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Solidus - Basil I
| Issuer | Byzantine Empire (Byzantine states) |
|---|---|
| Year | 867-886 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Greek |
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| Reverse description | Emperor Basil I standing facing in full imperial regalia, wearing a jewelled crown surmounted by a cross and a loros decorated with a dotted lozenge pattern; he holds a patriarchal cross in his right hand and a globus cruciger in his left. The figure is rendered frontally in the rigid, hieratic style typical of ninth-century Byzantine gold coinage. A border of dots frames the design, with the imperial legend arranged in two lines around the periphery of the field. |
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| Additional information |
Basil I founded the Macedonian dynasty despite having no Macedonian blood — he was almost certainly of Armenian origin, rose from peasant obscurity to stable hand at the imperial palace, and murdered his way to the throne via the assassination of both Emperor Michael III's favorite, Bardas, and eventually Michael III himself in 867. The dynasty he founded nonetheless proved the longest-lived in Byzantine history, lasting until 1056.
His solidi were struck at Constantinople under the supervision of a mint that had tightened gold fineness controls after debasements under earlier reigns. BCV#1702 specimens frequently show a slight spread at the flan edge from the scyphate curvature beginning to influence dies of this transitional period.