(photo borrowed from seller) Crusaders, Principality of Antioch. AE follis. Tancred as regent (1104-1112). Obverse: Tancred facing, holding sword over shoulder and wearing turban. Reverse: Cross, in 4 quadrants abbreviated Greek legend IC XC NIKA (Jesus Christ Conquers). This coin: Forum Ancient Coins, December 2023. Tancred was born around 1075 to a noble Norman family. In 1096, he accompanied his uncle Bohemond on the First Crusade. He showed a great military strategic mind in leading troops into the Levant through Cilicia, capturing strategic sites along the way. He was part of the siege of Antioch in 1098 and was among the first Crusaders to enter Jerusalem in 1099. (He claimed to be the very first, but this was disputed.) He became regent of Antioch in 1100 while his uncle Bohemond was prisoner of the Danishmendid Turks (which lasted until 1103), and in 1104 also took over the County of Edessa when Baldwin II was captured by the Seljuk Turks at the Battle of Edessa. Also in 1104, Bohemond returned to Europe to recruit more soldiers, leaving Tancred regent at Antioch again. In late 1108 Baldwin was released and had to fight Tancred to regain possession of Edessa. Meanwhile, Bohemond had signed a treaty swearing an oath of fealty to the Byzantine emperor Alexius I, but Tancred refused to honor the treaty, keeping Antioch independent of the Byzantines. Tancred died in 1112 in a typhoid epidemic. This coin appealed to me because of the portrait of Tancred. It is somewhat worn, but the main features are reasonably clear, showing a long, straight beard, a high forehead, and most interestingly, a turban atop his head. Why would a Christian, European Crusader portray himself wearing a turban? Presumably it is some sort of attempt to appeal to the locals and show that he accepted at least some part of their culture. An interesting coin, from an interesting period of history that I haven't explored much before now. Please post your related coins.
Crusaders, Antioch. Tancred (Regent, 1101-03, 1104-12). Æ Follis (23mm, 4.46g, 6h). Bust of Tancred facing, wearing turban and holding sword. R/ Cross pommetée; IC XC NI KA in quarters. Metcalf, Crusades 63-9; CCS 4a. Unless mine is tooled, I think it shows a hairdo similar to what young men (at least on TV) wore in the 1990's. Looking at vcoins examples, many do seem to be a turban, although 75% are worn enough to leave it in some doubt. I can't remember who said it, but when I bought this coin, someone mentioned that this type was a later, imitative type.
Nice post. I just bought a Tancred partly in honor of my grad school advisor Dr. Haas who passed away last year. He taught a great course on the Crusades and I really enjoy that period, especially the 1st Crusade-- the only successful crusade.
I think it was numisforums where I posted mine during the summer of 2022. There was some discussion about it, where the bits about it being a posthumous imitation, from the 1120's, if I recall, were posted. These issues are readily available and my favorite of the Crusader coins. Perhaps there's some of both; the turban and the hairsyle. You probably remember that 1990's hairstyle I'm referring to. I don't recall real-life men wearing it, but everywhere on TV youn men would wear this parted-on-each side hairdo.
Tancred is an interesting figure. It seems he has been viewed as a hero, figuring in novels by Walter Scott and Benjamin Disraeli, and various poems. Or may this have been the Tancred of Sicily to whom Richard the 3rd gave a sword they claimed was Excalibur? I'm not certain. In any case, here is one heroic Tancred in a renaissance painting: Erminia Finds the Wounded Tancred The subject is from the 16th century Italian epic poem by Torquato Tasso, “Jerusalem Delivered”. Erminia and Vafrino come to the aid of the hero Tancred who has been wounded in battle. His opponent, Argant, lies dead in the background of the picture. Erminia cuts off her hair using Tancred’s sword in order to bandage Tancred’s wounds. As a representative of the Veronese school Turchi succeeded also in Rome, where he was appointed “Principe” of Accademia di San Luca in 1637. Source: https://www.khm.at/en/objectdb/detail/1969/?lv=detail Here's one of my two coins of Tancred: Tancred. As regent. First reign, 1101-1103 AD AE Follis, Antioch Obverse: Bust of Tancred facing, wearing turban and holding sword Reference: Cross pommetée, fleuronnée at base; in quarters, IC / [XC] – NI / K[A]. Reference: Metcalf 63-70; CCS 4a.
If the use of the word turban to describe what Tancred is wearing doesn't seem to fit, use the word chaperon. What is a chaperon...a French "turban". In the 12th century, peasants wore this headgear in the fields to keep the sun off. Initially, it was more of a hood, but evolved. It would be exactly the type of headgear a knight from France would wear to the Mid East to keep the sun from baking his head. So Tancred is most likely wearing something similar; which he would have probably called a chaperon. Some later examples of this turban--
I don't think we should consider the turban as a typical Arab, Turkish or, generally speaking, Muslim headgear. And Antioch was probably not a Muslim city when the Crusaders took it. Antioch is the city in which the followers of Jesus the Nazarene were called "Christian" for the first time, in the 1st c. Three centuries later the vast majority of its population was Christian, and Antioch remained a Christian city until 637, when it was taken by the Arabs. Under the Umayyad caliphs Islam was just the religion of the army, the civilians remained Christians and paid a special tax to the Muslim government, the "jiziya". Conversions to Islam started more seriously under the Abbassid caliphs, mainly because Islam had been turned into an imperial law, the "shariya". Nevertheless most of the Antiochenes remained Christians under Muslim rule. In 969 the city was retaken by the Byzantines and remained in the Byzantine Empire for more than a century. It was re-taken by the Seljukids in 1084 only, and was a Turkish stronghold for just 14 years : in 1098 it was taken again by the Crusaders. At that time it was governed by a Turkish lord, Yağısıyan, who was a Muslim like all other Turkish soldiers under his command, but the civilian population, compelled to defend the city too, was mostly Christian. The Crusaders took the city thanks to an Armenian called Firuz who was guarding a tower and let the Cusaders in. In Antioch they found churches but there is no word of a huge mosque. There was a modest mosque outside the city, the Crusaders called it "la Mahomerie". The Byzantine emperor Alexis considered Antioch as his legitimate property, that had been occupied by the Turks 14 years ago and was now back in the Empire. The Crusaders could not just ignore this claim, the Emperor being an vital ally and a great regional power. This is why Tancred seems to have formally pledged allegiance to the emperor Alexis, who in turn let him govern Antioch. Tancred had typically Byzantine coins minted, e.g. these folles, with Greek legends, and his effigy in a Byzantine style : monetarily speaking, Antioch was under Tancred a Byzantine city. The most important aspect of his portrait is that he is not wearing a crown of any kind and does not claim any title, he is just Tancred. The other Crusaders had a completely different monetary policy, using base silver deniers brought from France and Italy.
I have been looking at a lot of Tancred coins and am now less sure what is on his head but am leaning towards a bowl cut. Perhaps not the same thing is depicted every time though. Sometimes you can see what looks like a jewel/ decoration on top; which would make sense for headgear; but not haircut. this one is very wild-- hair-- surely only hair--
