583, Byzantine Empire, Maurice Tiberius. Gold Solidus Coin. Sear 478. NGC AU5/3!

Description

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583, Byzantine Empire, Maurice Tiberius. Gold Solidus Coin. Sear 478. NGC AU5/3!
Mint Period: 583-602 AD
Culture: Byzantine Empire
Mint Place: Constantinople
Denomination: Gold Solidus
References: Sear 478, Friedberg 88.
Ruler (Emperor): Maurice Tiberius (582-602    AD)
Condition:
Certified and graded by NGC as AU 5/5, 3/5!
Diameter: 22mm
Weight: 4.46gm
Material: Gold!
Obverse:
Pearl-diademed, helmeted, draped and cuirassed bust facing, holding globus cruciger.
Legend: D N MAVRC TIЬ P P AVC
Reverse
:
Angel standing facing, holding long staff terminating in staurogram and globus cruciger.
Legend: VICTORIA AVCCC I
The
solidus
(Latin 'solid';
pl.
solidi
),
nomisma
(Greek:
νόμισμα
, nómisma,
lit.
'coin'), or
bezant
was originally a relatively pure gold coin issued in the Late Roman Empire. Under Constantine, who introduced it on a wide scale, it had a weight of about 4.5 grams. It was largely replaced in Western Europe by Pepin the Short's currency reform, which introduced the silver-based pound/shilling/penny system, under which the shilling functioned as a unit of account equivalent to 12 pence, eventually developing into the French sou. In Eastern Europe, the nomisma was gradually debased by the Byzantine emperors until it was abolished by Alexius I in 1092, who replaced it with the hyperpyron, which also came to be known as a "bezant". The Byzantine solidus also inspired the originally slightly less pure dinar issued by the Muslim Caliphate.
In late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, the solidus also functioned as a unit of weight equal to
1⁄72
Roman pound (approximately 4.5 grams).
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Maurice
(539 - 27 November 602) was Byzantine Emperor from 582 to 602.
A prominent general in his youth, Maurice fought with success against the Sassanid Persians. Once he became Emperor, he brought the war with Persia to a victorious conclusion: expanding the eastern frontier dramatically and marrying his daughter to Khosrau II, the Persian king.
Maurice also campaigned extensively in the Balkans against the Avars - pushing them back across the Danube by 599. He also conducted campaigns across the Danube, the first Emperor to do so in over two hundred years. In the West, Maurice established two large semi-autonomous provinces called exarchates, ruled by
exarchs
, viceroys, of the emperor.
In Italy, Maurice established the Exarchate of Ravenna in 584, the first real effort by the Empire to halt the advance of the Lombards. With the creation of the Exarchate of Africa in 590, Maurice further solidified the empire's hold on the western Mediterranean.
His reign was troubled by financial difficulties and almost constant warfare. In 602, a dissatisfied general named Phocas usurped the throne, having Maurice and his six sons executed. This event would prove cataclysmic for the Empire, sparking a devastating war with Persia that would leave both empires helpless in the wake of the Muslim invasions.
His reign is a relatively accurately documented era of Late Antiquity; in particular by the historian Theophylact Simocatta. Maurice also authored the
Strategikon
, a manual of war which influenced European militaries for nearly a millennium. Maurice stands out as one of the last Emperors whose Empire still bore a strong resemblance to the Roman Empire of previous centuries.
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