To answer your first question now days you normally cannot visually tell. The silver wash is gone and rarely does the small amount of silver show...
You are correct, I falsely remembered the description saying Germanic but looking up the original listing by Kolner Munzkabinett this is what I...
[ATTACH] Here is an interesting one, the top is an official issue Manuel Comnenus and the bottom one is a Germanic tribe imitation.
I would not call them billion, I am sure their is a term but im uncertain what it is. Remember this is not the first coin called tetarteron, at...
Hi Herberto, They are not necessarily bigger or heavier but the tend to be better made. We use to joke the further from the capital the sloppier...
Beautiful examples @Al Kowsky .
[ATTACH] Another Hyperpyron, this one John II and from Thessalonica. Thick coin and I remember it was difficult to acquire. JOHN II HYPERPYRON...
This document brought me up to speed on seals, a bunch of I did not know that. Thought I would share. Thanks again @dltsrq for your input and...
Closest i have seen , nice job. Not lead though, that would be unusual for a seal. However tbe inscription fits, the mark above the virgin i...
19mm is the right answer.
9mm 4.0 gm This coin is not AR that I can tell, it is AE. Been asking for a few years; It seems to me that on the back is written: "Mother of...
Not perfect but a great Christ Portrait. Alexius III [ATTACH]
No , they are tetartera minted in the Capital, they contained silver 2 to 4%, I also believe they had a silver wash to differentiate them. I have...
I cannot speak for pre 12th century but yes coinage made it in to the hands of the common man, the economy had changed in the 12the century and so...
Yes it is confusing but true , as far as the evidence is showing. The only place all the denominations circulated was the capital,...
Very true, His grandson Manuel started the whole mess again, he began debasing them again. The highest standard was not by Alexius but by his son...
In 1092 the Emperor Alexius I Comnenus reformed Byzantine coinage. The main coin used was the Hyperpyron, a trachy shaped coin that weighed in...
Here are the John II half tetartera with St Demetrius. You see what I mean regarding the shield. [ATTACH] [ATTACH]
It is Manuel, if it had been John then the Saint would be another waring saint, St Demetrius . However his shield is not round, it has a triangle...
Congratulations on your new acquisition @DonnaML , it is beautiful I started a small collection of Byzantine tremisses, the average cost for the...
Separate names with a comma.