-40%
CONSTANS II (642-68) follis of Syracuse, year 7. Big-face portrait. Visible date
CONSTANS II (642-68) follis of Syracuse, year 7. Big-face portrait. Visible date

CONSTANS II (642-68) follis of Syracuse, year 7. Big-face portrait. Visible date

$ 3.16

Availability: 33 in stock
  • Condition: The bright specs are reflections from the scanner, not on the coin. The portrait on the obverse is worn, so he looks like a crowned melon with eyes. The reverse is better, as you see. As the folles of Constans II are among the worst-made in the entire Byzantine series, not bad for one of these.
  • Refund will be given as: Money Back
  • All returns accepted: Returns Accepted
  • Restocking Fee: No
  • Cleaned/Uncleaned: Cleaned
  • Grade: Ungraded
  • Return shipping will be paid by: Buyer
  • Year: 648
  • Denomination: follis
  • Item must be returned within: 30 Days
  • Historical Period: Byzantine (300-1400 AD)

    Description

    BYZANTINE FOLLIS. CONSTANS II (AD 642-668). Year 7 (648/49)
    Obverse: Large-faced portrait. Worn, but you can see two eyes and his crown. Some lettering of an inevitably muddled inscription on the right.
    Reverse: Large M, meaning 40. (Value mark). To the left, ANNO. To the right what looks like a sickle, which is the Byzantine 6, then an I, which would make this Year 7. Or else that is a stylized V, for 5, plus I, making it six. Byzantine engravers were inconsistent about this usage. In any case the coinage of Constans II, coming from a very distressed period, is of uniformly poor quality so we are lucky to be able to make out anything.
    Almost certainly from Syracuse, since Constans II actually moved the capital there. He was a vigorous, hot-tempered emperor, who spent his reign fighting the Arabs (he memorably lost the Battle of the Masts in 655 and with it control of the eastern Mediterranean), but he was also the last emperor to make any serious effort to restore the West. He was also the last emperor to visit Rome, although he did not make himself welcome, as he came to depose the pope and carry off what valuables previous looters had left. He was the one who stripped the golden tiles off the roof of the Pantheon. He was eventually murdered in his bath, purportedly by being hit on the head with a soap dish. After his death, the government immediately returned to Constantinople.
    Always happy to combine shipping on multiple orders. This will be shipped between two pieces of cardboard as a first-class "parcel" so it can be tracked. The foreign postage prices are a guess. I will refund the excess if they are too high.