The monastery of Tziviasousa (eleventh century)
Obverse
Bust of the Mother of God with held held palm outward. At left and right: ΜΡθυ̅ : Μ(ήτη)ρ Θ(εο)ῦ. Border of dots.
Reverse
Inscription of four lines preceded by decoration. Border of dots.
τησ
.οντισ
τζιια
σ..
τῆς [μ]ον(ῆς) τῖς Τζιβιασού[σ(ης)]
Obverse
Bust of the Mother of God with held held palm outward. At left and right: ΜΡθυ̅ : Μ(ήτη)ρ Θ(εο)ῦ. Border of dots.
Reverse
Inscription of four lines preceded by decoration. Border of dots.
τησ
.οντισ
τζιια
σ..
τῆς [μ]ον(ῆς) τῖς Τζιβιασού[σ(ης)]
| Accession number | BZS.1951.31.5.870 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 23.0 mm; field: 17.0 mm |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 5 no. 93.1; Laurent, Corpus 5.2: no. 1292 (with a different reading). |
| Credit Line | Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Thomas Whittemore. |
Translation
τῆς μονῆς τῖς Τζιβιασούσης.
(Seal of) the monastery of Tziviasousa.
Bibliography
- Catalogue of Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and in the Fogg Museum of Art, Volume 5: The East (continued), Constantinople and Environs, Unknown Locations, Addenda, Uncertain Readings (Open in Zotero)
- Le Corpus des sceaux de l’empire byzantin (Open in Zotero)
- Annae Comnenae Alexias (Open in Zotero)
Commentary
Laurent read the inscription on the reverse as: Τῆς μονῆς τῆς Ὀξυβιασούσης. The letters on our seal are reasonably secure. In RN 9 (1905): 327, no. 217, Schlumberger published a seal that he understood to refer to a monastery τῆς Τζιβιασούσης and cites a passage in the Alexiad (5.5.2 [11]) referring to a stronghold in Thessaly called Τζίβισκος/Τζυβίσκος.