N. imperial protospatharios and strategos of Chasanara (?) .... (tenth century)
| Accession number | BZS.1951.31.5.1904 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 28 mm |
| Field diameter | 22 mm |
| Condition | Half missing. Reused. |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 4, no. 80.1. |
Obverse
A griffin, turned to right. Circle of pellets within a double border of dots.
Reverse
Inscription (of five lines?). Border of dots.
νο
Rˊˊσπ
τρτ
νρ
.....
...ανο... β(ασιλικῷ) (πρωτο)σπ[αθαρίῳ καὶ σ]τρατ(ηγῷ) [Χασ]αναρ(ᾶ) ...
Translation
...ανο... βασιλικῷ πρωτοσπαθαρίῳ καὶ στρατηγῷ Χασαναρᾶ ...
...ano..., imperial protospatharios and strategos of Chasanara.
| Accession number | BZS.1951.31.5.1904 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 28 mm |
| Field diameter | 22 mm |
| Condition | Half missing. Reused. |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 4, no. 80.1. |
Commentary
Traces of letters from an understrike are observable on the obverse. At the end of the fifth line on the reverse, seemingly μ followed by a lunate letter, either an ε or σ. This could belong to a family name or to a second place-name.
The placename Χασαναρᾶ is attested in the Taktikon of Escorial and seems to be a Greek deformation of the Arabic Hisn ar-Ran, today Siverek, between Samosata and Diyarbekir. It was conquered by the Byzantines after 956 and became the seat of a small strategos before the early seventies of the Xth century. See Listes, 269, l. 7 and 362 and N. Oikonomidès, “Organisation," 291.