by Hillel Fendel

(IsraelNN.com) More than a year after it was first announced, the Bank of Israel has issued a new 2-shekel coin on Sunday - the first change in Israeli currency in nearly 20 years. Children will undoubtedly introduce it into the popular Chanukah game of spinning a top called a dreidel, in which scores are often tracked with coins.

The new coin is 2.16 centimeters in diameter - smaller than the 5-shekel coin and larger than the dime-sized 1-shekel coin. As with other Israeli coins, the 2-shekel piece’s design is based on ancient Jewish coins. It depicts the “horns of plenty” filled with grapes and wheat, alongside a pomegranate, that were engraved into the coins of Yehochanan Hyrcanus over 2,000 years ago.

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The latest edition of Mint Error News Magazine is now available. The free magazine, published by Mike Byers, is an excellence resource for any collector - new or or experienced - who would like to know more about the very latest in minted error coins.

Aside from the magazine’s library of information, the latest edition provides an extensive 22-page price guide (put together by Al Levy of alscoins.com).

As a small example of the guide, if you’re curious about recent sales of error presidential dollar coins, the Mint Error News Magazine is the place to look.

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