Pothos (Argyros?), patrikios and doux of Antioch, first half 11th century. Seal (Lead, 27 mm, 15.48 g, 12 h). M/I-X/A Nimbate facing bust of St. Michael, wearing loros, holding trefoil scepter in his right hand and globe in his left. Rev. +ΠOΘⲰ / ΠATPIKIⲰ / [S] Δ૪KI AN/TIOXЄI/AC in five lines, decorations above and flanking the last line. Unpublished in the standard references. An intriguing seal attesting an important Byzantine frontier general. Very fine.


The military command of Antioch was an important one, and many of its commanders are known by name. This seal mentions Pothos, a hitherto unknown doux of this strategically vital city on the eastern border. Interestingly, John Skylitzes mentions a military commander named Pothos Argyros in Antioch in 1026/27 as the captor of Nasr ibn Musharraf, an Arab emir who allied himself with the Byzantines, but eventually betrayed them. He was taken to Antioch as a prisoner of war (Skylitzes 379, cf. Cheynet-Vannier, Argyroi, Pothos no. 22). Skylitzes does not mention an office or rank for Pothos, but he was serving while Michael Spondyles was doux of Antioch. Skylitzes tells us that Spondyles was deposed by the emperor after several military defeats, and replaced by Konstantinos Karantenos in 1029. Perhaps Pothos Argyros rose to the office of doux during the short interval. In any case, Pothos Argyros is attested as katepano of Italy in 1029, where he faced invasions by the Emirate of Sicily. After only a few years, Argyros was defeated and killed. His seal as protospatharios and katepano of Italy was published by Schlumberger (Sigillographie p. 621).