Niketas Choirosphaktes, protospatharios and strategos of Hellas (tenth/eleventh century)
Obverse
Bust of St. Nicholas blessing and holding book. Remains of vertical inscription: ΚΟΛ: Ὁ ἅγιος Νικόλαος. Border of dots.
Reverse
Inscription of six lines. Border of dots.
ΝΙΚΗΤ,
.ΣΠΑΘ,
.ΤΡΑΤΙΓ,
.ΛΛΑΔΟ,
ΧΥΡΟΣ
ΑΚΤˊ
Νικήτας (πρωτο)σπαθάριος καὶ στρατιγὸς Ἑλλάδος ὁ Χυροσφάκτης
Obverse
Bust of St. Nicholas blessing and holding book. Remains of vertical inscription: ΚΟΛ: Ὁ ἅγιος Νικόλαος. Border of dots.
Reverse
Inscription of six lines. Border of dots.
ΝΙΚΗΤ,
.ΣΠΑΘ,
.ΤΡΑΤΙΓ,
.ΛΛΑΔΟ,
ΧΥΡΟΣ
ΑΚΤˊ
Νικήτας (πρωτο)σπαθάριος καὶ στρατιγὸς Ἑλλάδος ὁ Χυροσφάκτης
| Accession number | BZS.1955.1.2973 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 28.0 mm |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 2, no. 8.51. |
Translation
Νικήτας πρωτοσπαθάριος καὶ στρατιγὸς Ἑλλάδος ὁ Χυροσφάκτης.
Niketas Choirosphaktes, protospatharios and strategos of Hellas.
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 (Open in Zotero)
- A Collection of Dated Byzantine Lead Seals (Open in Zotero)
- Le Corpus des sceaux de l’empire byzantin (Open in Zotero)
- Byzantine Lead Seals, Vol. 1 (Open in Zotero)
- Le Peloponnese byzantin jusqu’en 1204 (Open in Zotero)
- Du stratège de thème au duc: chronologie de l’évolution au cours du XIe siècle (Open in Zotero)
- Les listes de préséance byzantines des IXe et Xe siècles (Open in Zotero)
- Hellas und Thessalia (Open in Zotero)
- Byzantinische Rang- und Ämterstruktur im 8. und 9. Jahrhundert: Faktoren und Tendenzen ihrer Entwicklung (Open in Zotero)
- Die byzantinische Armee im 10. und 11. Jahrhundert: Studien zur Organisation der Tagmata (Open in Zotero)
Commentary
Due to chipping at the bottom, the reading of the last line appears uncertain. However, the final Τ is clear, the Κ that precedes it is reasonably secure, with its upper oblique bar ending with a vertical line (cf. Dated Seals, 161), and the triangular top of the Α before it is legible. The spelling of the name with an υ instead of a normal οι is a very common mistake, especially until the 10th century. The Choirosphaktai were a distinguished Peloponnesian family (Laurent, Corpus II, no. 114).