Silver Medal Alf Jacob the Apostle - UNC

Apostles

The eleventh silver medal of the Czech Mint from the twelve-part series entitled Apostles features St. James, the son of Alphaeus. 

The name James was very popular in antiquity, and in Christian legends there is a number of bearers of the name, who are distinguished by various attributes. In addition to Jesus' brother James the Just, there are two apostles in particular - James of Zebedee, who is called the Great or Elder, and James of Alphaeus, who is also known as the Younger or Lesser. This man of faith, renunciation, prayer and grace was a cousin of Jesus. He became the first bishop of Jerusalem because of his many virtues, but he was martyred like many of his fellow believers. Even after being thrown down from the temple walls, he prayed for his enemies, who then mercilessly beat him to death... 

"The central motif of the obverse side is the figure of the apostle holding his attributes - the book and the boulder staff. Tradition says that James was thrown from the battlements and stoned after appearing in the Temple of Jerusalem. As he was dying, he prayed for those who were killing him. Someone in the crowd shouted, "Stop, he is praying to God for you!" However, one of them heard this and took a stake and struck James with it, killing him. The reverse side of the medal is dedicated to this legend," explains medal maker Lenka Nebeská, DiS.