Theodosios imperial protospatharios and katepano of the Mardaïtai (ninth/tenth century)
| Accession number | BZS.1958.106.5166 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 23 mm |
| Field diameter | 18 mm |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 2, no. 70.2. |
Obverse
Patriarchal cross on three steps. Along the border of dots, circular inscription.
ΚΕΟΙΘˊΤΟΣΟΔΟΥΛ,
Κύριε βοΐθει το σο δούλῳ
Reverse
Inscription of five lines. Border of dots.
Θ̅ΔΟΣ
,Α,ΣΠΑΘΑ
Ρ,ΚΚΑΤ,ΠΑΝ
ΤΟΝΜΑΡ
ΔΑΙΤ
Θεωδοσίῳ βασιλικῷ πρωτοσπαθαρίῳ καὶ κατεπάνω τον Μαρδαϊτῶν
Translation
Κύριε βοΐθει το σο δούλῳ Θεωδοσίῳ βασιλικῷ πρωτοσπαθαρίῳ καὶ κατεπάνω τον Μαρδαϊτῶν.
Lord, help your servant Theodosios imperial protospatharios and katepano of the Mardaïtai.
| Accession number | BZS.1958.106.5166 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 23 mm |
| Field diameter | 18 mm |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 2, no. 70.2. |
Bibliography
- Catalogue of the Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and at the Fogg Museum of Art, vol. 2: South of the Balkans, the Islands, south of Asia Minor
- The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium
- De Administrando Imperio
- Constantine Porphyrogenitus, De Administrando Imperio
- Byzance et la mer: La marine de guerre, la politique et les institutions maritimes de Byzance aux VIIe–VXe siècles
- Byzantine Lead Seals, vol. 2
- Η λύση τοῦ αἰνίγματος τῶν Μαρδαϊτῶν
- Die byzantinische Armee im 10. und 11. Jahrhundert: Studien zur Organisation der Tagmata
Commentary
The Mardaïtai were a Christian people originating in Lebanon, transferred by the Byzantines to the region of Attaleia and later to the western coastline of Greece, who became famous as sailors (ODB II, 1297). In Attaleia, they were placed under the separate command of a katepano appointed directly by the emperor and retained some independence from the strategos of the Kibyrraiotai; such katepano were the owners of the two specimens published below, the first of which shows that this institution survived until the 10th/11th century. See De Adm. Imp., chap. 50, lines 169ff; Commentary, 192-93; Ahrweiler, Mer, 50, 108ff, 399-400; Zacos, Seals II, nos. 331, 901; Hr. Bartikian, "Ἡ λύση τοῦ αἰνίγματος τῶν Μαρδαϊτῶν," Byzantium. Tribute to Andreas N. Stratos I (Athens, 1986), 17-39; Kühn, Armee, 160-63. It is possible that the Mardaïtaiof Nikopolis were also under the command of a katepano (DO Seals 2, § 2).