Justinian II (A.D. 685-695; 705-11) was the first emperor to include a bust
of Christ on his coins. During his first reign (A.D. 685-695), he issued
solidi with a bust-length portrait of Christ in which Christ is depicted
with long hair and a beard. Christ is shown frontally, staring directly
out at the spectator. The image of Christ was probably based on a famous
mosaic of Christ once located at the entrance to the imperial palace but
now lost. It is a type known as the Pantokrator or Ruler of the World. This
representation of Christ was to provide the model for the most popular type
of portrait of Christ used on later Byzantine solidi. During Justinian's
second reign (A.D. 705-11), he issued a solidus with a very different
effigy of Christ (no. 139). Christ is
still shown bust length and facing the spectator but the majestic and venerable
image of the Pantokrator has been replaced by a much more youthful looking
Christ. Christ appears curly-haired and with a very short beard that makes
him look almost beardless. This type of image of Christ is known as the
Syrian type after similar youthful depictions of Christ popular in the eastern
Mediterranean. It is not known why the youthful Christ type supplanted the
Pantokrator type on the solidi of Justinian's second reign.
The adoption of a portrait of Christ necessitated a change in the position
of the imperial portrait. Up until the reign of Justinian II, the imperial
portrait had been invariably placed on the obverse or primary face of the
coin in order to reflect the overriding importance accorded the imperial
effigy. When an image of Christ was included on the coin, the hierarchy
of types was disturbed because the image of Christ took precedence over
that of the emperor. As a result the portrait of Christ was placed on the
obverse and the imperial effigy, displaced by the image of Christ, was relegated
to the reverse.
The period of the Iconoclastic Controversy (A.D. 726-843) had a significant
impact on coin design. Following growing concern over the appropriateness
of venerating religious images, in A.D. 726 they were banned completely.
The bust of Christ, introduced by Justinian II, was officially proscribed
and could no longer appear on coins. The prohibition of religious images
was so strong that even the cross potent only rarely appeared on the reverse
of solidi during this period. There was, however, no prohibition
of imperial effigies and they became the dominant type for both the obverse
and reverse of coins. Emperors included the images of their junior colleagues,
usually their son or sons, and even of deceased ancestors along with their
own effigies on their coins (e.g. no. 141).
Although the empress Irene (A.D. 797-802) briefly rescinded the ban on religious
images, the remaining prejudice against them probably accounts for the unusual
solidi issued during her sole reign on which her identical portrait
appears on both the obverse and reverse (no. 142).
(Continues...)
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