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THE EMPEROR THEOPHILUS AND THE LAGBE HOARD
UNDER the title The Byzantine Hoard of Lagbe, the
American Numismatic Society has published, as No. 105 in its series
of Numismatic Notes and Monographs, a catalogue by its late
distinguished President Edward T. Newell of a hoard of Byzantine gold
coins found in Phrygia, most of which had come into his possession. At
the request of Mrs. Newell and pietatis causa, the manuscript was
printed just as it left his hand, and unfortunately he had not added
to the catalogue an analysis of the contents such as gives so much
value to his publication of other hoards. With the hope of partly
filling that lack, I offer a few observations.
The hoard consists of 102 gold solidi divided as follows:
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Nos. 1-3
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Leo III, 717-741
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Type III
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3
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Nos. 4-13
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Constantine V, 741-775
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Type I, 741-751
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10
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Nos. 14-29
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Type II, after 751
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16
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No. 30
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Leo IV, 775-780
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Type I
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1
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Nos. 31-33
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Type II
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3
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No. 34
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Constantine VI and Irene, 780-797
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Type I
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1
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No. 35
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Nicephorus I, 802-803
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1
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Nos, 36-49
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Nicephorus I and Stauracius, 803-811
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14
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Nos. 50-51
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Michael I, 811-813
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2
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No. 52
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Leo V, 813-820
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1
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Nos. 53-61
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Leo V and Constantine, 813-820
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9
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Nos. 62-66
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Michael II, 820-429
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5
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Nos. 67-101
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Theophilus, 829-831
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35
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No. 102
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Theophilus and Constantine, 832
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1
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The description of these coins, which does not concern us here, is, of
course, so thoroughly treated in the monograph that there is nothing
to add. The types are also described in Wroth's Catalogue of the
Imperial Coins in the British Museum (London, 1908) Vol. II and
Tolstoi's Monnaies Byzantines (Petrograd, 1914- In Russian). To show
the reader their appearance, a selection is illustrated on Plate XII.
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