Maria sebaste (eleventh century)
Obverse
Inscription of three lines beginning with a cross. Decorations above and below. Border of dots.
ΤΡΟ
ΦΗ̣..ΝΗ
ΤΝ
τροφὴ [πε]νήτων
Obverse
Inscription of three lines beginning with a cross. Decorations above and below. Border of dots.
ΤΡΟ
ΦΗ̣..ΝΗ
ΤΝ
τροφὴ [πε]νήτων
Reverse
Inscription of four lines. A decoration above. Border of dots.
ΤΗΣΣΕ
ΡΑ..ΗΣ
ΜΑΡΙ
ΑΣ
τῆς σεβα[στ]ῆς Μαρίας
Accession number | BZS.1951.31.5.2966 |
---|---|
Diameter | 21.0 mm |
Credit Line | Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Thomas Whittemore. |
Translation
τροφὴ πενήτων τῆς σεβα[στ]ῆς Μαρίας.
The nourishment of the poor, from the sebaste Maria.
Commentary
An interesting example of a token used for the feeding of the poor sponsored by the owner. The Maria in question could have been either Maria Skleraina (the mistress of the emperor Constantine IX Monomachos) or Maria Komnene, sister of the emperor Alexios I Komnenos, elevated to the rank of sebaste after April 1081. See John W. Nesbitt, Byzantine copper tokens," SBS 1 (1987), 63-75, pp. 73-74. The inscription is metrical.