Revolt and Heroism

Revolt and Heroism
Special Coin, 1993/5753

The heroism of the Jewish people during the Holocaust found expression, on the one hand, in a daily struggle for survival, and on the other, in heroic armed resistance. The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising is the most famous example of the latter. Two Jewish fighting organizations were active in this ghetto: the Jewish Fighting Organization (ZOB), founded by the Hashomer Hazair, Dror and Akiva, numbered 500 fighters. The Jewish Military Union (ZZV) numbered 250 members, mainly from Betar and the Revisionist Movement. The Germans crushed the uprising and most of the fighters were killed. The Warsaw Ghetto uprising was followed by insurrections at Vilna, Kovno, Cracow, Bialystok, Zaglembie and Tuchin. The first concentration camp uprising was at Auschwitz-Birkenau.

Obverse: Face value in Hebrew and English, 1 New Sheqel on the Silver B.U. Coin, 2 New Sheqalim on the Silver Proof Coin, 10 New Sheqalim on the Gold Coin. The Israel State Emblem appears on a background of bullets and barbed-wire. Around the right-hand border is the word "ISRAEL' in Hebrew, Arabic and English and the mint year 1993 / 5753.

Reverse: A geometric shape, symbolizing the walls of the concentration camps and ghettos. From barbed-wire a Star of David emerges, and from the star, diagonal rows of dots upwards and downwards, symbolize the bullets and fight for survival. In the lower area of the coin, a flame rises as symbol of the heroism. Around the border is the inscription "REVOLT AND HEROISM" in English and Hebrew.

Edge: Silver B.U. Coin - smooth, Silver Proof and Gold Coin - milled

Mint Marks: Silver B.U. Coin – Star of David, Silver Proof and Gold Coin – Hebrew letter "Mem"

Designer: Ruben Nutels

Plaster Reliefs: Royal Dutch Mint

Mint: Royal Dutch Mint