Coin Misidentified by CNG Group Lot and myself? John C-D Sear 2213 reconsidered to Manuel C-D 2183

Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by The Trachy Enjoyer, Apr 29, 2021.

  1. The Trachy Enjoyer

    The Trachy Enjoyer Well-Known Member

    I posted about this trachy a while back. I had it identified as being of John Comnenus Ducas (as had CNG who identified it by ruler but not by sear number in a group lot). The trachy shows the emperor and a Saint holding the model city of Thessalonica between them, sear type 2213 (my coin's obverse is dead but would show a cross as type 2213). However, my example showed the emperor holding a labarum as well. I couldn't find a match anywhere with a labarum so I noted this and left the coin IDed as an odd variation of 2213. Today, I came across another type which makes me reconsider my initial ID and that of CNG. It is sear 2183 of Manuel I Comnenus Ducas, predecessor of John.
    (My coin)
    IMG_7179 (1)_scrubbed.png
    IMG_7779_scrubbed.png
    Here is a pristine example of sear 2213 (from CNG), what I had initially IDed my trachy as. I had never considered Manuel and sear 2183 as an ID because I had only seen large module examples which looked like this, not similar to mine:
    4320686_scrubbed.png
    However, as I was glancing through LBC trying to ID some small module trachys I had, I realized that sear 2183 also had small module examples which look to be a match for coin, labarum and all. Take a look at these comparison pictures with my coin vs 2183 and 2213:


    (My trachy vs small module Sear 2183, Despot Manuel I)
    6ECDFB65-AA9D-481D-B0D7-04F290B3957D_scrubbed.png
    Notice all four examples here have a labarum. The top right example even has a "U" in the top center of the coin, something which I was confused by on mine.


    (My example vs small module Sear 2213, what I initially IDed based on style and what CNG had listed)
    F7B67836-E81C-484D-97E5-0F994CAA18B7_scrubbed.png
    Notice none of the examples have a labarum

    In comparing my coin with types 2183 and 2213, I was honestly a little surprised to see small modules issues of Manuel I in this type. I hadn't run into anything comparable online but these plates do show similarities. I was also surprised by the stylistic similarities between the small module examples of Manuel and John for 2183/2213. They look almost identical except for the labarum and the tendency of Manuel's coin to have a much lengthier legend. I can't say I blame CNG for IDing it as of John. If LBC didn't have these plates for small module 2183 examples, I think I would have left my ID as 2213.

    See my previous write up for information on the coinage of John Comnenus Ducas: https://www.cointalk.com/threads/em...fic-byzantine-minters-history-coinage.378845/
     

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    Last edited: Apr 29, 2021
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  3. DiomedesofArgos

    DiomedesofArgos Well-Known Member

    I don't have an opinion on this, but this may be of help. The smallest module listed in CLBC is 13.9.3, Diameter 15 – 21 mm, Die diameter 13 – 14 mm.

    13.9.3.JPG

    I see two of them on acsearch:

    3296135.jpg
    3324915.jpg
     
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  4. hotwheelsearl

    hotwheelsearl Well-Known Member

    @The Trachy Enjoyer , this is a very esoteric topic for me but I love seeing your research. To be honest, I can't make heads or tails of the designs, so I'll take your word for it!
     
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