717-729

The Rhodopi/1991 hoard of billon trachea

• Γεωργαντέλη, Ευρυδίκη

A hoard of 20 billon trachea ended up in the numismatic collection of the Museum of Komotini through seizure, in November 1992. Its provenance, though uncertain, could be traced to the area of the Rhodopi Mountains, whit hinthe Greek borders. The hoard consists exclusively of metropolitan issues of Manuel I Comnenus (2 trachea of third and 10 of fourth issues), Andronicus I(2) and of Isaac II (8). The presence of the latter dates the concealment of the hoard somewhere within the 1995’s.a. No direct copies (Hendy's Bulgarian imitatives) or clipped trachea appear in the hoard. b. The hoard presents a high proportion of the fourth issue of Manuel I (60%), a phenomenon which can be also seen in pre-1204 hoards north of the Rhodopi mountains. c. No emperor prior to Manuel I Comnenus is represented among the coins. A similar situation appears in hoards from Macedonia and Northern Thrace, indicating a later hoarding process in these areas in comparison to the area of the Lower Danube. d. Despite its similarities with pre-1204 hoards from Bulgaria, the Rhodopi/1991 hoard must be understood in a different political and economic frame, that existed in Western Thrace in the 12th century, and which defined the patterns of currency in that area. e. Since no other pre-1204 hoard of billon trachea has yet been recorded in W. Thrace, this one bridges the numismatic gap between Western and Northern Thrace

• History and Archaeology

• Αρχαιολογία

αρχαία νομίσματα, Ροδόπη, συνέδρια

Περιέχει εικόνες