Ya'akov Meshorer

Professor Ya'akov Meshorer (; August 14, 1935 – June 23, 2004) was the Chief Curator for archaeology at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem and a prominent Israeli numismatist.

Early life Known to colleagues and friends as 'Yankele', Meshorer was born in Jerusalem in 1935 into the prominent Mani family, who had lived in the area for centuries. He and his twin brother Asher used to find ancient coins as they played around the city, which was in the process of being built up. The 14-year-old twins donated the coins they had found to the Israel Department of Antiquities in 1949. He joined the Israel Defense Forces in 1954. After completing his army service in 1956 he became a member of Kibbutz Hazerim, where he married Adaya Weiss in 1956. Meshorer established a museum on the kibbutz before moving to Jerusalem in 1960, where he was a student at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem from 1960 to 1966, receiving a BA in archaeology and Jewish history and an MA in classical archaeology. He received his Ph.D in numismatics in 1971 from the Hebrew University. Meshorer served as a reservist in the Jerusalem Reconnaissance Company and in 1967 was slightly wounded in the Six-Day War. He later served as an officer in the UN liaison unit. for his book ‘A Treasury of Jewish Coins From the Persian Period to Bar-Kochba’. He was elected an honorary member of the Council International Numismatic Commission at the opening of the 13th International Numismatic Congress of Madrid in 2003.

In 2002 a prize, the Ya'akov Meshorer Numismatic Prize, was established in memory of Meshorer at the Israel Museum; its first recipient was Dr. Andrew Burnett in 2002, and the second Michel Amandry in 2006.

Meshorer died in Jerusalem aged 69 after a six-year battle against cancer.