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Solidus in the name of Justinian II hand at left
| Issuer | Principality of Benevento |
|---|---|
| Year | 742-758 |
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| Value | 1 Solidus |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Frontal facing bust of the emperor in the Byzantine imperial style, crowned with a diadem and draped in imperial regalia with elaborate beaded collar and cuirass. The bearded effigy holds a patriarchal cross in the right hand. The legend encircles the bust within a beaded border, rendered in a somewhat barbarised Lombard imitative style derived from Byzantine prototypes. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
Benevento's Lombard rulers occupied a strange position in the eighth century — nominally independent, perpetually threatened by the Franks to the north and the Byzantine rump territories surrounding them in southern Italy. This solidus, struck under Gisulf II, copies the Byzantine tremissis type of Justinian II not out of deference but practicality: Byzantine gold still dominated trade in the region, and striking recognizable imitations kept commerce moving without requiring acceptance of Constantinople's actual monetary authority.
The electrum composition — a debased gold-silver alloy — distinguishes Beneventan output from the full-gold Byzantine prototypes it mimics. Oddy's analysis of this type confirmed the alloy was deliberate policy, not metallurgical sloppiness.