Coin used as bus fare was 2,000‑year‑old currency

A coin once used to pay a bus fare in Leeds was created by an ancient civilisation more than 2,000 years ago, researchers have confirmed.

The rare currency came into the hands of James Edwards in the 1950s, when during his job as a chief cashier for Leeds Transport Company, he would gather fares from bus and tram drivers.

Putting aside any fake or foreign coins he came across, he would pass them on to his young grandson Peter, who for more than 70 years kept them safe.

Curious about its origin, Peter traced the coin's history and discovered it was made by the Carthaginians - an ancient Mediterranean civilisation with Phoenician roots - in the Spanish city of Cádiz during the 1st Century BC.

Peter, 77, said: "My grandfather would come across coins which were not British and put them to one side, and when I went to his house, he would hand me a few.

"It was not long after the war, so I imagine soldiers returned with coins from countries they had been sent to.

"Neither of us were coin collectors but we were fascinated by their origin and imagery – to me they were treasure."

Peter said it was the inscription on the coin that made him curious about its origin.

One side bears the face of the god Melqart, resembling the Greek hero Herakles and wearing his famed lionskin headdress.

At that time, some Phoenician coins carried Greek imagery to make them more appealing to traders.

After discovering the coin's significance, Peter contacted Leeds Museums and Galleries and decided to donate it so it could become part of their collection of ancient currencies.

He added: "The coin always fascinated me because it was hard to decipher where it came from.

"My first thought when I found out its origin was that I would like to return it to an institute where it could be studied by all, and Leeds Museums and Galleries kindly offered to give it a good home.

"My grandfather would be proud to know, as I am, that the coin is coming back to Leeds.

"However, how it got there will always be a mystery."

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