Coin — Gold nomisma (hyperpyron), Istanbul (City), 1081-1118
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
1081-1118
Coin in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (museum number A.10-1960), made in Istanbul (City), dated 1081-1118. The museum's brief description reads: Coin, gold, of The Emperor Alexius I Comnenus, Byzantine (Constantinople), ca.
1081-1118. Museum description: The obverse shows Christ, with a cross nimbus, bearded, seated facing outwards on a backless throne. He stretches out his right hand in a blessing gesture. In his left hand, he holds a book. He wears a tunic and mantle. There is a double border of dots. The reverse shows the Emperor Alexius I Comnenos, bearded, standing facing outwards, holding in his right hand the labarum and in his left a globe surmounted by a cross, long robes, and a broad mantle, jewelled on three of its edges.
Above, on the right, the hand of God crowning the Emperor. The museum records it as Gold, struck, measuring Height 2.8 cm; Width 3.2 cm; Depth 0.3 cm. These details come from the museum's own record; how far this object represents a wider collectible type has not yet been independently verified.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Historical context
Alexius Comnenos ruled over Byzantium during one of its most troubled periods. He came to power by seizing the throne and spent much of his time as Emperor repelling invaders, notably the Normans, under their charismatic leader Robert Guiscard. Alexius' time as Emperor also coincided with the first Crusade, and the story of the Byzantines' distrustful relationship with the Crusaders is told in Alexius' biography, the Alexiad, written by his daughter, Anna Comnena. Alexius is also notable as the emperor who granted the Venetians a permanent living quarter in Constantinople, a move that signalled the Venetians' prominence as a mercantile conduit between Byzantium and the West, and the degree to which Byzantine naval power was now reliant on Venetian-supplied vessels. Although Byzantine solidi continue the Roman imperial practice of devoting one side of the coin to a portrait of the emperor under whom the coin was issued, they reveal that the imperial portrait itself underwent a number of fundamental changes: firstly, the profile format for ruler portraits, used almost without exception on Roman coins, was replaced by a facing bust; secondly, the imperial portrait, which during the Roman period had been distinguished by the attempt to suggest a true likeness of the ruler, largely ceased to possess any element of characterized portraiture at all; and finally, new forms of imperial dress and insignia were adopted for the ruler portraits. The portrait on this coin emphasises that…
Physical characteristics
- Material
- gold
- Dimensions
- Height 2.8 cm; Width 3.2 cm; Depth 0.3 cm
Technical characteristics
- Technique
- Gold, struck
- Place recorded
- Istanbul (City)
Design
- Inscriptions recorded
- 'IC XC'; +KERO HOEI; Alexio Despote Komnenu
Identification
- Museum object name
- Coin
- Museum object number
- A.10-1960
- Museum system number
- O117869
Documentation checklist
- Denomination
- Research required
- Issue or mint date
- Recorded
- Material
- Recorded
- Weight
- Research required
- Mint or printer
- Research required
- Mint or printer mark
- Research required
- Catalogue reference
- Research required
- Attached photograph (check rights)
- Recorded
Recorded means a field is present, not independently verified. Read its wording, supporting source and the entry’s confidence level.
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.
Research required
- Research required: confirm the wider type, maker and catalogue references against a specialist reference.