The epic Byzantine portrait thread

[sand]

@Valentinian Nice Tiberius II 40 nummi bronze examples from regnal years 4, 5, and 6, and a nice Tiberius II 30 nummi bronze example, and interesting numismatic information.
@wittwolff Nice Tiberius II 40 nummi bronze coin.

Here's my Tiberius II 40 nummi bronze coin. There seem to be no side facing portraits for Tiberius II 40 nummi bronze coins, which also seems to be true for Justin II 40 nummi bronze coins. Starting with Justin II, almost all of the Emperor or Empress portraits for 40 nummi bronze coins are front facing, as far as I know. There are some possible exceptions, such as some later Byzantine bronze trachy (cup shaped) coins, which show the Emperor kneeling before Jesus Christ (Dumbarton Oaks Volume 5 Part 2, Andronicus II coin types 563 through 566), although it is debatable whether those coins should still be categorized as 40 nummi coins. On some Tiberius II 40 nummi bronze coins, the Emperor is holding a cross. On other Tiberius II 40 nummi bronze coins, the Emperor is holding a mappa in 1 hand, and an eagle tipped scepter in the other hand, often with a cross above the eagle tipped scepter. On most or perhaps all Tiberius II 40 nummi bronze coins, there is a cross on top of the Emperor's crown, but sometimes the cross is difficult to see. For many Byzantine coins which have a front facing Emperor or Empress, all the way from Justinian I through the last Emperor Constantine XI, the Emperor's or Empress's crown has pendilia hanging down on the left side and right side of the Emperor's or Empress's face. The pendilia were strands of chains and/or jewels and/or pearls. The pendilia first appeared on the crown of the Eastern Roman Emperor Marcian, who reigned from 450 AD to 457 AD. The original purpose of the pendilia, seems to have been lost in the sands of time. Do any of the portraits on the coins of Tiberius II, resemble Tiberius II in reality? I don't know. For the Tiberius II 40 nummi bronze coins, often the eyes look strange, and often the overall style of the face seems rather simple.

Tiberius II AE 40 Nummi Follis. Regnal Year 5. Minted 578 AD To 579 AD. Constantinople Mint. Sear 430. Diameter 36.7 mm. Weight 17.60 grams. Obverse : Tiberius II Bust Facing Front Holding Mappa And Eagle Tipped Scepter, Cross Above Eagle. Reverse : Large Lower Case "m" Mint "CON" Officina E.

Edited June 10, 2023 by sand

[Hrefn]

Here are two solidi of Tiberius II.   Although different obverse dies, I think they were done by the same hand.  Even the lettering is nearly identical.  Unless you have a consular solidus, most solidi of T II which I have seen have a very similar depiction of the emperor.  

The same cannot be said of the reverses.  The jeweled cross on the second coin is rather striking.  I have read somewhere that in Jerusalem Tiberius II set up a gold cross, or sheathed some portion of the True Cross, in gold and jewels.  It is certainly true that Tiberius spent money like water.

 

Edited June 10, 2023 by Hrefn
Duplicate word

[mc9]

My only coin from Maurice Tiberius, and my only portrait from Carthage :

Obverse illegible : diademed bust right

Palmtree, 3 points in right lower field

Bronze nummus, Carthage, A.D.582-602, Sear 572b ; 0.46 gr.

[wittwolff]

A Decanummium and a Follis from me, hard to tell which portrait is the better one:

[Valentinian]

Cyzicus has some of the worst Byzantine portraits, and that is saying something:

Maurice. Sear 518. Cyzicus.
30 mm. 12.68 grams.

Another one of the same Sear number:
 

29.28 mm. 10.10 grams.

His decanummia from Antioch came with the denomination in Latin (X) on some coins and Greek (I) on others:

Sear 536. 18-16 mm. 2.63 grams.

Sear 537. Antioch (as Theopolis) 18 mm. 2.56 grams.

Most of his portraits are facing, but he does have some profile busts:


 

Maurice. Sear 546. Alexandria. 21 mm. 3.36 grams.

 

[sand]

@Hrefn Nice Tiberius II solidi.

@mc9 An interesting Maurice Tiberius 1 nummus coin.

@wittwolff Interesting Maurice Tiberius 10 nummi coin and 40 nummi coin.

@Valentinian Interesting Maurice Tiberius coins. Cyzicus had some comical portraits of Maurice Tiberius. Some of them look like Charlie Brown. Your 2nd example looks like a goon from the old Popeye cartoons. It's interesting, that some of the lower denomination bronze coin portraits were still side facing, such as on your 12 nummi bronze coin example.

Maurice Tiberius was a successful general under Tiberius II. Maurice Tiberius was chosen by Sophia, the wife of the former Emperor Justin II, to be the successor of Tiberius II. Sophia had also chosen Tiberius II to be the successor of Justin II. Tiberius II gave his daughter Constantina to be the bride of Maurice Tiberius. Maurice Tiberius and Constantina had 6 sons and 3 daughters. At the end of Maurice Tiberius's reign, the Byzantine Empire was still doing pretty well, as one can see, by looking at the map below. Much of Italy had been lost during the reign of Justin II, but the Byzantine Empire still held the city of Rome. According to Wikipedia, Maurice Tiberius's "court still used Latin, as did the army and administration, and he promoted science and the arts...His fault was too much faith in his own excellent judgment without regard to the disagreement and unpopularity which he provoked by decisions in themselves right and wise. He was a better judge of policy than of men...In 602, the Byzantine army rebelled against Emperor Maurice, largely due to exhaustion and outrage over orders to continue campaigning north of the Danube in winter as well as previous cuts in wages." The army proclaimed Phocas, a middle ranking officer who had emerged as a spokesman for dissatisfied soldiers, to be their leader. Phocas entered Constantinople and was crowned Emperor. Maurice Tiberius and his 6 sons were executed. Maurice Tiberius's wife and 3 daughters were temporarily spared, but 3 years later they were also executed.

Here's my Maurice Tiberius 40 nummi bronze coin. For 40 nummi bronze coins, many Maurice Tiberius portraits look very similar to Tiberius II portraits. One major difference is that, on many Maurice Tiberius 40 nummi bronze coins, there is a trefoil (a vertical line in the center, and 2 diagonal lines on either side) on top of the crown, rather than a cross. However, some Maurice Tiberius 40 nummi bronze coins have a cross on top of the crown, rather than a trefoil. On the other hand, none of the Tiberius II 40 nummi bronze coins seem to have a trefoil on top of the crown. They all seem to have a cross on top of the crown, although it can be difficult to see the cross, sometimes. Another difference, is that, many of the Tiberius II 40 nummi bronze coins have a portrait which has a pointy chin, while many of the Maurice Tiberius 40 nummi bronze coins have a portrait which has a more rounded chin. Was this because of a difference, in the actual appearance of Maurice Tiberius versus Tiberius II? I don't know. The Maurice Tiberius 40 nummi bronze coins, continue the trend of smaller and smaller 40 nummi bronze coins, which is inflation.

Maurice Tiberius AE 40 Nummi Follis. Regnal Year 3. Minted 585 AD. Antioch/Theopolis Mint. Sear 532. Diameter 29.5 mm. Weight 12.79 grams. Obverse : Maurice Tiberius Bust Facing Front, Trefoil On Top Of Crown, Holding Mappa And Eagle Tipped Scepter. Reverse : Large Lower Case "m", Mint "THEUP".

EDIT : The map in this post, is a snapshot of the nice Youtube video titled "The History of the Byzantine Empire : Every Month".

Edited July 19, 2023 by sand

[catadc]

Maurice Tiberius - Constantinopole follis on a large flan - 34mm, 13gr. 

 

[voulgaroktonou]

1 hour ago, catadc said:

Maurice Tiberius - Constantinopole follis on a large flan - 34mm, 13gr. 

 

"Cyzicus has some of the worst Byzantine portraits, and that is saying something:" Well said, my friend!

[Ancient Coin Hunter]

@sand - nice coins and write-up. I have a MT with the bronze disease...don't worry - it is quarantined. Note also that he was the author, or caused another to author The Strategikon of Maurice Tiberius, a military treatise on strategy, tactics, weaponry, and to a certain extent, politics. In some respects it is similar to The Art of War by Tzun Tzu. In the book specialized tactics are discussed to defeat specific enemies including the Persians, Avars, and Slavs, as well as a series of "Best Practices" for the general in the field. Clearly MT was an intelligent ruler and very conscientious however, it didn't prevent him from being toppled by Focas, a character that Byzantine historians called "a cyclops and a centaur." Note that Maurice is the last Byzantine emperor to be clean-shaven.

This coin came in an uncleaned hoard from the U.K. of mostly fourth century LRB's.

 

 

[Rand]

Maurice Tiberius. Struck 583/4-602. Solidus. 19 mm, 4.39 g. Constantinople mint, 8th officina.

Classical Numismatic Group, Inc. Auction 93. 22/05/2013

[Simon]

Not in great condition but the portrait faces left, not the norm. 

Maurice Tiberius SBCV-566  AE 10 , 18mm 3.64 grades as F/VF, flan flaw mottled brown and green patina. 

[voulgaroktonou]

Here are a few of my Maurice Tiberius specimens (and one Theodosius) for the current portrait gallery:

 

The top row of folles struck celebrating his Vicennalia, marking 20 years of rule in 601/2.  From left to right.

Nikomedia. 13.91 gr. 7 hr. Sear 513; Hahn 77d; DO 109a; BNP 12. Note the heavy wreath border on reverse.

Kyzikos. 13.51 gr. 34.5 mm. 12 hr. Sear 519; Hahn 86d; BNP 16-17. (Pertinent to @Valentinian’s observation of odd portraits from that mint!) Officina A.

Kyzikos. 13.89 gr. 34.3 mm. 6 hr. Sear 519; Hahn 86Da var. DO 134b; BM 162. Officina B.

 

Bottom row: Carthaginian silver. From left to right.

Carthage, 582/3. Half siliqua 0.91 gr. 15 mm. 9 hr. Sear 551; Hahn 57; BNP 1-2; BM 228. The novel type, an inscription (here, *SALVS MVNDI [Salvation of the world] surrounding a cross within a circle was to be repeated for centuries in western European coinage.

Carthage, 602. Half siliqua 0.73 gr. 13.1 mm. 1 hr. Sear 553; Hahn 61; BNP 4; BM 229-230; R. 1031. Another strongly religious message, A Ω flanking a cross potent on steps.

Carthage, Theodosius, son of Maurice, 590-602. 200 Nummi 0.64 gr. 14 mm. 9 hr. Sear 615A; Hahn 62; BNP 6.

[Pellinore]

An interesting and capable emperor, but I have only 1 very small Maurikios coin. 

3505. Byzantium, Mauricius Tiberius (582-602). Pentanummium Nicomedia. Diademed, draped, and cuirassed bust right / Large Є; N to right. 13.5 mm, 1.67 gr. 

 

 

[Al Kowsky]

Presently I have no coins of Maurice Tiberius, but I do have fond memories of a solidus I sold at auction about 5 years ago, see photo below. This coin sold for $1,020, & with todays crazy market I think it would sell for a lot more 😊.

[robinjojo]

Maurice Tiberius,  follis, Constantinople, Year 1 (582/3 AD).

12.3 grams

 

Maurice Tiberius, follis, Antioch, RY 5 (586/7 AD).  From Roma E-Sale 95, lot 1487.

Sear 532

12.60 grams

 

Maurice Tiberius, follis, Constantinople, year 7 (588/9 AD).  Ex NGC 46, June 1998, lot 1553.

Sear 494

11.29 grams 

Nice style and it is somewhat unusual to have specific auction information on a slab.

 

For a brief time I was collecting his folles from the final two years of his reign 20 and 21,, during the uprising of Phocas.

Maurice Tiberius, follis, Antioch, RY 20 (601/2.AD)

Sear 533

10.61 grams

 

Maurice Tiberius follis Antioch RY 21 (602/3 AD).

Sear 533

9.86 grams

 

Maurice Tiberius, follis, Constantinople  RY 20 (601/2 AD).  From Roma E-Sale 96, lot 1518.

Sear 495

12.13 grams

 

Maurice Tiberius, follis, Constantinople, RY 20 (601/2 AD) 

12.42 grams

 

Maurice Tiberius, follis, Cyzicus, RY 20 (601/2.AD).  From Roma E-Sale 95, lot 1486.

Sear 519

9.96 grams

Edited June 13, 2023 by robinjojo

[Severus Alexander]

3 hours ago, robinjojo said:

Maurice Tiberius,  follis, Cyzicus, Year 1, (582/3 AD).

Sear 492

11.0 grams

While there is a flan flaw on the reverse (actually a bubble in the metal), in the area of the regnal year, I think the spacing of the "I" suggests a space after it, making this coin from RY 1.

@robinjojo, I love your late (year 20) follis from Cyzicus, as well as the amazingly high grade Constantinople! (Would love to see a photo of the latter out of its slab.)

I think the coin in the quote above is in fact a Heraclius rather than a Maurice.  Enough of the legend is visible (DN hRACLI PERP) and the portrait is typical for early Heraclius at Cyzicus.  (I suspect you're right about the year.)

[Severus Alexander]

There were signs earlier, but we really see stark divergences in style across mints for Maurice. I think the best style portraits come from Antioch:

My best Constantinople:

... but I also like this year 7, a big one at 36mm. That's because it's overstruck on an early Tiberius II (yours too, @catadc?):

As @Valentinian and @voulgaroktonou note, the portraits from Cyzicus can be pretty amusing. They both show awesome examples! My favourite:

He looks so forlorn!

While the portraits from Cyzicus aren't exactly high art, they're at least entertaining. On the other hand, the Nicomedia portraits strike me as just... bad:

My only Thessalonica is this half follis:

I also have this "military mint" decanummium, which seems to have a high iron content (might explain their rarity?):

(I take the military mint designation from EBCC. Sear and DOC say "uncertain Italian mint," whereas MIB says it's Sicilian. DOC 295; MIB 141; SB 601.)

Edited June 12, 2023 by Severus Alexander

[robinjojo]

5 hours ago, Severus Alexander said:

@robinjojo, I love your late (year 20) follis from Cyzicus, as well as the amazingly high grade Constantinople! (Would love to see a photo of the latter out of its slab.)

I think the coin in the quote above is in fact a Heraclius rather than a Maurice.  Enough of the legend is visible (DN hRACLI PERP) and the portrait is typical for early Heraclius at Cyzicus.  (I suspect you're right about the year.)

You're right!  I was misreading the legend as DNTIB...  But there's a closer similarity to DNhRCLI.  I'll make the change.

Thanks! 

[Hrefn]

Here are two solidi of Maurice Tiberius.  They are notable for the differing portraits.  The left one is universally attributed to Constantinople.  The broad-faced portrait on the right is believed by some to come from Theupolis (Antioch).  

The first coin was purchased from Harlan Berk in 6/1990, the second from the same in 3/1992.  The last coin I purchased because I loved the portrait.  It is a light weight solidus from Roma, 2022.   

Edited June 13, 2023 by Hrefn
Added 3rd coin

[Valentinian]

Phocas, 602-610, (spelled "FOCAS" with an "F" on the coins) has a pretty distinctive portrait characterized by a triangular beard that comes to a point:



Large at 35-32 mm and 11.65 grams.
Sear 665 from Cyzcius, year 6.

The previous coin had "XXXX" for "40". This one has the usual "M", but with the top rounded (uncial)

26-24 mm. 9.79 grams.
Sear 672. Year 8, Antioch (as Theopolis). 

Here is one with Phocas accompanied by his wife, Leontia:



32-29 mm. 13.32 grams.
Sear 639, year 1. Constantinople.

Coins with both Phocas and Leontia can be small:

20-17 mm. 2.15 grams.
Decanummia, with "X" for 10.
Sear 675 from Antioch.

 

[Al Kowsky]

The coin pictured below is the only example of a Phocas solidus in my collection 😊.

Byzantine Empire. Phocas, AD 602-610. Constantinople Mint, Officina #5. AV Solidus: 4.44 gm, 21 mm, 7 h. Reverse: Angel holding P-Cross & Globus Cruciger. S&B 620. NGC MS, Strike 5/5, Surface 4/5. Ex Superior Galleries, June 1974, lot 74; Ex Heritage Auctions, April 23, 2018.

The 11th century Byzantine chronicler George Kedrenos gave us a physical description of Emperor Phocas: "Under a tangle of red hair his thick, beetling eyebrows met across his nose; the rest of his face was deformed by a huge, angry scar that turned crimson when he was aroused, giving it a still more hideous aspect than that which it normally bore. He was not, however, as pleasant as he looked." J. J. Norwich in his book Byzantium, The Early Centuries, wrote: "Debauched, drunken & almost pathologically cruel, he loved, as we are told, nothing so much as the sight of blood. Until his day, torture had been rare in the Byzantine Empire; it was Phocas who introduced the gallows & rack, the blindings & the mutilations which were to cast so sinister a shadow over the centuries to come". When Phocas was dragged ashore from his boat to meet the soon to be crowned emperor Heraclius, John of Antioch tells us that "Heraclius had his body chopped up to be used as dog food." Historians haven't been very kind to Phocas...

The coin pictured above is the most common of all Phocas solidus types seen in the market today. Nice looking, problem free examples in ExF to AU condition sell in the range of $500 to 700.

[voulgaroktonou]

A few of my Phokades to supplement the portrait gallery!

Top row, left to right.

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.

Follis, Thessalonika, 605/6. 10.55 gr. 31.7 mm. 6 hr. Sear 653; Hahn 91; BNP 2-3.

Follis, Kyzikos, 607/8. 8.64 gr. 29.5 mm. 6 hr. Sear 665; Hahn 76; DO 73a; BNP 6; BM 90; R. 1237

 

Lower row, left to right.

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 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?

Half follis, Kyzikos, 603/4. 5.51 gr. 23.3 mm. 11 hr. Sear 670; Hahn 79; BM 99; T. 106-7; R. 1240. The brain behind the hand that designed this had a slightly better understanding of human physiognomy.

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”.

[wittwolff]

One solo portrait and one together with his wife:

[Rand]

Phocas, Issue 607-610. Solidus. Officina 8. 4.48 g. 

 

Numismatica Ars Classica. Auction 56. 08/10/2010.

Edited June 13, 2023 by Rand

[Hrefn]

The consular bust.   Harlan Berk, 6/1993.

 

Focas is so evil that the cross has burst into flame.  

And a rather sad Focas with pendilla from the crown.  Asta Aurora, 3/2023.