John imperial spatharokandidatos and chartoularios of the dromos of the Anatolikoi (ninth century)
Obverse
Bust of the Virgin with the medallion before her. On the left, a cruciform monogram of Θεοτόκε; on the right, of βοήθει. Border of dots.
Θεοτόκε βοήθει
Obverse
Bust of the Virgin with the medallion before her. On the left, a cruciform monogram of Θεοτόκε; on the right, of βοήθει. Border of dots.
Θεοτόκε βοήθει
Reverse
Inscription of five lines. Border of dots.
.ΙΝ
ˊΣΠΘˊΚΝ
ΔΙΔˊΧΡˊΤΟΥ
ΔΡΟΜΤΟΝ
ΝΤΟΛΙΚ
Ἰωάννῃ βασιλικῷ σπαθαροκανδιδάτῳ καὶ χαρτουλαρίῳ τοῦ δρόμου τον Ἀνατολικῶν
Accession number | BZS.1958.106.5458 |
---|---|
Diameter | 22.0 mm |
Previous Editions | DO Seals 3, no. 86.10b. |
Translation
Θεοτόκε βοήθει Ἰωάννῃ βασιλικῷ σπαθαροκανδιδάτῳ καὶ χαρτουλαρίῳ τοῦ δρόμου τον Ἀνατολικῶν.
Theotokos, help John, imperial spatharokandidatos and chartoularios of the dromos of the Anatolikoi.
Bibliography
- Catalogue of Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and at the Fogg Museum of Art, Vol. 3: West, Northwest, and Central Asia Minor and the Orient (Open in Zotero)
- A Collection of Dated Byzantine Lead Seals (Open in Zotero)
- Le Corpus des sceaux de l’empire byzantin (Open in Zotero)
- Byzantine Lead Seals, Vol. 1 (Open in Zotero)
- Documents de sigillographie byzantine: La collection C. Orghidan (Open in Zotero)
- Sceaux byzantins du Musée National de Varsovie (Open in Zotero)
- Les listes de préséance byzantines des IXe et Xe siècles (Open in Zotero)
- Byzantinische Rang- und Ämterstruktur im 8. und 9. Jahrhundert: Faktoren und Tendenzen ihrer Entwicklung (Open in Zotero)
Commentary
The representation of the Virgin between two monograms is typical of the Iconophile revival, but the present seal is certainly later (it may even be considered as proof that this type survived well after 843) because it is decorated with a Virgin of the Photian type (Dated Seals, no. 53), and features borders of dots and the R-shaped beta.