Athanasios (?) protekdikos (?) and sakellarios (ninth century)
Obverse
Bust of the Virgin, nimbate, holding the medallion of Christ before her. Inscription: ΘΕ̅|ΟΙ: Θεοτόκε βοίθει. Linear border.
Θεοτόκε βοίθει
Obverse
Bust of the Virgin, nimbate, holding the medallion of Christ before her. Inscription: ΘΕ̅|ΟΙ: Θεοτόκε βοίθει. Linear border.
Θεοτόκε βοίθει
Reverse
Inscription in four lines. No visible border.
αθ...
πρ,εκ
κ,σακκ
λαρι.
Ἀθανασίῳ (?) πρωτεκδίκῳ (?) καὶ σακκελαρίῳ
Accession number | BZS.1955.1.4775 |
---|---|
Diameter | 21.0 mm |
Previous Editions | Laurent, Corpus V/3, no. 1644. |
Translation
Θεοτόκε βοίθει Ἀθανασίῳ (?) πρωτεκδίκῳ (?) καὶ σακκελαρίῳ.
Theotokos, help Athanasios (?) protekdikos (?) and sakellarios.
Bibliography
- Le Corpus des sceaux de l’empire byzantin (Open in Zotero)
Commentary
The restoration of the name is uncertain--there seems to be the remnants of an Α before the Θ in the top line, which would render this name Athanasios, however if this A is not present, then the name could be any number of names beginning with Θ (i.e. Theodore, Theodosios, etc.). Laurent, misreads the second line, where there is clearly a ΠΡ, before the ΕΚ. The ΠΡ, can be interpreted in three ways: either this individual is a πρώτῳ (protos), a πρεσβύτερῳ (priest), or this forms the first part of the next word, and he is a πρωτεκδίκου (protekdikos). The former is the least likely, especially with the other two offices this individual owns. That he is a priest is entirely possible--but seems slightly less likely based on its placement foremost within the inscription and its abbreviation here without a καὶ thereafter, than the latter possibility, that this individual is the head of the ekdikoi, the protekdikos. This would be an unusually early seal of a protekdikos, but the position had existed since the late seventh century (ODB, "protekdikos").