Michael VII Ducas (AD 1071-1078), with Maria. EL tetarteron nomisma (20mm, 4.05 gm, 5h). NGC Choice VF 5/5 - 4/5. Constantinople. +ΘKЄ-ROHΘЄI+, nimbate bust of the Virgin Mary facing, veiled and holding a medallion of the nimbate infant Christ in both hands; in fields, barred MHP (ligate)-ΘV / +MIX-AHΛ-MA-RIA, half-length busts of Michael, on left, wearing crown and loros and Maria, similarly dressed, jointly holding between them long cross with X above pellet in crescent on shaft and terminal pellets. Sear 1872. Ex Heritage Auctions, Auction 232021 (20 May 2020), lot 63204. During the reign of Michael VII, the empire faced two major crises: instability caused by the disastrous defeat against the Turks at Manzikert and the rampant inflation and debasement of the currency. Both were issues that Michael had inherited, but the twenty-year old emperor was incapable of rectifying them. Michael IV (r. 1034-1041) was the first to debase the Byzantine gold coinage. From the days of the Roman Empire, the gold solidus (that later became the histamenon) was known for its remarkable standard of purity - almost all solidi were around 95% fine. The purity of Roman and Byzantine solidus was so universally accepted that the modern word "solid" derives from the denomination. Debasement was slow at first, with the purity still at around 75% by the time of Michael's father Constantine X (r. 1059-1067). But in 1071, the empire was dealt two disastrous defeats at the two opposite ends of its territory: Bari, the last Byzantine outpost in Italy, fell to the Normans, while the Seljuq victory at Manzikert paved the way for the Turkish conquest of much of Asia Minor. At the start of Michael's reign in 1071, the gold coinage was about 2/3 pure. Only seven years later when Michael was deposed, the purity of the histamena and tetartera was about 1/3; the gold had lost half its value in less than a decade. Michael earned the nickname "Parapinakes" (Greek: minus a quarter) as a result of such unfettered debasement. This rather pale example was probably struck in the middle or near the end of Michael's reign, one of the darkest times in the empire's history. HID09801242017 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved

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