voulgaroktonou

Perhaps I can do it over the holidays!

I've 30-40 weights, but need to photograph them! Your is a nice one.

@sand, a beautiful example! These year 5 issues are, in my opinion, one of the handsomest folles of the 5th-6th c., in their own way, equal to the earlier dated folles of Justinian I. Here's one of mine. Sear 430; Hahn 25; DO 11a. 16.97 gr. 37.8 mm. 6 hr.

@catadc, Yours are very nice examples. I agree that Antioch is the rare one in this series. I have seen only 3-4 over many years of looking.

A few 3/4 folles: Constantinople, 578-82. 12.18 gr. 33 mm. 6h Obv: δm TIЬ CONS - TANT P P AVC, crowned and cuirassed bust facing, wearing cross and chlamys. Rev: XXX; cross above; in exergue, CONΓ. Sear 432; DO 15d; H. 27; BM 40; R. 940 Nicomedia, 578-82. 12.84 gr. 36 mm.; 6h Obv: δm TIЬ CONS – TAN[T PP] AVC, crowned and cuirassed bust facing, wearing cross and chlamys. Rev: XXX; cross above; in exergue, NIKOB Sear 442; H. 36; BM 72 Cyzicus, 579-82. 12.45 gr. 33 mm. 6h Obv: δm TIЬ CONS – TANT PP AVC, crowned and cuirassed bust facing, wearing cross and chlamys. Rev: XXX; cross above; in exergue, KYZA Sear 445; DO 37a; H.42 ; BM 79 Antioch, 579-82. 9.20 gr. 28 mm. 6h Obv: δm TЬЬ CO - NSTANT PP, crowned and cuirassed bust facing, wearing cross and chlamys. Rev: XXX; cross above; in exergue, tHEЧP Sear 449; H. 48; BM 107. Same obverse die as BM 107. ...and a diminutive silver fraction from Carthage. Half siliqua, Carthage, 578-82. 1.06 gr. 16.4 mm. 6 hr. Obv: [δm TIb CON]STANT PP Helmeted, diademed and cuirassed bust facing. Rev: LV X M/VNDI Latin cross, above which, 2 pellets, all within a wreath. Sear 464; Hahn 20; BNP 1-2; BM 146-147

Ceremonial silver miliaresion. Constantinople, 602/7. 1.21 gr. 18.9 mm. 7 hr. Sear 638A; Hahn 54. The portraits on Phokas’ fractional gold and occasional silver coins are generally beardless, unlike the bearded ones on his other issues. Half follis, Kyzikos, 603/4. 6.50 gr. 25.9 mm. 6 hr. Sear 670 var.; Hahn 79 var.; DO 79a var.; BM 98 var.; R. 1239 var. This variety, with the regnal year to the left of the mark of value, is not noted. The raised position of the officina letters (in this case A) on the halves from this mint shows that they were later added to the die. @Valentinian has earlier noted the eccentricity of the Kyzikene portraits for Maurice. We see the “tradition” alive and well on occasional half folles of his successor from this mint. Or as my wife, classically trained in Greek pottery, is wont to assert, “proof that space aliens interbred with inhabitants of the eastern Mediterranean in late antiquity.” And who am I to disabuse her? Follis, Antioch, 608/9. 10.56 gr. 30.2 mm. 5 hr. Sear 672A; Hahn 84 b. Portrait of fine style. This is the second example of this portrait I have encountered. I published a better example of it in a private collection (now in DO) in The Celator, Aug. 2000, pp. 16-20: “From the hand of a master – an Antiochene follis of Phocas”.

Consider it a way to keep my aging brain active! 😁

Gosh, you must have a lot bigger tank that I do! But I love your Constantine V follis - wonderful coloring and surfaces!

Dear coin friends, At the risk of betraying my Byzantine fixation, as my many friends/admirers of earlier Greek and Roman coins would say I have to a serious degree, I would like to share a mental exercise I perform whenever I add gasoline to my car. When the last drop has been squeezed into the gas tank, I take the total charge in US dollars, and treat it as a Sear number. Then, I try to visualize what that particular Byzantine coin is. I’m fairly good at this, and yesterday proved the point. On the way home from visiting our horse, I stopped at the gas station and filled my tank by spending $16.80, thinking of Sear 1680, and considering it to be a Theophilos follis from Syracuse. A few minutes later, at home, I saw I was right on the money, so to speak. Here's one of my examples of Sear 1680. Follis, Syracuse, 830/1 – 842. 1.69 gr. 17 mm. 4 hr. Sear 1680; DO 29c; BNP 1-4; Ricotti 239. Grierson (DOC 3:1, p. 447) considers this issue as a half follis, or as “a much reduced follis.” Obv: Θε O FI[LOS bA] Bust of Theophilos wearing crown with cross and loros; holdings cross potent on base in right hand. Rev: + mI[XA – HL S COnSt] Busts of Michael and Constantine, each wearing crown with cross and chlamys. Star above their heads.

You are overkind, but thank you. Mine is a modest collection, I assure you, but I have been working at it for 60 years.

Although I have shared these two coins before, while on the topic of Anastasius, I thought I'd bring them out again, in case others have not seen the type. When the weights of the follis and its fractions were doubled in 512, the mint evidently considered that the increased size of the flans would allow for a figural reverse type, a seated representation of Constantinople holding a globus cruciger. Examples exist for the follis (I know of three examples, Berlin, BM, and Triton XIX, lot 688), its half (three examples: mine, and two others in DO., and quarter (three examples: Barber Institute, mine, and the third, Leu Web Auction 11, lot 2129). But it evidently did not give satisfaction, and specimens are extremely rare today. Anastasius I. Constantinople. 512-17. Half follis. 9.62 gr. 24.5 mm. hr. 8. Sear 25A; Hahn 20a (this coin). Ex Vecchi 8, Dec. 4, 1997, lot 401. Published in The Celator, April 1999, “A Pair of holed rarities”. This example is holed, as are two of the three known half folles as well as one of the three known decanummia. Anastasius I. Constantinople. 512-17. Decanummium. 4.30 gr. 20 mm. hr. 6. Sear 28A; Hahn 21. Ex Triton XV, lot 1573. An example of the follis came up in Triton XIX, lot 688. However, when I saw where the bidding was going, I decided that Meat Loaf's song “Two out of three ain't bad” made a lot of sense. Another song lyric, in this case from John Entwhistle’s “My Wife”, also suggested the importance of restraint: “My life’s in jeopardy, shot down in cold blood I’m gonna be” (or would have been if I had purchased it.)

@Sand posted several days back a wonderful and concise summary of the Anastasian currency reform. Here are a few additional notes and photos to illustrate the various denominations of the initial and final reform. I always love to read about Anastasius and his coins. Imagine the effect his reformed coinage would have had upon a populace used to those tiny nummi that must have had to circulate in bags! The Anastasian currency reform developed in two stages. The first, in 498, consisted in the issuance of multiples of the nummus, denominations of 40, 20, and 10 nummi. Then in 512, the weights were doubled, and at the same time, a further multiple, the pentanummium of 5 nummi was introduced. The striking of the tiny nummi continued. In addition to their much heavier weight and size, the distinguishing feature of the reform coins is the reverse type, consisting of a Greek letter corresponding to the appropriate denomination. M = 40; K = 20; I = 10; ε = 5. Below are some examples of the various denominations. The first row reflects the initial, lighter reform of 498-512, and the second row, the corresponding denominations of the second reform of 512-518. The obverse images are on the left, while the reverses are on the right. All are from the mint of Constantinople, although the other mints followed the same development. The coins are, from left to right: First row. Initial, lighter reform of 498-512. Follis. 8.50 gr. 26 mm. Hr. 6. Sear 14; Hahn 22; DO 16; BNP 11-12. Half follis. 3.76 gr. 20 mm. Hr. 6. Sear 24; Hahn 32; DO 21b; BNP 37. Quarter follis (decanummium). 1.51 gr. 16 mm. Hr. 12. Sear 26; Hahn 34a; DO 19; BNP 44-50. Nummus. 0.79 gr. 7 mm. Hr. 12. Sear 13; Hahn 40; DO 15; BNP 1-10. Second row. Subsequent (heavier) reform of 512-518. Follis. 18.17 gr. 36 mm. Hr. 6. Sear 19; Hahn 27; DO 23d, e; BNP 69-75. Half follis. 9.07 gr. 31 mm. Hr. 6. Sear 25 (this coin); Hahn 33; DO 24d; BNP 14. Quarter follis (decanummium). 4.16 gr. 22 mm. Hr. 6. Sear 28; Hahn 36; DO -; BNP – Eighth follis (pentanummium). 1.90 gr. 16 mm. Hr. 7. Sear 29; Hahn 39; DO 26d; BNP 92.

A very nice example; thanks for sharing!

Your Syracusan Constans is very nice; these issues really show the emperor's extravagant beard. And your comment of "acquired taste" resonates. My local ancient coin club friends consider my taste in Byzantine strange. And my wife, who studied ancient Greek pottery in graduate school, considers my passion for the 15th stavrata perverse.

Thank you!

That's very kind of you. I am not much of a photographer; it's just a 23 year old digital camera, a tripod, and a lot of luck!

I seldom acquire Byzantine gold; my interest lies more in silver of the eastern empire, especially the 7th-early 8th c., hexagrams and their Palaeologan descendants, those homely but lovable stavrata and their fractions. However, I was pleased to recently pick up this Constantinopolitan solidus of Constans II because it provides a secure dating for a scarce transitional hexagram of Constans, of which I own two examples. On Constans’ first issues from 641-646, his portrait is beardless. This intermediate class follows, on which he wears the beginning of a beard, as indicated by a row of dots. Hahn (MIB 3, p. 124) regards the epsilon on the reverse of the solidus as an indictional year 5 (646/7); Grierson, in DOC v. 2:2, p. 403-4 , considers the possibility, but he also cites evidence indicating the numeral may indicate a regnal year, and prefers to date this transitional issue to 647. The first solidi of the next class (II), with a short, but fully formed beard and with the numeral S in the right field on the reverse, he dates somewhat later, to 647/8. Solidus, Constantinople, 647. 4.39 gr. ; 19.5 mm. ; 6 hr. Sear 942; Hahn 9; DO 5a.2 (Class I (e)); BM 11. Obv: δ N CONSTAN – τINЧS PP AVÇ. Crowned bust facing; wearing chlamys and holding globus cruciger in right hand. Beard indicated by a row of dots. Rev: VICTORIA – AVÇЧ B. Cross potent on base and three steps. Є (indictional or regnal year 5) in r. field. CONOB below. Compare the portrait on the solidus with that on the following two hexagrams. Hexagram, Constantinople, 647. 6.43 gr. 25 mm. 7 hr. Sear 990; Hahn 143; DO 49; Yannopoulos 38-42. Obv: δ N CONSτAN – τINЧ[S PP AV]. Crowned bust facing; wearing chlamys and holding globus cruciger in right hand. Beard indicated by a row of dots as on the solidus. Rev: δεЧS AδIЧτ[A ROmANI]S. Cross potent on base above globe on three steps. Hexagram, Constantinople, 647. 6.61 gr. 30.2 mm. 4 hr. Sear 990; Hahn 143; DO 49; Yannopoulos 38-42. Obv: δ N CONSτAN – τINЧS PP AV. Crowned bust facing; wearing chlamys and holding globus cruciger in right hand. Beard indicated by a row of dots as before. Rev: δεЧS A[δIЧ]τA ROmANIS. Cross potent on base above globe on three steps. Curiously, from the standpoint of their weight, both the hexagram and the much later stavraton recall the didrachmon of classical Greece! I’d love to see your hexagrams!

Here's my Sear 1426 of Justinian II. Notes are at home, so I lack here weight etc. When I got it on ebay years ago, it was so incrusted as to be unidentifiable. A very patient friend brought it to its present condition for me. (Thank you, Dave!)

In 1928 Alfred Bellinger wrote a small monograph "The anonymous Byzantine bronze coinage", published as No. 35 in the ANS Numismatic Notes and Monographs series. However, Grierson's 1982 publication Byzantine Coins also has a good summary of the series on pp. 204-210.

I have an Anastasius follis from Constantinople, 507-12, (13.19 gr. 26.7 mm. 6 hr. Sear 16; Hahn 23; DO 20b; BNP 25-26; BM 37-38) that has deliberately filed notches, 8 on the obverse rim, and 9 on the reverse. Its weight is exceptionally heavy for the first reform coinage which averages between 8-9 gr. I quickly dismissed my initial thought that it was done perhaps to bring the weight in line. One would not expend the energy for such a low value coin. It more likely was converted by the notches to a weight of 3 nomismata. For similar coins converted to weights by this method, see K. Weber: “Late antiquity weights. The second life of antique and late antique coins”, in Maß und Gewicht 16 (2014 Mai), #14, 161.

You've got a beautiful example here. Thanks for sharing it! Here's one of my examples of the type. A bit more wear than I normally like, but wonderful green patina to which my photo does not do justice.

For 40 years or more, the members of my local ancient coin group have lovingly referred to the objects of my passion as "UBCs", which, for the unitiated, means "ugly Byantine coins". So, indeed, it is nice to meet more people who share this acquired taste. On the other hand, I miss the days when one could purchase a nice stavraton for $12 and a solidus for $30!

Am on vacation, without any notes, save photos, but here's my Manouel I Komnenos, asper, Sear 2601: Alexios II, 1297-1330. asper, Sear 2619. Obv: St. Eugenios on horseback; rev: emperor on horseback. John III, 1342-1344. Æ. Sear 2624. Obv: . St. Eugenius standing facing, holding long cross; rev: emperor standing facing, holding scepter.

My friend, @Severus Alexander, thank you for your kind words . When we return from our short holiday (with our 4 dogs, it is going to be a bit hectic, if full of slobbery wet kisses - especially if the dogs follow my wife's enthusiastic expressions of affection) - OK, that's a dumb joke, but I could not resist it..., we'll talk about the attribution of those scrappy little eighths! You've got some beautiful coins there that you've just shown! I especially like that one with the cute seraph! And THANK YOU and EVERYONE for this wonderful portrait thread - there have been so many great coins, wonderful historic maps, and much interesting information!