| Roma Numismatics Ltd > E-Sale 118 | Auction date: 8 April 2024 |
| Lot number: 2217 Price realized: Unsold | |
| Lot description: Byzantine Iconographic PB Seal. Circa 10th-12th centuries AD. Bust of the Mother of God orans, the medallion of Christ(?) before her / Design obscure. 3.90g, 16mm. Condition as seen. Estimate: 25 GBP |  |
Match 1:
| Leu Numismatik AG > Web Auction 28 | Auction date: 9 December 2023 |
| Lot number: 5200 Price realized: 260 CHF (Approx. 296 USD / 274 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Paulos, 7th-8th centuries. Seal (Lead, 26 mm, 13.61 g, 12 h). +[Θ]ЄO[TOK]Є CⲰZЄ ΠAVΛON ('Mother of God, save Paul') Nimbate bust of the Mother of God facing, holding medallion of Christ on her chest. Rev. The martyrdom of Saint Thekla: nimbate female figure standing facing, raising both hands in prayer; to left and right, wild beasts attacking. Unpublished in the standard references. A beautiful and well-designed early Byzantine seal of the finest style of the period. Very fine. From the collection of lic. iur. Jürg Netzer, Switzerland, ex Obolos 11, 8 December 2018, 777 corr. (misdated and the reverse misdescribed). The reverse of this seal shows the attempted execution of Saint Thekla in Antioch, where she was thrown in the arena after she spurned the advances of a local nobleman. First, a lioness was unleashed upon her, but the animal did not harm the saint, instead sitting tamely at her feet. A bear was then released, but the lioness killed it in defence of the woman. Next, a lion was sent in, and again the lioness fought off the attacker, losing her own life in the process. Frustrated, the authorities sent in all wild animals on hand, but Thekla's prayers saw her safe from danger, eventually being released as it became apparent she could not be harmed. She lived a long and virtuous life afterwards, peacefully dying in her sleep at the age of ninety, according to legend. Starting price: 50 CHF |  |
Match 2:
| Leu Numismatik AG > Web Auction 28 | Auction date: 9 December 2023 |
| Lot number: 5303 Price realized: 160 CHF (Approx. 182 USD / 169 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Anonymous, later 11th-early 12th century. Seal (Lead, 23 mm, 7.35 g, 12 h). MHP - ΘV Nimbate bust of the Mother of God 'Nikopoios' facing, nimbate, holding medallion of Christ with both hands. Rev. IC - XC Large cross on steps, with superimposed Andrew's cross and pellets around. Cf. DO Seals VII, 5.95. A beautiful iconographic seal. Nearly extremely fine. From a European collection, formed before 2005. Starting price: 75 CHF |  |
Match 3:
| Roma Numismatics Ltd > E-Sale 118 | Auction date: 8 April 2024 |
| Lot number: 2216 Price realized: 150 GBP (Approx. 190 USD / 175 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Byzantine Iconographic PB Amulet. Circa 9th-13th century AD. Military saint (George, or Theodore?), nimbate and holding spear, on horseback to right; small figure with spear seated behind, spiral motif before horse / Small diagonal cross superimposed on large Greek cross with annulet finials, the whole set on two step base, spirals to left and right. Cf. Roma E-36, 901 for a similar rectangular example. 12.44g, 50mm, 12h. Condition as seen. Pierced to be sewn to clothing, possibly to identify the wearer as being from a particular religious house or order. Ex Roma Numismatics Ltd., E-Sale 75, 15 October 2020, lot 1011. Estimate: 150 GBP |  |
Match 4:
| Leu Numismatik AG > Web Auction 29 | Auction date: 24 February 2024 |
| Lot number: 2778 Price realized: 50 CHF (Approx. 57 USD / 52 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Tzittas (Gothic name), circa 550-650. Seal (Lead, 18 mm, 4.36 g, 12 h). Nimbate bust of the Mother of God holding Christ; to left and right, cross. Rev. Cruciform monogram of TZITTA. Zacos/Veglery 1226. Very fine. From a European collection, formed before 2005. The name Tzittas reveals the Gothic origin of this seal's owner. Following Justinian's wars of conquest in the West, many Goths entered into Byzantine service and at times achieved very high positions in the imperial army. They also served in the elite brigades that were privately employed by generals such as Belisarius and Johannes Troglita. A military commander named Tzittas is known in the first half of the sixth century, while another Tzittas, who held the ranks of spatharios and kandidatos, is attested for the year 605 as being beheaded on the orders of Phokas. Several seal types are known bearing the monogram of the name Tzittas. Starting price: 50 CHF |  |
Match 5:
| Roma Numismatics Ltd > E-Sale 116 | Auction date: 18 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 1468 Price realized: 280 GBP (Approx. 354 USD / 327 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Roman Imperial PB Seal. Circa 1st-2nd Century AD. Scarab (dung beetle) upright, cross above; Ѡ-A across upper fields / Blank. Unpublished in the standard references including Leukel & Spier, Medieval Byzantine Magical Amulets. 3.28g, 18mm x 11mm. Condition as seen. Exceedingly Rare; an apparently unique and exceptional seal, in terms of depicting one of the rarest Christian symbols, and therefore of great cultural and theological importance. Scarab beetles known scientifically as Scarabaeus sacer, are revered for their behaviour of rolling balls of dung across the ground to lay their eggs in, which was in ancient times interpreted as a symbol of the cycle of life, death, and rebirth. In ancient Egyptian religion, the scarab beetle was associated with the god Khepri, who was believed to represent the rising sun and creation. The Scarab was adopted by Christians, too, as a symbol for the same and for the Resurrection, in particular, and for Christ Himself, Who was called from the Church Fathers as "The Good Scarabaeus". The legend A-Ω refers to Christ as well, as He calls Himself the Alpha and the Omega three times in the book of Revelation (1:8; 21:6; 22:13). In the Greek language, the original language of the New Testament, Α (alpha) is the first letter of the alphabet and Ω (omega) is the last. So theologically, Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega in His eternal nature, His role in creation, His sustaining of the universe, and in His fulfilment as the Messiah. Estimate: 150 GBP |  |
