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Home ▸ Catalog ▸ |Byzantine Coins| ▸ |Byzantine Seals||View Options:  |  |  | 

Byzantine Seals

During the Byzantine period, lead bullae (singular, Bulla) were widely used to seal and identify the sender of correspondence and containers in shipment. An iron, pliers-shaped instrument, a boulloterion, was used to impress the designs on a lead bulla seal. After the cord was wrapped around the package or document and the ends inserted in a channel in the blank seal, the seal was placed between the disc shaped engraved dies on the jaws of a boulloterion. The boulloterion had a projection above the jaws, which was struck with a hammer to impress the design on the seal and close the channel around the two ends of the cord. With a bulla in place a container cannot be violated without visible damage to either the bulla or the cord, ensuring the contents remain tamper-proof until they reach their destination.

Byzantine, Lead Bulla Seal, c. 6th Century A.D.

|Byzantine| |Seals|, |Byzantine,| |Lead| |Bulla| |Seal,| |c.| |6th| |Century| |A.D.||seal|
Reading a block monogram of such complexity as on the present Byzantine seal can be maddening, like a quadratic or more complex polynomial equation whose solutions are all found to be reasonable. The inherent ambiguity of many block monograms may have been one reason why they fell out of favor during the seventh century A.D. Nevertheless, through patient study, some possible clues have been squeezed out of ours. The monogram may in fact combine a personal name with the office of a bishop (written in the genitive, EΠICKOΠOY, or "of the bishop") or perhaps even an archbishop (APXIEΠICKOΠOY). The person's name is a much trickier question with multiple possibilities, including Markou, Mariou, Marianou, Maurikiou, Eukarpiou, or even Kyprianou (all transliterated into English in genitive form). Another, less probable, possibility is an unidentified eparch (bishop of an eparchy or diocese).
BZ114045. Lead seal, cf. Zacos BLS 1208 (for very similar obv.); DOC BZS.1951.31.5.3062 (for similar seal with block monogram), Choice gVF, attractive, yellow oxide patina, weight 10.259 g, maximum diameter 22.1 mm, die axis 330o, c. 6th century A.D.; obverse facing bust of Virgin Hodeghetria, nimbate, wearing tunic and maphorion, holding infant Christ on her left arm/shoulder, nimbate, wearing tunic and himation, dove (i.e., the Holy Spirit) above, cross pattée behind; reverse complex block monogram, containing the letters A, Y, E (lunate), I, K, Π, Ο, P, C, and M and/or X, and possibly N; extremely rare; $200.00 (€188.00)
 


Byzantine Empire, Lead Bulla Seal, Anonymous, c. 7th - 9th Century A.D.

|Byzantine| |Seals|, |Byzantine| |Empire,| |Lead| |Bulla| |Seal,| |Anonymous,| |c.| |7th| |-| |9th| |Century| |A.D.||bulla| |(tag| |seal)|
Many Byzantine seals included the name of the sender. For anonymous seals, such as this one, the name of the sender would have been in the document to which the seal was attached. Some anonymous Byzantine seals included verses saying (in Greek): "Observe the document to see whose seal I am" or "The document clearly reveals the writer," etc.
BZ113989. Lead bulla (tag seal), unpublished in references held by Forum; DOCBS -, Zacos -, Jordanov -, et al. -, F, bump and marks, weight 7.039 g, maximum diameter 20.4 mm, die axis 0o, 7th - 9th Century A.D.; obverse nimbate and draped bust of St. John the Baptist facing, long cross staff in right hand, Θ over IW-Π/P/ΔO/M (or similar, Greek abbreviation: Ο Αγιος Ιωαννης ο Προδρομος - Saint John the forerunner); reverse the Virgin nimbate, veiled, and draped, with head of nimbate infant Christ before breast, star left and right over MP - ΘV (MP ligate, Greek abbreviation: Mητηρ Θεου - Mother of God) divided across field; $120.00 (€112.80)
 


Byzantine Empire, Anatolikon Theme, Lead Seal, 7th - 9th Century A.D.

|Byzantine| |Seals|, |Byzantine| |Empire,| |Anatolikon| |Theme,| |Lead| |Seal,| |7th| |-| |9th| |Century| |A.D.||bulla| |(tag| |seal)|
The Anatolikon Theme was a Byzantine theme (a military-civilian province) in central Asia Minor (modern Turkey). From its establishment, it was the largest and senior-most of the themes, and its military governors (strategoi) were powerful individuals, several of them rising to the imperial throne or launching failed rebellions to capture it. The theme and its army played an important role in the Arab-Byzantine wars of the 7th-10th centuries, after which it enjoyed a period of relative peace that lasted until its conquest by the Seljuk Turks in the late 1070s.
BZ99057. Lead bulla (tag seal), cf. DOCBS BZS.1947.2.460 (similar seal for a different Demetrios chartoularios); Zacos -, aVF, weight 16.596 g, maximum diameter 22.9 mm, die axis 0o, 7th - 9th century A.D.; obverse Cruciform invocative monogram: TEOTOKE BOETIE (ΘΕOTOKΕ BOΗΘΕI - God-bearer [Mother of God], help); reverse Four line inscription: ΔHMIT/PIW (Demetrios) TO (the) EY/K XAPTO/ΛAP (chartoularios, an administrative position) TON/ANATO (or similar); $45.00 (€42.30)
 







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REFERENCES

Chynet, J., C. C. Morrison & W. Seibt. Sceaux Byzantins de la collection Henri Seyrig. (Paris, 1991).
Cotsonis, J. "Narrative Scenes on Byzantine Lead Seals (Sixth - Twelfth Centuries): Frequency, Iconography, and Clientele" in Gesta, vol. 48, No. 1 (2009), pp. 55 - 86.
Dunn, A. A handlist of the Byzantine Lead Seals and Tokens in the Barber institute of Fine Arts, University of Birmingham. (Birmingham, UK, 1983).
Feind, R. Byzantinische Monogramme und Eigennamen - Byzantine monograms and personal names. (2010).
Jordanov, I. Corpus of Byzantine Seals from Bulgaria. (Sofia, 2003).
Jordanov, I & Z. Zhekova. Catalogue of Medieval Seals at the Regional Historical Museum of Shumen. (Sofia, 2007).
Laurent, V. Documents de sigillographie byzantine: Le Collection C. Orghidan. (Paris, 1952).
Laurent, V. Les sceax byzantins du Medaillier Vatican. (Vatican City, 1962).
Metcalf, D. Byzantine Lead Seals from Cyprus. (Nicosia, 2004).
Morrisson, C. "Monnaies en plomb byzantines" in RIN LXXXIII (1981).
Nesbitt, J. et al., eds. Catalogue of Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and the Fogg Museum of Art. (Washington, DC. 1991-2005).
Oikonomides, N. A Collection of Dated Byzantine Lead Seals. (Washington, DC, 1986).
Oikonomides, N. Byzantine Lead Seals. (Washington, DC. 1985).
Seibt, W. "The Use of Monograms on Byzantine Seals in the Early Middle-Ages (6th to 9th Centuries)" in Parekbolai, vol. 6 (2016).
Seibt, W. & M. Zarnitz. Das byzantinische Bleisiegel als Kunstwerk. (Vienna, 1997).
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Speck, P. Byzantinische Bleisiegel in Berlin (West). (Bonn, 1986).
Spink. Byzantine Seals from the Collection of George Zacos, Part I. Auction 127 (7 October 1998). London.
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Stavrakos, C. Die byzantinischen Bleisiegel mit Familiennamen aus der Sammlung des Numismatischen Museums Athen. (Wiesbaden, 2000).
Szemioth, A. & T. Wasilewski. "Sceaux byzantins du Musée National de Varsovie." in Studia Zrodionznawez Commentationes, 11 (1966), pp. 1-38, and 14 (1969), pp. 63-89.
Wassiliou, A. & W. Seibt. Die byzantinischen Bleisiegel in Österreich, Vol. 2: Zentral und Provinzialverwaltung. (Vienna, 2004).
Youroukova P. & V. Penchev. Bulgarian Medieval Coins and Seals. (Sofia, 1990).
Zacos, G. & A. Veglery. Byzantine Lead Seals. (Berne, 1972-84).

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