| Classical Numismatic Group > Electronic Auction 597 | Auction date: 15 October 2025 |
| Lot number: 715 Price realized: 200 USD (Approx. 173 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | Show similar lots on CoinArchives Find similar lots in upcoming auctions on  |
| Lot description: Philaretos Brachamios. Domestikos of the East and protosebastos, circa 1081-circa 1086/7. PB Seal (27mm, 17.55 g, 12h). Nimbate facing figure of St. Theodore, standing on suppedion, wearing military attire, holding spear and resting hand on shield set on ground to right / – + –/ ΔOMЄC/TIKON Єω/[A]C AΘΛHTA/ [C]KΠOI ΠPω/[T]ONCЄ[R]ACT/ON ΦIΛAPЄ/[...] in eight lines. BLS –; DOCBS –; George Zacos Collection Part II (Spink 132, 25 May 1999), lot 124. Tan surfaces with some minor wear to patina, slightly off center, minor marks. Near VF. From an American Academic Collection. Philaretos Brachamios was a high ranking military officer of Armenian origin who served during the reigns of emperors Romanus IV, Michael VII, and Nicephorus III. This seal attests him as protosebastos and the domestikos of the East. Philaretos occupied this incredibly high-ranking position first under the ill-fated emperor Romanus IV and later again under Nicephorus III. This seal can be very closely dated to after 1081. Philaretos is additionally very well documented historically. He is recorded as serving as one of Romanus IV's commanders during the catastrophic battle of Manzikert in 1071. After the battle (in which the emperor was captured), Philaretos proclaimed himself emperor. He quickly established his own fiefdom in the East without any major challengers. Once the succession of Romanus (and later Michael VII) was settled in Constantinople, Philaretos negotiated with the new emperor Nicephorus III and agreed to give up his claim to the throne in exchange for the duchy of Antioch and other titles. Approximately five to six years later circa 1086-7, the Turkish forces proved too much for the once imperial-claimant to handle. Philaretos perished as his fiefdom collapsed around him and his sons later surrendered much of what remained of his possessions during the First Crusade a decade later. The rest was eventually absorbed by other powers in the chaotic scene in the East as the Byzantines found themselves pressed on every side by Turks, Arabs, Crusaders, and other forces. Estimate: 100 USD |  |
