Michael imperial cleric and horreiarios of Chios (tenth/eleventh century)
Obverse
Bust of St. Thomas; details obscure. Inscription in two columns: |ΘΩΜΑ,: Ὁ ἅγιος Θωμᾶς. Along the circumference, circular inscription.
ΚΕΟΗΘ,ΤΣΔ,
Κύριε βοήθει τῷ σῷ δούλῳ
Reverse
Inscription of four lines preceded and followed by decoration. Border of dots.
ΜΗΧ
ΗΛΚΛΙΡΙ
ΚΟΡΗΡ,
Τ,ΧΗ
Μιχαὴλ βασιλικῷ κλιρικῷ καὶ ὁρηαρίῳ τῆς Χήου
Obverse
Bust of St. Thomas; details obscure. Inscription in two columns: |ΘΩΜΑ,: Ὁ ἅγιος Θωμᾶς. Along the circumference, circular inscription.
ΚΕΟΗΘ,ΤΣΔ,
Κύριε βοήθει τῷ σῷ δούλῳ
Reverse
Inscription of four lines preceded and followed by decoration. Border of dots.
ΜΗΧ
ΗΛΚΛΙΡΙ
ΚΟΡΗΡ,
Τ,ΧΗ
Μιχαὴλ βασιλικῷ κλιρικῷ καὶ ὁρηαρίῳ τῆς Χήου
| Accession number | BZS.1955.1.4602 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 20.0 mm; field: 17.0 mm |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 2, no. 41.5. |
Translation
Κύριε βοήθει τῷ σῷ δούλῳ Μιχαὴλ βασιλικῷ κλιρικῷ καὶ ὁρηαρίῳ τῆς Χήου.
Lord, help your servant Michael imperial cleric and horreiarios of Chios.
Bibliography
- Catalogue of the Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and at the Fogg Museum of Art, Vol. 2: South of the Balkans, the Islands, South of Asia Minor (Open in Zotero)
- Les îles de l’empire byzantin: VIIIe-XIIe siècles (Open in Zotero)
- Nea Moni on Chios: History and Architecture (Open in Zotero)
- Byzantine Lead Seals, Vol. 1 (Open in Zotero)
- Μελέται περὶ τῆς διοικητικῆς διαιρέσεως καὶ τῆς ἐπαρχιακῆς διοικήσεως ἐν τῷ βυζαντινῷ κράτει (Open in Zotero)
- Le Corpus des sceaux de l’empire byzantin (Open in Zotero)
- Hierarchia Ecclesiastica Orientalis: Series episcoporum ecclesiarum christianarum orientalium (Open in Zotero)
Commentary
Both horreiarioi are members of the Constantinopolitan clergy (see also BZS 1947.2.296). Would this be because the Constantinopolitan clergy had some entrenched rights on the products of the island, at least on some famous products such as the wine and, above all, the internationally renowned mastic? On these products, see Malamut, Iles, 388, 403. Further discoveries of seals are necessary to show whether this hypothesis is correct. One wonders whether such a special status explains why all initial imperial donations to the Nea Moni concerned cash from Constantinople, the tax of the Jews of Chios, and real estate in Asia Minor, not in Chios itself (see Bouras, 30-31, and the commentary to DO Seals 2, no. 41.8 = BZS 1958.106.440).