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Obolos 18

21 February 2021
Webauction
overview

Second instance of Christ's portrait on coinage

Starting Price: 750 CHF
Hammer Price:  3500 CHF
Lot 856

Justinian II, with Tiberius, second reign, 705-711. Solidus (Gold, 19 mm, 4.35 g, 5 h), Constantinople. d N IhS ChS REX REGNANTIЧM Bust of Christ facing, with short, curly hair and a short beard, wearing pallium and colobium, raising right hand in benediction and holding Book of Gospels in his left; behind, cross. Rev. d N IЧSTINIANЧS ET TIbERIЧS PP A' Crowned half-length figures of Justinian II, on left, and Tiberius, as a child not an infant, on right, both wearing chlamys and holding between them, in their right hands, a cross potent on two steps. DOC 2b. MIB 2b. SB 1415. Obverse strike a touch soft, otherwise, good very fine.

From the Trausnitz Collection, acquired from Münzkabinett Funk on 25 February 1985 for 3850 DM.

Justinian II was the first emperor to portray the bust of Christ on his coinage. He began doing so during his first reign, but the portrait of Christ there is older and quite different than it appears on his solidi struck during his second reign. Justinian was overthrown in 711 by Philippicus Bardanes, who after ascending the throne reinstated iconoclasm. Thus, Christ's portrait was removed from the coinage after Justinian's reign and did not reappear again until the reign of Michael III, more than 100 years later.

Online bidding closes: 21 Feb 2021, 22:08:00 CET Current Date & Time: 28 Mar 2024, 10:31:05 CET Remaining Time: Closed Hammer Price:3500 CHF by MailBidder8263 (15 bids)
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