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Eustratios protos of the diakonia of the property of Peter (eighth century)

 
 

Obverse

Bust of the Mother of God holding Christ before her; at left and right, small crosses. Beginning at twelve o'clock, a circular inscription along the circumference between a double border of dots:

θεοτοκεβοηθητοσοδ,

Θεοτόκε βοήθει το σο δ(ούλῳ)

Reverse

Inscription of six lines. No border visible.

ευστρα
τηα/
τισιακο
νιαστον

πετρο
 υ  

Εὐστρατήῳ (πρώτῳ) τῖς διακονίας τον Πέτρου

Obverse

Bust of the Mother of God holding Christ before her; at left and right, small crosses. Beginning at twelve o'clock, a circular inscription along the circumference between a double border of dots:

θεοτοκεβοηθητοσοδ,

Θεοτόκε βοήθει το σο δ(ούλῳ)

Reverse

Inscription of six lines. No border visible.

ευστρα
τηα/
τισιακο
νιαστον

πετρο
 υ  

Εὐστρατήῳ (πρώτῳ) τῖς διακονίας τον Πέτρου

Accession number BZS.1951.31.5.1203
Diameter 21.0 mm
Previous Editions

DO Seals 5 no. 33.1; Zacos–Veglery, no. 1135; Laurent, Corpus 5.2: no. 1217.

Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Thomas Whittemore.

Translation

Θεοτόκε βοήθει το σο δούλῳ Εὐστρατήῳ πρώτῳ τῖς διακονίας τον Πέτρου.

Mother of God, help your servant Eustratios, protos of the diakonia of the properties of Peter.

Commentary

The Patria, 249, records that the quarter τὰ Πέτρου derived its name from the οἶκος Πέτρου, the estate of a patrikios in the reign of Justinian, where a church and gerokomeion were built. It is possible that the diaconate recorded on this seal was a lay service organization devoted to the care of the elderly. Its location is unknown.

Seibt (in his review of Laurent's Corpus 5 in BSl 35 [1974]: 74–77) has suggested that Eustratios might be a deuteros or cleric, but we may be reasonably sure, based on comparison with the design of the alpha in line 3, that the letter at the end of line 2 is the letter A.

Bibliography

  • Catalogue of Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and in the Fogg Museum of Art, Volume 5: The East (continued), Constantinople and Environs, Unknown Locations, Addenda, Uncertain Readings (Open in Zotero)
  • Byzantine Lead Seals, Vol. 1 (Open in Zotero)
  • Le Corpus des sceaux de l’empire byzantin (Open in Zotero)