This old coin is roughly oval with an irregular rim. It is made of bronze that is now tan and brown. There are figures on both sides. One figure is shown from the waist up, staring at us with wide open eyes and mouth. The figure has a crown, headdress, or long hair, and is wearing a robe. The figure is holding up an orb with a cross on top in the hand to our right and a scepter in the hand to our left. Many of the details on this side of the coin, including in the head, robe, and scepter, are rendered with small bead-like rounds. The figure on the other side is also shown from the waist up, looking at us. This figure is inside a circle and also wears a robe. Small rounds denote eyes and a beard, and there is a frowning mouth or mustache under a pear-shaped nose. The figure has a halo and upturned hands, but could be holding something rectangular. At the lower edge of this side of the coin, written in what appears to be yellow paint, is M18E49.
Byzantine
Coin,
1118-1143
Bronze
,
1.6 x 2 cm (5/8 x 13/16 in.)
Object details
Accession number
M18e49
Primary Creator
Byzantine
Full title
Coin
Creation Date
1118-1143
Provenance
Gift from the philosopher Matthew Stewart Prichard (1865-1936) to Isabella Stewart Gardner at an unknown date.
Dimensions
1.6 x 2 cm (5/8 x 13/16 in.)
Display Media
Bronze
Web Commentary
Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.
Permanent Gallery Location
Little Salon
Bibliography
Warwick Wroth. Catalogue of the Imperial Byzantine Coins in the British Museum (London, 1908), p. 555-57, pl. LXVIII, no. 11. (as dated during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor John II Comnenus, 1118-1143)
Gilbert Wendel Longstreet and Morris Carter. General Catalogue (Boston, 1935), p. 145.
Rights and reproductions
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Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.