Alexios I Komnenos (1081–1118)
Obverse
Faint outline of Christ seated on a high-back throne, wearing a tunic and himation, and holding his right hand in blessing and the book in his left. He has a nimbus cruciger. No epigraphy or border visible.
Reverse
The emperor is represented with the same disproportionately large head as on BZS.1955.1.4343. He is shown bearded standing on a dais, wearing a crown and a loros, an end of which is draped over the left wrist. He holds a labarum in the right hand and a globus cruciger in the left. Circular inscription, beginning at lower left. Border of dots.
.αλειωδποτη.........
Ἀλεξίῳ δ(εσ)πότῃ [τῷ Κομνηνῷ]
Obverse
Faint outline of Christ seated on a high-back throne, wearing a tunic and himation, and holding his right hand in blessing and the book in his left. He has a nimbus cruciger. No epigraphy or border visible.
Reverse
The emperor is represented with the same disproportionately large head as on BZS.1955.1.4343. He is shown bearded standing on a dais, wearing a crown and a loros, an end of which is draped over the left wrist. He holds a labarum in the right hand and a globus cruciger in the left. Circular inscription, beginning at lower left. Border of dots.
.αλειωδποτη.........
Ἀλεξίῳ δ(εσ)πότῃ [τῷ Κομνηνῷ]
| Accession number | BZS.1951.31.5.1686 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 30.0 mm |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 6, no. 88.26. |
| Credit Line | Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Thomas Whittemore. |
Translation
Ἀλεξίῳ δεσπότῃ τῷ Κομνηνῷ.
Alexios Komnenos, despotes.
Bibliography
- Catalogue of Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and in the Fogg Museum of Art, Vol. 6, Emperors, Patriarchs of Constantinople, Addenda (Open in Zotero)
Commentary
The blank is unusually thick. The sides and bottom have been clipped with a pair of heavy shears.