Ingathering of Exiles

Ingathering of Exiles
State Medal

The dream and hope of returning to Eretz Israel has motivated the Jewish people since their first exiles by the Assyrians and Babylonians. The Book of Psalms records the mourning of the first exiles, who wept "by the waters of Babylon" and their joy upon returning to Zion. From the moment Israel opened its gates, over a million immigrants, a quarter of the Jewish people, have been absorbed in less than 30 years of statehood. These include Holocaust survivors from Europe, refugees of persecution in Arab lands, national freedom fighters and idealists. Speaking dozens of languages and originating in thousands of culturally distinct communities, they have been formed here into a single Jewish Israeli people, a truly unique achievement in human history.

Obverse: Immigrants and tents, an expression of the mass immigration to Israel. The tents form a Star of David. In the center, the biblical passage "AND GATHER YOU FROM EVERY LAND" and the source, "EZEKIEL 36:24" in Hebrew and English.

Reverse: Figures working in agriculture and industry, symbolizing settlement and absorption, with a menorah in the background. Around the circumference, the biblical passage "I will plant them on their own land" and the source, "AMOS 9:15" in Hebrew and English.

Edge: State emblem with the words "STATE OF ISRAEL" in Hebrew and English, with the metal "BRONZE" in Hebrew and English and serial number.

Serialization: All medals are numbered.

Designer: Obverse - Nathan Karp. Reverse - Asaf Berg.

Engraving: Kretschmer.

Mint: Kretschmer.