12 Fascinating Treasures of Byzantium.

Positioned on the crossroads between Western Europe and Asia, Byzantium was for a very long time the centre of the world. As a direct continuation of the Roman Empire, from the fourth century onwards to its collapse at the hands of the Ottomans in 1453, its influence was immense and is still felt today. Evidence of its profound influence is found for example in Western law, religious Orthodoxy, architecture and artwork. Even now we continue to unearth coins, jewelry, pottery and other artifacts that tell us something about the Byzantines.

This article, like my previous two-part series on Byzantine mosaics and my exploration of magnificent Byzantine ivories, will attempt to look at some of the most interesting Byzantine treasure that has survived. At a later date I hope to expand this series, but for now here are twelve fascinating treasures that have captured my imagination over the years.

Detail of the Charioteer Textile (Also referred to as the Shroud of Charlemagne), early 9th century, Musée national du Moyen Âge, Paris.

Imperial silk, reserved for Byzantine emperors, were always dyed purple. (Purple came to be associated in the Middle ages with Imperial power and domination.) It was illegal for foreigners to purchase these purple silks and strict rules were put in place to safeguard their production and distribution. Though occasionally these wonderful silks may have been sent as gifts to foreign dignities and kings. This exquisite royal silk (above) with a pattern illustrating a chariot drawn by four horses (quadriga), is believed be a fragment of the shroud in which Charlemagne was buried in 814. In all probability it originally made its way to western Europe as a diplomatic gift from Constantinople.

The Antioch Chalice, probably from Antioch or the Syrian village to the south, named Kaper Koraon, mid 6th century.

Discovered in 1910, near the ancient city of Antioch, the silver gilt Antioch Chalice, was once promoted as the possible cup of Christ, by a New York dealer in an attempted to attract interested buyers, today seems like stuff of legends. Undoubtedly, there would have been many people willing to believe the existence of a sacred drinking cup used by Jesus and his apostles at the Last Supper. By 1950, those theories were thrown out the window and it was brought by the Metropolitan Museum of Arts. Reappraised by more experts and scholars, it is thought to be now a magnificent creation from the first half of the 6^th century, which was probably used for the Eucharist. Other scholars more recently have come to the conclusion that the drinking cup is fact not a chalice, but a standing lamp, typical of lamps used in churches during the 6^th century.

Gold hyperpyron of Alexius I, probably minted 1092-1118, Thessalonica.

It is an astonishing feat to imagine that the gold coin created by Constantine in the early fourth century, known as the solidus or nomisma, would retain its purity and value (4.5 grams of gold per coin) for over seven centuries. (Diocletian introduced the first slightly heavier prototype of the solidus in 301.) It was used so widespread throughout the empire that trade and savings prospered and it paid for important government institutions and projects. Unfortunately, early in the eleventh century it began to increasingly depreciate in value and purity, largely caused by a number of unwelcomed factors, such as inferior alloy coins, military disasters and civil war.

In its place Emperor Alexius I Komnenos (1081-1118), initiated a recovery plan for the ailing Byzantine currency during the first decade of his reign. Expect it wasn’t simply a reissue of old coinage, it was the minting of a totally new high-quality gold issue. The Hyperpyron came about because the Byzantine monetary system was inevitably in need of a serious overhaul. It appearance interestingly coincided with Alexis making his eldest son John his successor. How better to celebrate a coronation by issuing a new coin!

The hyperpyron (scyphate or concave in shape) was minted at the same standard weight, as the old solidus and was almost all completely pure gold at 201/2 carats, compared to the old solidus at 24. It too, however, suffered the same fate as all other previous gold coins and began a gradual slide into depreciation. By the fourteenth century, it had depreciated to half its original value. Eventually, the Byzantines love affair with gold coinage, was substituted in favour of Italian currency.

Steelyard Weight with a Bust of a Byzantine Empress, 5th century, The Met Museum, New York.

Byzantine steelyard weights of many different sizes were once used to weigh products, suspended from a Steelyard balance. This bust weight (above) with a bronze hook would have been moved smoothly along the Steelyard bar until it balanced, determining the price a customer would pay for most goods. Bust weights like this often took the shape of Byzantine empresses. The likeness of this particular bust is associated with the Theodosian dynasty.

Bust of a Byzantine empress, possibly Theodora, 6th century, Sforza Castle, Milan.

I almost feel silly explaining who was Empress Theodora, nonetheless, she was arguably the most powerful woman of the middle-ages and Byzantine history. Her intelligence and abilities to make shrewd political decisions made her Justinian’s most trusted adviser. Almost by default, she stands along side her husband emperor Justinian as one of the most recognized faces of Byzantine art. The best-known representation of her exists in the Church of San Vitale as a mosaic portrait for the all whole world to see. I cannot think of any other representation of her that exists, other than the interesting bust of a Byzantine empress in the Sforza Castle Museum, in Milan, believed to be possibly Theodora. When you compare the bust, up against her Ravenna mosaic, there is a striking likeness.

Ptolemy’s Handy Tables (Byzantine calendar), mid 8th century, Vatican City, Rome, Italy.

This Illumination is the middle section of the Vatican copy of Ptolemy’s Astronomy, which shows the universe ruled by the Sun God, Helios, disguised in imperial purple as the emperor. It is in essence a byzantine calendar, created during the eighth century for medieval astronomers. What is most interesting about this calender is the fact that it cleverly avoids depictions of religious figures banned during the period we know as Iconoclasm. The image of the Helios and the emperor, for example, are so unambiguously intertwined, that not even emperor Constantine V, who commissioned its creation, had a problem with it.

Colossus of Constantine, 4th century, Palazzo dei Conservatori, Rome, Italy.

It’s probably very easy to say that Constantine’s appearance on the Roman landscape was a game changer. But it is true. From York to Constantinople, his legacy is felt and in between he left something of himself in Rome. After he defeated Maxentius at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge, Constantine became master of Italy and Rome. It was while in Rome that Constantine took over many of Maxentius’ major building projects, which included the huge basilica (also known as the Basilica Nova) that Maxentius had begun in the forum.

Once Constantine got his hands on it, he extensively realigned, completed and reburbished the huge basilica, with all its attention focused inside on the colossal statue of himself. It is said that it once stood fifteen metres high, but all that is left of it is fragments and his impressive head. It was here that these fragments of the statue were later found and removed by artist Michelangelo, in the sixteenth century, to the nearby Palazzo dei Conservatori. Today, Constantine’s statue is still found in the Capitoline Museum.

Plaque of Saint Simeon, 6th century, Louvre, Paris.

On the 7th February, 457, a Thracian by the name of Flavius Valerius Leo was crowned emperor of the Byzantine empire. What was significant about his coronation is that he was the first emperor crowned by the patriarch of Constantinople. Interestingly, under his reign, the Byzantine empire made a move away from military authority to a religious ‘ mystical concept of soveignity’. (Leo was a champion of Nicene Orthodoxy.) He was also known unflatteringly as ‘The Butcher’, who cleansed himself of his barbarian general Aspar. He murdered Aspar and his son, in 471. Some say he was hardly deserving of the unofficial title because, by the standards of the time, he had astonishingly little blood on his hands. Leo would reign as Emperor of the east and intermittently over the whole of the Roman Empire for seventeen years until his death in 474.