Ancient Hellenistic coins caught being smuggled from Gaza into Israel, October 8 2019 (Photo Credit: Ministry of Defense Spokesperson's Office)

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Sixty nine ancient and rare coins from the period of Alexander the Great were caught being smuggled from the Gaza Strip through the Keren Shalom crossing into Israel, the Defense Ministry said Tuesday.Security inspectors from the Ministry of Defense made the discovery last week. The coins were on board a truck that was transporting textile products from Gaza into Israel.The coins were confiscated by the authorities and transferred to the Civil Administration's Archaeology Unit.The silver coins, estimated to be from the Hellenistic period, were probably minted 2,300 years during the reign of Alexander the Great or shortly after his death. Some of the coins were minted in the town of Amphipolis, an ancient Greek city from where Alexander prepared for his campaigns into Asia, and the coins are said to be very rare items of great cultural value, the report said.