| Heritage World Coin Auctions > Showcase Auction 61386 | Auction date: 21 April 2024 |
| Lot number: 24215 Price realized: 2,400 USD (Approx. 2,253 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | Show similar lots on CoinArchives Find similar lots in upcoming auctions on  |
| Lot description: Ancients Michael VII Ducas (AD 1071-1078), with Maria. EL tetarteron nomisma (20mm, 4.05 gm, 6h). NGC AU 5/5 - 3/5, edge marks, scuffs. Constantinople. +ΘKE-POHΘ, bust of the Virgin Mary facing, veiled and holding a medallion of the nimbate infant Christ in both hands; in fields, barred MHP (ligate)-ΘV / +MIX-AHΛ-M-APIA, half-length busts of Michael, on left, wearing crown and loros and Maria, similarly dressed, holding between them long cross with terminal pellets. Sear 1870. Ex Classical Numismatic Group, Auction 115 (16 September 2020), lot 774. During the reign of Michael VII, the empire faced two major crises: instability caused by the disastrous defeat against the Turks at Manzikert and the rampant inflation and debasement of the currency. Both were issues that Michael had inherited, but the twenty-year old emperor was incapable of rectifying them. Michael IV (AD 1034-1041) was the first to debase the Byzantine gold coinage. From the days of the Roman Empire, the gold solidus (that later became the histamenon) was known for its remarkable standard of purity - almost all solidi were around 95% fine. Debasement was slow at first, with the purity still at around 75% by the time of Michael's father Constantine X (AD 1059-1067). But in AD 1071, the empire was dealt two disastrous defeats at the two opposite ends of its territory: Bari, the last Byzantine outpost in Italy, fell to the Normans, while the Seljuq victory at Manzikert paved the way for the Turkish conquest of much of Asia Minor. At the start of Michael's reign in AD 1071, the gold coinage was about 2/3 pure. Only seven years later when Michael was deposed, the purity of the histamena and tetartera was about 1/3; the gold had lost half its value in less than a decade. Michael earned the nickname "Parapinakes" (Greek: minus a quarter) as a result of such unfettered debasement. This rather pale example was probably struck in the middle or near the end of Michael's reign, one of the darkest times in the empire's history. https://coins.ha.com/itm/ancients/byzantine/ancients-michael-vii-ducas-ad-1071-1078-with-maria-el-tetarteron-nomisma-20mm-405-gm-6h-ngc-au-5-5-3-5-e/a/61386-24215.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-61386-04212024 HID02906262019 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved |  |
