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The Saints on Coins

Republic of Venice, Doge Lorenzo Tiepolo, 1268 - 1275

Lorenzo Tiepolo was the son of Doge Jacopo Tiepolo. Tiepolo demonstrated skill as commander when he defeated the Genoese at Acre in 1257. Although beloved by the population, his nepotism towards his sons, brought hostility from the nobility. In 1270, a peace treaty with Genoa confirmed Venetian predominance in the Adriatic; however, in that same year, commercial disputes grew to war between Venice and a league of Italian cities including Bologna, Treviso, Verona, Mantua, Ferrara, Cremona, Recanati, and Ancona. After an initial setback, the Venetians gained the upper hand and the terms of peace were favorable. Under Tiepolo, in 1273, Marco Polo began his journey to China. (He would return in 1295.) Tiepolo died in Venice in 1275 and was buried with his father in the Dominican Church of San Zanipolo.ME85076. Silver grosso, Papadopoli 1, Biaggi 2778, VF, uneven strike with weak areas, clipped, weight 1.533 g, maximum diameter 17.5 mm, die axis 180^o, Venice mint, 1268 - 1275; obverse LA TEVPL: - .S M VENETI, Doge, standing on left, wearing corno ducale, receiving tall flag from St. Mark, standing on right, DVX down left side of flag staff; reverse nimbate Christ enthroned facing, holding gospels in lap, IC - XC (Greek abbreviation: Iισους Xριστος - Jesus Christ) flanking Christ's head; $120.00 (�106.80)

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St. Helena, Augusta, 8 November 324 - c. 330 A.D., Mother of Constantine the Great

In 318, Emperor Constantine the Great renamed Drepana in Asia Minor, Helenopolis, after his mother Helena.

RL79456. Billon reduced centenionalis, RIC VIII Trier 63; LRBC I 112; SRCV V 17493; Voetter 7; Cohen VII 4; Hunter V p. 218, 2 var. (1st officina), EF, mint luster, tight flan, areas of slight porosity, weight 1.604 g, maximum diameter 15.0 mm, die axis 165^o, 2nd officina, Treveri (Trier, Germany) mint, 337 - 340 A.D.; obverse FL IVL HE-LENA AVG, diademed and mantled bust right wearing necklace; reverse PAX PVBLICA, Pax standing left, olive branch pointed down in right hand, long scepter transverse in left hand, �TRS� in exergue; $85.00 (�75.65)

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St. Helena, Augusta, 8 November 324 - c. 330 A.D., Mother of Constantine the Great

In the 12th century, Henry of Huntingdon included a passage in his Historia Anglorum that Constantine's mother Helena was a Briton, the daughter of King Cole of Colchester. Geoffrey of Monmouth expanded this story in his highly fictionalized Historia Regum Britanniae, an account of the supposed Kings of Britain from their Trojan origins to the Anglo-Saxon invasion. According to Geoffrey, Cole was King of the Britons when Constantius, here a senator, came to Britain. Afraid of the Romans, Cole submitted to Roman law so long as he retained his kingship. However, he died only a month later, and Constantius took the throne himself, marrying Cole's daughter Helena. They had their son Constantine, who succeeded his father as King of Britain before becoming Roman Emperor. Historically, this series of events is extremely improbable. Constantius had already left Helena by the time he left for Britain. Additionally, no earlier source mentions that Helena was born in Britain, let alone that she was a princess.

RL79452. Billon reduced centenionalis, SRCV V 17500 ff. (various mintmarks), EF, nice sharp portrait, attractive glossy green patina, tight flan, edge cracks, areas of slight porosity, weight 1.271 g, maximum diameter 15.0 mm, die axis 180^o, Treveri (Trier, Germany) mint, 337 - 340 A.D.; obverse FL HELENA AVGVSTA, diademed and mantled bust right wearing necklace; reverse PAX PVBLICA, Pax standing left, olive branch pointed down in right hand, long scepter transverse in left hand, [...]TR[...] in exergue; $80.00 (�71.20)

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St. Helena, Augusta, 8 November 324 - c. 330 A.D., Mother of Constantine the Great

Helena died around 330, with her son at her side. She was buried in the Mausoleum of Helena, outside Rome on the Via Labicana. Her sarcophagus is on display in the Pio-Clementine Vatican Museum, although the connection is often questioned. Next to her is the sarcophagus of her granddaughter Saint Constantina (Saint Constance). Her skull is displayed in the Cathedral of Trier, in Germany.

RL79455. Billon reduced centenionalis, Hunter V p. 281, 2 (also 1st officina); RIC VIII Trier 63; LRBC I 112; SRCV V 17493; Cohen VII 4, EF, well struck and centered on a ragged flan, end of reverse legend not fully struck, some light corrosion, weight 1.921 g, maximum diameter 16.0 mm, die axis 30^o, 1st officina, Treveri (Trier, Germany) mint, 337 - 340 A.D.; obverse FL HELENA AVGVSTA, diademed and mantled bust right wearing necklace; reverse PAX PVBLICA, Pax standing left, olive branch pointed down in right hand, long scepter transverse in left hand, �TRP� in exergue; $80.00 (�71.20)

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Empire of Nicaea, Theodore I Komnenos Laskaris, c. 1204 - November 1221 A.D.

Magnesia ad Sipylum (modern Manisa, Turkey) was located in Lydia about 65 km northeast of Smyrna (now Izmir) on the river Hermus (now Gediz) at the foot of Mount Sipylus. The city should not be confused with Magnesia on the Maeander, both founded by colonists from the Greek region of Magnesia. The first famous mention of the city is in 190 B.C., when Antiochus the Great was defeated in the battle of Magnesia by the Roman consul Lucius Cornelius Scipio Asiaticus. It became a city of importance under Roman rule and, though nearly destroyed by an earthquake in the reign of Tiberius, was restored by that emperor and flourished. It was an important regional center through the Byzantine Empire. During the 13th century interregnum of the Empire of Nicaea, Magnesia housed the Imperial mint, the Imperial treasury, and served as the functional capital of the Empire until the recovery of Constantinople in 1261. Magnesia was one of the few towns in this part of Anatolia which remained prosperous under the Turkish rule.BZ76758. Billon aspron trachy nomisma, DOC IV, part 2, 8; Lianta 189; SBCV 2068; Hendy pl. 31, 8; Sommer 69.4; Wroth BMC -; Ratto -, aF, weight 2.910 g, maximum diameter 25.3 mm, die axis 180^o, Magnesia ad Sipylum (Manisa, Turkey) mint, c. 1204 - Nov 1221 A.D.; obverse EMMA-NYHΛ, nimbate bust of Christ facing, beardless, scroll in left hand, five pellets in each limb of nimbus cross, IC - XC (Greek abbreviation for Jesus Christ) flanking across field; reverse ΘEO∆WPOC - O - ΘEO∆WPOC, Theodore and St. Theodore standing facing, each with outer hand on sheathed sword and inner hand holding patriarchal cross set on three steps between them; Emperor wears stemma, divitsion, and chlamys; Saint wears short military tunic, breastplate and sagion; this is the first example of this type handled by Forum; scarce; $65.00 (�57.85)

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Normans, Duchy of Apulia, Italy, William II, 1111 - 1127 A.D.

The Norman County of Apulia was founded by William of Hauteville in 1043. Robert Guiscard established the Duchy of Apulia in 1059. William II was respected by his contemporaries, popular with his barons and subjects, and praised for his martial prowess, but is considered insignificant by modern historians. After the Norman conquest of Sicily in the late 11th century, Apulia became a mere province, first of the Kingdom of Sicily, then of the Kingdom of Naples. From the late 12th to early 13th centuries, Apulia was a favorite residence of the Hohenstaufen emperors, notably Frederick II.ME68459. Bronze reduced follaro, MEC Italy III 139 ff.; MIR 10, 591; Biaggi 2277; CNI XVIII p. 322, 15, F, obverse off-center, weight 1.506 g, maximum diameter 13.6 mm, die axis 315^o, Salerno mint, 1119 - 1127; obverse nimbate bust of Saint Matthew facing, S - M across field; reverse cross, V-V / DV-X in quarters; $50.00 (�44.50)

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Byzantine Empire, Manuel I Comnenus, 8 April 1143 - 24 September 1180 A.D.

St. George is the Patron Saint of England. Traditionally, the sword with which St. George slew the dragon was called Ascalon, a name recalling the city of Ashkelon, Israel. During World War II, Winston Churchill named his personal aircraft Ascalon, after St. George's sword. BZ45637. Bronze half tetarteron, DOC IV, part 1, 23; Hendy pl. 18, 3; Morrisson BnF 61/X/AE/05; Wroth BMC 78; Ratto 2158; SBCV 1980; Sommer 61.25, VF, nice green patina, flan cracks, weight 1.565 g, maximum diameter 17.0 mm, die axis 180^o, uncertain Greek mint, 1152 - c. 1160 A.D.; obverse Θ / Γ/ε−ωP/ΓI/OC (or similar), bust of St. George facing, beardless, wearing nimbus, tunic, cuirass, and sagion, spear in right, shield in left; reverse MANYH ∆εCΠOT, Manuel, bust facing, wearing crown and loros, labarum in right, globus cruciger in left; $45.00 (�40.05)

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Bulgarian, Imitative of Alexis III, Billon Aspron Trachy, c. 1204 - 1220 A.D.

Greek magnates in Thrace probably issued the earliest "Bulgarian" imitative types in the years immediately following the fall of Constantinople to finance their military operations against the crusaders in northern Greece. When the Bulgarians gained control of Thrace they continued production until sometime between 1215 and 1220, with issues becoming increasingly crude and smaller.BZ79669. Billon trachy, Hendy, p. 218, Type C, pl. 25, 2(B) (imitative of SBCV 2012 of Alexis III, 1195 - 1203 A.D. ), VF, uneven strike, weight 2.848 g, maximum diameter 26.5 mm, die axis 180^o, obverse + KεRO HΘεI, IC - XC, beardless nimbate bust of Christ, wearing tunic and colobion, raising right in benediction, scroll in left; reverse ΛΛEΣIW ∆ECΠ Θ TW KOMNHNW (or similar), emperor, on left, and St. Constantine, nimbate on right, standing facing, each holds a labarum headed scepter and they hold a globus cruciger between them; Constantine the Great on the reverse!; $32.00 (�28.48)

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Catalog current as of Sunday, July 23, 2017.
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