Uncertain Sicilian mint. Struck circa 616/7-621/2. Crowned and draped facing bust of ; monogram to right; all within circular punch / SCLs within circular punch. DOC 241b; MIB Km. 4; Anastasi 32bis; SB 882. Host coin Fine, countermark VF. Struck on a follis of Justin I. 14.9 g
Wow, that's very charming! Any Byzantine bronze with a visible nose is a winner. Like Doug, the visible undertype makes it extra interesting. That reminds me, I have a Byzantine countermark myself, possibly Heraclius. But I know nothing about it. Not only is there no nose, I am not even sure where the emperor is. What do you think of this? Mystery Byzantine, 4.2g, 17x26mm
HERACLIUS. 610-641 AD. Lot of two Æ Folles of Maurice Tiberius, with countermark attributed to Theodore, brother of Heraclius, circa 634-636 AD. Æ Follis (30mm, 10.82 gm, 7h). Constantinople mint. Dated RY 5 (586/7 AD). Helmeted facing bust / Large M, cross above; U, A/CON; countermark: monogram. Coin: DOC I 28a; MIB II 67D; SB 494 // Æ Follis (33mm, 12.54 gm, 7h). Constantinople mint. Dated RY 20 (601/2 AD). Helmeted facing bust / Large M, cross above; X/X, E/CON; countermark: monogram. Coin: DOC I 43 var (unlisted officina); MIB II 67D; SB 494. Countermarks: Lampinen, "Countermarked Byzantine Folles', in Caesarea Papers II, pp. 399-404, 2; DOC II 313; MIB III KM 1a; SB pg. 197. Average VF, the second with a scrape across the obverse. Two (2) coins in lot. The monogram used as a countermark can be identified as that of Theodore by comparison with identical monograms on Byzantine seals. Theodore, the brother of Heraclius, was put in command of the army confronting the first Muslim raiders invading Syria-Palestine. His army was thoroughly routed, and he was sent home in disgrace. The countermarks were probably applied to coins circ
Perhaps we need to address the question on when a large countermark becomes an overstrike. Does being two sided make the difference? Do I need both of these or are they just too similar? I have been wondering about that for a long time.
Nice to see This is very interesting. A while back I posted what I believe is this same (Palestine?) countermark. I had not encountered information about Theodore. My original post failed to capture much interest, so I'll tag back in. https://www.cointalk.com/threads/by...ria-palestine-a-heraclius-countermark.329326/ My example: Byzantine Empire Æ Follis Heraclius (c. 633-636 A.D.) Countermark on Maurice Tiberius (585-586 A.D.) Constantinople/Palestine Mint Host coin: [M]AVRIC TIB[ER PP AVG], helmeted & cuirassed bust facing / Large M, ANNO left, cross above, II / II right, Є below; CON in exergue. SB 494, MIB 65d-67d. (11.31 grams / 27 mm) Countermark: HRC cruciform monogram in 9 mm circle. Schulze HCM type 1b
