John (metropolitan) of Thebes (twelfth century)
| Accession number | BZS.1958.106.470 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 25 mm |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 2, no. 21.1a. Laurent, Corpus V/3, no. 1786. Wassiliou-Seibt, Siegel mit metrischen Legenden I, no. 981. |
Obverse
The Virgin standing and holding Christ. On either side the inscription: ΜΡ̅ΘΥ̅: Μήτηρ Θεοῦ. Border of dots.
Reverse
Inscription of four lines preceded by an ornament. Border of dots.
ΆΝ
.ΕΤῸΝΘΗ
.͂ΝΚΌΡΗ
.Κ .́ΠΟΙΣ
Ἰωάννην με τὸν Θηβῶν, Κόρη, σκέποις
Translation
Ἰωάννην με τὸν Θηβῶν, Κόρη σκέποις.
Virgin, may you protect me, John (metropolitan) of Thebes.
| Accession number | BZS.1958.106.470 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 25 mm |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 2, no. 21.1a. Laurent, Corpus V/3, no. 1786. Wassiliou-Seibt, Siegel mit metrischen Legenden I, no. 981. |
Bibliography
- Corpus der byzantinischen Siegel mit metrischen Legenden Teil 1: A - M
- 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
- Le Corpus des sceaux de l’empire byzantin, vol. 5, L’Église
- Βυζαντιακὰ μολυβδόβουλλα τοῦ ἐν ἈΘήναις Ἐθνικοῦ Νομισματικοῦ Μουσείου
- Documents de sigillographie byzantine: La collection C. Orghidan
- Notitiae Episcopatuum Ecclesiae Constantinopolitanae
- Les sceaux byzantins de la Collection Henri Seyrig
- Hellas und Thessalia
- Hierarchia Ecclesiastica Orientalis: Series episcoporum ecclesiarum christianarum orientalium
- The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium
| Accession number | BZS.1958.106.470 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 25 mm |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 2, no. 21.1a. Laurent, Corpus V/3, no. 1786. Wassiliou-Seibt, Siegel mit metrischen Legenden I, no. 981. |
Commentary
From a different boulloterion but parallel to BZS.1958.106.471.
Dodecasyllabic verse. Inscription has accents. Laurent attributed this specimen to the John of Thebes who occupied the throne before 1166 and even perhaps after 1182 (cf. Corpus V/1, 594). He also re-edited another seal with the same name and titles which he attributed to this same prelate (Laurent, Corpus V/1, no. 775).
Thebes of Boeotia was an important administrative center, residence of the strategos of Hellas (early 10th century), and of an archon (Konstantopoulos, no. 63; Laurent, Orghidan, no. 236). Thebes became an autocephalous archbishopric (toward the end of the 8th century: Darrouzès, Notitiae, no. 2, line 79; cf. Seyrig, no. 270) and was raised to a metropolis between 968 and 997. See Laurent, Corpus V/1, 591; Koder-Hild, Hellas, 269-71; Fedalto, 523-25; ODB III, 2032; and J. Darrouzès in REB 47 (1989) 226-31.