small fortune. While Farah handled them gingerly, Wolfe seemed gleeful and carefree about showing off his discoveries.

But what caught Farah’s eye were the coins – piles of them, most from the First Century or earlier.

In between calls on his cell phone, Wolfe patiently showed off his collections.

Farah zeroed in on some small coins on the table between them. Wolfe explained they were the ancient coins known in Jesus’ time as "mites" – the kind of coins the poor widow in Mark 12:41-44 deposited in the treasury of the synagogue.

You know the story: "And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much. And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing. And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury: For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living."

"All you see here," said Wolfe, "are coins ranging in date from 135 BC to 29 AD. We have taken these bronze coins and placed them in silver casings making it easy for them to be worn as necklaces or on charm bracelets."

Farah bought a few for herself and later decided to purchase all of them – so she could make them available as Christmas and Hanukkah gifts in the WND Superstore.

"This is something I've dreamed about," said Farah. "I wanted to bring back biblically meaningful products from Israel for all of the lovers of the Jewish state in America and around the world. This is the first step. It's a small one – indeed the smallest coin from Israel's Roman era. But they are coins with real meaning – so much so that Jesus Himself commented on them."

And that's the story of how these treasures from the Holy Land have been made available to you – while supplies last.

Each widow's mite comes with a certificate of authenticity from Wolfe, the licensed and highly regarded antiquities dealer. They are individually packaged in a velvet pouch and a gift box.

Are you looking for a very special gift for that someone on your list? Discounted for the holiday season as low as $49.99, depending on the size of the coin, they are conversation starters indeed – a little piece of the Holy Land.