The bishop of Kitros (eleventh/twelfth century)
Obverse
The Virgin turned toward right, hands extended upward. Sigla: ΜΡ̅ΘΥ̅ : Μήτηρ Θεοῦ. Border of dots.
Obverse
The Virgin turned toward right, hands extended upward. Sigla: ΜΡ̅ΘΥ̅ : Μήτηρ Θεοῦ. Border of dots.
Reverse
Inscription of five lines. Border of dots.
ΤΟΝΤ
ΚΙΤΡΠΑ
ΝΑΓΝΕΠΟΙ
ΜΕΝΑΣΚΕ
ΠΟΙΣ
Τὸν τοῦ Κίτρου, Πάναγνε, ποιμένα σκέποις.
Accession number | BZS.1955.1.5043 |
---|---|
Diameter | 23.0 mm |
Previous Editions | DO Seals 1, no. 24.2. |
Translation
Τὸν τοῦ Κίτρου, Πάναγνε, ποιμένα σκέποις.
All-holy One, may you protect the bishop of Kitros.
Bibliography
- Catalogue of the Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and at the Fogg Museum of Art, Vol. 1: Italy, North of the Balkans, North of the Black Sea (Open in Zotero)
- Le Corpus des sceaux de l’empire byzantin (Open in Zotero)
Commentary
Dodecasyllable. Both this seal and the two specimens published in DO Seals 1, no. 24.1 are seals of the bishops of Kitros that are essentially anonymous. They are identical except for the image of the Virgin that turns toward the right on this seal and toward the left on DO Seals 1, no. 24.1.
Modern Kitros is southwest of Thessalonica. The see was in existence at least by the late ninth century; a bishop Germanos is known to have attended the council of 879 (DHGE 12 [1953] col. 998). It is regularly mentioned in episcopal lists up to the Fourth Crusade (cf. Laurent, Corpus V/1, 341).