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Sear 1823
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Imitative Anonymous Class B Follis. Weight 6.39g, diameter 26mm.
An example of a group of 11th century imitations identified by Grierson [DOC Vol 3, part ii, page 680f]. They consistently exhibit several differences from the normal Class B pattern: thinner, smaller flan with correspondingly lighter weight, quincunx as nimbus ornament, no obverse inscription other than the IC XC abbreviations, and also several regularly recurring errors on the reverse. The group is significantly later in date than the original Class B issue and must have been struck during the early part of the reign of Alexius I. This example has been overstruck on a Class H anonymous follis. Also, all of the five examples listed in DOC are overstrikes, which raises the question of why anyone would choose to re-strike worn but official coins with a design derived from coinage current half a century earlier?
Grierson also notes that two of the specimens he illustrates as plate coins in DOC “are clearly the work of a die-sinker of some artistic competence”. I believe this present coin to be the work of the same craftsman.
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![Sear 1823
Imitative Anonymous Class B Follis. Weight 6.39g, diameter 26mm.
An example of a group of 11th century imitations identified by Grierson [DOC Vol 3, part ii, page 680f]. They consistently exhibit several differences from the normal Class B pattern: thinner, smaller flan with correspondingly lighter weight, quincunx as nimbus ornament, no obverse inscription other than the IC XC abbreviations, and also several regularly recurring errors on the reverse. The group is significantly later in date than the original Class B issue and must have been struck during the early part of the reign of Alexius I. This example has been overstruck on a Class H anonymous follis. Also, all of the five examples listed in DOC are overstrikes, which raises the question of why anyone would choose to re-strike worn but official coins with a design derived from coinage current half a century earlier?
Grierson also notes that two of the specimens he illustrates as plate coins in DOC “are clearly the work of a die-sinker of some artistic competence”. I believe this present coin to be the work of the same craftsman.](albums/userpics/24418/normal_Anon_B_imitative.jpg "Click to view full size image
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Sear 1823
Imitative Anonymous Class B Follis. Weight 6.39g, diameter 26mm.
An example of a group of 11th century imitations identified by Grierson [DOC Vol 3, part ii, page 680f]. They consistently exhibit several differences from the normal Class B pattern: thinner, smaller flan with correspondingly lighter weight, quincunx as nimbus ornament, no obverse inscription other than the IC XC abbreviations, and also several regularly recurring errors on the reverse. The group is significantly later in date than the original Class B issue and must have been struck during the early part of the reign of Alexius I. This example has been overstruck on a Class H anonymous follis. Also, all of the five examples listed in DOC are overstrikes, which raises the question of why anyone would choose to re-strike worn but official coins with a design derived from coinage current half a century earlier?
Grierson also notes that two of the specimens he illustrates as plate coins in DOC “are clearly the work of a die-sinker of some artistic competence”. I believe this present coin to be the work of the same craftsman.")
