The imperial kommerkia of Mesembria (747/8)
Obverse
Busts of Leo III (left) and Constantine V; both are bearded and wear chlamys and crown with a cross. Linear border.
Reverse
Inscription of five lines. Linear border.
....ΑΣ
.ΛΙΚΩΝΚΟ
ΜΜΕΡΚΙΩ
ΝΜΕΣΕΜΒ
ΡΙΑΣΑ
Τῶν βασιλικῶν κομμερκίων Μεσεμβρίας. Ἰνδικτιὼν αˊ
Obverse
Busts of Leo III (left) and Constantine V; both are bearded and wear chlamys and crown with a cross. Linear border.
Reverse
Inscription of five lines. Linear border.
....ΑΣ
.ΛΙΚΩΝΚΟ
ΜΜΕΡΚΙΩ
ΝΜΕΣΕΜΒ
ΡΙΑΣΑ
Τῶν βασιλικῶν κομμερκίων Μεσεμβρίας. Ἰνδικτιὼν αˊ
| Accession number | BZS.1951.31.5.1739 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 40.0 mm |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 1, no. 77.8a. |
Translation
Τῶν βασιλικῶν κομμερκίων Μεσεμβρίας. Ἰνδικτιὼν αˊ.
(Seal of) the imperial kommerkia of Mesembria. Indiction 1.
Bibliography
- Catalogue of the Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and at the Fogg Museum of Art, vol. 1: Italy, North of the Balkans, North of the Black Sea
- Byzantine Lead Seals, vol. 1
- A Collection of Dated Byzantine Lead Seals
- Tribute or Trade? The Byzantine-Bulgarian Treaty of 716
- Mesembria in the Ninth Century: Epigraphical Evidence
- Sceaux byzantins du musée de Constantinople
- Byzantine Lead Seals, vol. 2
- Ἡ συνέχεια τῆς χρονογραφίας τοῦ Ἰωάννου Σκυλίτση
- La Thrace orientale et la Mer Noire: Géographie ecclésiastique et prosopographie (VIIIe-XIIe siècles)
Commentary
All other indiction dates of the eighth century may be excluded on the basis that either one or three emperors would be represented. The specimens above are very similar to one another, but we are not in a position to ascertain if they are from the same boulloterion. The indiction sign is barely legible on specimen (d) and not legible on (c), but we restored it because of the resemblances on all other points.