In
the year 539 BCE, after uniting the Persian and Median kingdoms under
his rule, king Cyrus subdued the Babylonian Empire. In 538 BCE King
Cyrus made a public declaration granting the Jews the right to return to
Judah and rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem.
(
Israel Philatelic Federation)
In
the year 586 BCE, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia conquered the city
of Jerusalem, destroyed the Temple and sent many of the inhabitants of
Judah into exile. The Babylonian Exile ended when the empire was
conquered by Cyrus II of Persia and Media, who made a public declaration
granting the Jews the right to return to Judah and rebuild the Temple
in Jerusalem.
In the year 539 BCE, after uniting the Persian and
Median kingdoms under his rule, King Cyrus subdued the Babylonian
Empire. He founded the First Persian Empire, ruling over large areas
stretching from India in the east to Egypt in the west.
Shortly thereafter, in 538 BCE, King Cyrus made a public declaration, the content of which was preserved in the Book of Ezra:
"In
the first year of King Cyrus of Persia... the Lord roused the spirit of
King Cyrus of Persia to issue a proclamation throughout his realm by
word of mouth and in writing as follows: Thus said King Cyrus of Persia:
The Lord God of Heaven has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and
has charged me with building Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in
Judah. Anyone of you of all His people, may his God be with him, and let
him go up to Jerusalem that is in Judah and build the House of the Lord
God of Israel, the God that is in Jerusalem" (Ezra, chapter 1).
Many
modern biblical researchers were skeptical about the wording of the
declaration as described in the Book of Ezra. Among other things, they
claimed that it was improbable that a Persian king would have made a
declaration in Hebrew or declared that he was acting as a messenger of
the God of Israel.
But archeological excavations conducted in the
ancient city of Babylon in 1879, discovered a clay cylinder bearing a
long inscription in Akkadian. The inscription included a plea made by
King Cyrus to the Babylonians in which he declared that he had acted on
behalf of the Babylonian god Marduk. "I, Cyrus King of Babylonia… Marduk
the Great Lord… blessed me… and I built for them a permanent Temple. I
gathered all their inhabitants and restored their place of residence."
This archeological discovery strengthened the view that Cyrus was
sympathetic and supportive of all the peoples under his rule and that
the Declaration which appeared in the Bible was an accurate reflection
of history.
The Cylinder of Cyrus appears in the foreground of
the stamp, with decorations inspired by Persian art in the background.
(Photo courtesy of © The Trustees of the British Museum)
Following
the Cyrus Declaration, some of the Babylon Exiles returned to
Jerusalem, rebuilt the Temple and founded an autonomous Jewish province
called Yehud Medinata. The stamp tab features a coin minted in this
autonomous province in the mid-4th century BCE, during the Persian rule.
The front of the coin is engraved with a lily and the back is adorned
with a spread-winged falcon as well as the word "Yehud" in ancient
Hebrew letters. The coin is part of the Israel Museum collection. (Photo
courtesy of © The Israel Museum)
