Anonymous (eleventh century, second half)
Obverse
The Virgin standing, holding Christ on her right arm (Dexiokratousa), accompanied by the epithet Bassiotissa. Sigla preserved at right: ΘΥ : [Μ(ήτη)ρ] Θ(εο)ῦ. Epithet in two columns: .|̣Α|ΣΙ̣|Τ̣Η|ΣΑ : [ἡ] Βασιώτησα. Border of dots.
Reverse
St John the Baptist, standing, with his right hand raised and holding an open scroll with his left, wearing a short tunic with the right side of his chest exposed. Inscription in two columns: |Ι|Ο|Ο||Μ̣ : ὁ ἅ(γιος) Ἰω(άννης) ὁ Πρόδ(ρο)μ(ος). Border of dots.
Obverse
The Virgin standing, holding Christ on her right arm (Dexiokratousa), accompanied by the epithet Bassiotissa. Sigla preserved at right: ΘΥ : [Μ(ήτη)ρ] Θ(εο)ῦ. Epithet in two columns: .|̣Α|ΣΙ̣|Τ̣Η|ΣΑ : [ἡ] Βασιώτησα. Border of dots.
Reverse
St John the Baptist, standing, with his right hand raised and holding an open scroll with his left, wearing a short tunic with the right side of his chest exposed. Inscription in two columns: |Ι|Ο|Ο||Μ̣ : ὁ ἅ(γιος) Ἰω(άννης) ὁ Πρόδ(ρο)μ(ος). Border of dots.
| Accession number | BZS.1958.106.4813 |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 20.0 mm |
| Previous Editions | DO Seals 7, 11.1. |
Bibliography
- Catalogue of Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and in the Fogg Museum of Art, Volume 7: The Iconographic Seals (Open in Zotero)
Commentary
The Bassiotissa is one of the epithets that begin to appear with Marian images in the eleventh century. It is not, however, found in Themelis, “Αἱ Ἐπωνυμίαι τῆς Παναγίας,” Νέα Σιών 48 (1953), 13, where it would have been placed in his extensive alphabetical listing of epithets of the Virgin. The epithet Bassiotissa refers to an icon of the Virgin housed in the Constantinopolitan monastic church of the Theotokos ta Bassou (τὰ Βάσσου). For this church, see Janin, Églises, 61-62. Examples of this epithet are known only from seals. Among the published seal collections, there are ten examples of the Virgin Bassiotissa, all belonging to the eleventh and twelfth centuries. The image is remarkably consistent, which is not always the case with other epithets of the Virgin. Here the Virgin always stands and holds Christ on her right arm, while his right arm and leg cross over her body. Such consistency may point to the possibility of an actual iconographically similar pre-existing painted panel or monumental model that served as the prototype. See also Koltsida-Makre, “The Iconography of the Virgin,” 29-30.