Nicephorus Melissenus, usurper 1080-1081. Seal (Lead, 34 mm, 19.75 g, 12 h). IC - XC Christ seated facing on an ornate and high-backed throne, wearing cross-nimbus, raising his right hand in the fold of his garment and holding book of Gospels in his left.
Rev. +NIKHΦOP [AVT]KT-OP - PⲰMЄⲰN Ⲱ MЄΛICHNⲰC Nicephorus standing on dais facing, wearing loros and crown with pendilia, holding labarum in his right hand and globus cruciger in his left. Zacos/Veglery 99. Cf. Cheynet, Istanbul 1.41 and DO Seals 86.1 for similar seals with minor legend variants. A rare imperial seal of an interesting Byzantine usurper. Some marks and traces of corrosion. Very fine.
From a European collection, acquired before 2021.
This fascinating seal belongs to Nicephorus Melissenus, a distinguished statesman and general, and brother-in-law to the later emperor, Alexius I Comnenus. After the disastrous Battle of Manzikert in 1071, Melissenus remained loyal to Michael VII Ducas, but once Nicephorus III Botaneiates usurped the throne in 1078, the general was exiled to Asia Minor. This proved to be a mistake on Botaneiates’ part, as Melissenus quickly started gathering troops and proclaimed himself emperor in 1080. Botaneiates opted to send Alexius, who had some experience in dealing with usurpers, to quell the rebellion, but the latter refused to fight his own brother-in-law. The next year, the Comnenians themselves made a bid for the throne, and after they successfully captured Constantinople, Melissenus was made Caesar and given authority over the strategically important city of Thessalonica. He continued serving under the Comnenians in a military capacity, fighting against the Normans, the Pechenegs, and the Cumans, before passing away in 1104.
