The imperial kommerkia of Mesembria and Thrace (741-750)
Obverse
Half-length figures of Leo III, bearded, and Constantine V (left), bearded, holding between them a long cross on a rectangular base by its shaft; each wears chlamys and crown (with a cross?). No visible border.
Reverse
Inscription of seven lines. No visible border.
.ΩΝ
ΣΙΛΙΚΩΝ.
.ΜΜΕΡΚ.
ΝΜΕΣΗΜΒ
ΑΣΣΥΝΤΗ
ΡΑΚΗΣ
...
Τῶν βασιλικῶν κομμερκίων Μεσημβρίας σὺν τῆς Θρᾴκης ...
Obverse
Half-length figures of Leo III, bearded, and Constantine V (left), bearded, holding between them a long cross on a rectangular base by its shaft; each wears chlamys and crown (with a cross?). No visible border.
Reverse
Inscription of seven lines. No visible border.
.ΩΝ
ΣΙΛΙΚΩΝ.
.ΜΜΕΡΚ.
ΝΜΕΣΗΜΒ
ΑΣΣΥΝΤΗ
ΡΑΚΗΣ
...
Τῶν βασιλικῶν κομμερκίων Μεσημβρίας σὺν τῆς Θρᾴκης ...
| Accession number | BZS.1955.1.4400 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 24.0 mm |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 1, no. 71.18. |
Translation
Τῶν βασιλικῶν κομμερκίων Μεσημβρίας σὺν τῆς Θρᾴκης ....
(Seal of) the imperial kommerkia of Mesembria together with Thrace ...
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 (Open in Zotero)
- Byzantine Lead Seals, Vol. 1 (Open in Zotero)
- De Thematibus (Open in Zotero)
- “Thrakien” und “Thrakesion” (Open in Zotero)
- Die zweihundertjährige Reform (Zu den Anfängen der Themenorganisation im 7. und 8. Jahrhundert) (Open in Zotero)
- Ανίχνευση τοπογραφική της ανατολικής Θράκης (Open in Zotero)
- Byzantinische Rang- und Ämterstruktur im 8. und 9. Jahrhundert: Faktoren und Tendenzen ihrer Entwicklung (Open in Zotero)
- La Thrace Orientale et La Mer Noire: Géographie Ecclésiastique et Prosopographie (VIIIe-XIIe Siècles) (Open in Zotero)
- Constantini Porphyrogeniti De cerimoniis aulae byzantinae (Open in Zotero)
Commentary
The present specimen can be attributed with certainty to the first period of Constantine V's reign because the emperor is represented bearded and slightly taller than his father and because the cross that they are holding stand on a clearly visible rectangular base. Here we also assume that the last line (rev.) would have contained the indiction number.