Byzantine Seals. Seal (Lead, 36 mm, 23.93 g, 12 h), Nikephoros Komnenos, brother of Alexios I Komnenos (1081-1118) and sebastos. OAΓIOC Iω - OΔMPOC (in monograms and single letters) St. Joannes Prodromos (St. John the Forerunner) standing facing, wearing nimbus crown, raising his right hand in benediction and holding patriarchal cross in his left. Rev. + / CΦPAΓIC/MA KAI T YΠω / CIC CЄBACT૪ / K૪NMH NIKH/ΦOPOY in six lines. DOC -. Zacos -. An impressive and highly interesting seal. Graffito of a christogram on the obverse, otherwise, about extremely fine.

Born in circa 1062, Nikephoros Komnenos was the youngest brother of the emperor Alexios I Komnenos (1081-1118), who appointed his sibling to 'sebastos' ('venerable one') and 'megas droungarios tou stolou' (second-in-command of the imperial navy) after his accession to power. Unlike his four brothers, Nikephoros is not known to ever have held an active military command, but if his identification with the 'megas droungarios Nikephoros' named in the Pantokrator typikon of 1136 is correct, he considerably outlived his brother Alexios and must have died at an old age