★ The Women at the Tomb or the Myrrh Bearers ★

Konstantinos, 6th-7th centuries. Seal (Lead, 23 mm, 9.39 g, 6 h). The Women at the Tomb or the Myrrh Bearers: in the center, the empty tomb of Christ surmounted by a cross; on the left, nimbate angel seated right, raising his hand; on the right, two women standing left, both nimbate; star in upper field. Rev. Cruciform monogram KⲰNCTANTINOV. Apparently unpublished, but cf. Zacos/Veglery 2964 and G. Boersema (2022): Sigillographic evidence for early Byzantine Jerusalem pilgrimage, in: SBS 14, p. 141, 2 (for two other seals with this scene). An exceptional seal with an extremely rare narrative scene from the Gospels. Good very fine.

From an important collection of Roman and Byzantine seals, tesserae and amulets, formed before 2021.

The obverse of this seal features an exceptionally rare narrative scene: the women preparing to anoint the body of Christ, only to find an empty tomb with an angel proclaiming His resurrection. The significance of this scene in early Christianity is underscored by its presence in all four gospels (Matthew 28:1–7; Mark 16:1–7; Luke 24:1–7; John 20:1–11). Besides a handful of seals and bronze rings, this scene appears most notably on lead pilgrim flasks, known as the Monza-Bobbio ampullae. On these flasks, as on our seal, Christ’s tomb is depicted in the style of the actual shrine (aedicula) in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre at that time. In many of these depictions, including ours, the grillwork of the tomb’s metal doors - allowing pilgrims entry - can be discerned. This specific choice of imagery may indicate that the seal’s owner traveled to Jerusalem to visit these holy sites, as many of the faithful did throughout Byzantium and beyond.