★ An impressive late Byzantine seal ★

Liberos, sebastos, 13th century. Seal (Lead, 39 mm, 32.52 g, 12 h). O / ΠP /OΦI/TH/C - Δ/A/NI/HΛ ('The prophet Daniel') The prophet Daniel standing facing, nimbate, raising both hands in prayer, lion on either side. Rev. KPITHC ΔA/NIHΛ KAI ΓP/AΦⲰN NVN Π/PO CT ATH C TЄΛЄI / CЄBA CT ૪ ΛIBЄP૪ / ΠΡ AξЄIC KPI/NⲰN ('The judge Daniel, who judges the acts of the sebastos Liberos, is now the guardian of his letters') in seven lines, cross above. Laurent, Orghidan 312. Laurent, Vatican 130. Wassiliou-Seibt, Corpus I, 1150. An impressive late Byzantine seal. Surface cracks, otherwise, good very fine.

The obverse of this wonderful late Byzantine seal calls Daniel 'prophet', but the double twelve-syllable verse on the reverse refers to him as 'judge', evidently in allusion to the story of Susannah, in which the young Daniel acts as a judge by cross-examining and eventually exposing two lustful elders who had falsely accused Susannah of adultery. The seal belonged to Liberos, who bears the high court dignity of sebastos, and who may in fact have been named Daniel Liberos (Wassiliou-Seibt, Corpus I, p. 509).