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Home ▸ Catalog ▸ |Byzantine Coins| ▸ |Byzantine Mints| ▸ |Trebizond||View Options:   | | | Following the Byzantine defeat at the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, Trebizond came under Seljuk rule. This rule proved transient when an expert soldier and local aristocrat, Theodore Gabras took control of the city from the Turkish invaders, and regarded Trebizond, in the words of Anna Comnena, "as a prize which had fallen to his own lot" and ruled it as his own kingdom. Alexius I recognized him as Dux of Chaldia. Although he was killed by the Turks in 1098, other members of his family continued his de facto independent rule into the next century. Following the dissolution of the Byzantine Empire by the Fourth Crusade in 1204, the region became the center of the new Empire of Trebizond which survived until falling to the Ottomans in 1461. |
Theodore Gabras' crowning glory was the recapture of Trebizond from the Seljuk Turks c. 1075, which he ruled for years as if it were his own personal fiefdom. By the late 1080s, Theodore was residing at Constantinople. To keep him in check, Alexios I made Theodore Dux of Chaldia and ordered him to take up his post, leaving his eldest son Gregory at the court. By 1091, Theodore returned to the capital, demanding the return of his son. Alexios refused, claiming he was contemplating marrying the boy to one of his own daughters. Doubting the emperor, Theodore sailed with his son to Trebizond in secret. Alexios sent a squadron of ships which overtook Theodore and advised him that if he refused to hand over his son, he would be arrested as a rebel. Theodore allowed Alexios’ emissaries to take Gregory back with them, while he continued back to Trebizond. Gregory attempted to escape but was discovered and imprisoned. A man of Theodore's military talents was too good to waste, and by 1097 he was once again at the front line fighting the Turks in alliance with the Crusaders. While the Franks were engaged at the Siege of Antioch, Theodore was marching with Alexios, helping him recapture towns in western Asia Minor. In 1098 he was captured by the Danishmends and martyred. He was later venerated as a saint. His younger son Constantine Gabras succeeded him as Dux of Chaldia. Following the dissolution of the Byzantine Empire by the Fourth Crusade in 1204, the region became the center of the new Empire of Trebizond which survived until falling to the Ottomans in 1461. The feast day of Saint Theodoros Gabras is 2 October.BZ113693. Bronze follis, Bendall Trebizond p. 131 & pl. 6, 3; Corinth VI p. 151 & pl. X, 175; DOC IV -; Hendy -; SBCV -, F, green patina, light earthen deposits, off center, wavy clipped polygonal flan with 9(?) sides (as minted), weight 4.050 g, maximum diameter 26.6 mm, die axis 0o, Trebizond (Trabzon, Turkey) mint, c. 1092 - 1098 A.D.; obverse + AΛEΞI - ΔECP (or similar, struck in the name of Emperor Alexius I Comnenus), facing bust, wearing crown with cross and pendilia, stemma, collar piece, divitision and chlamys, cruciform scepter in right hand, globus cruciger in left; reverse Cross fourchée-pommée on three steps, IC - XC / NH-KA (Greek abbreviation: Jesus Christ conquers) in angles of cross; only one sale of this type listed on Coin Archives in the last two decades, the finest of only six specimens known to FORVM; extremely rare; SOLD
Byzantine Empire, Duchy of Chaldia, Gregorios Taronites, c. 1103 - 1106 A.D., Reign of Alexius I Comnenus
Gregorios Taronites was made Dux of Trebizond by Alexius I after military successes against the Seljuks. He almost immediately rebelled. While the emperor sought a diplomatic solution, Taronites went so far as to publicly insult the imperial family. Captured, Alexius intended to have him blinded but he was granted clemency and instead paraded through the streets of Constantinople and then thrown into the Prison of Anemas. At first, Gregory remained obstinate and continued to hurl abuse on the emperor from his cell, but was persuaded to recant and beseech the emperor's pardon. In the end, he was not only released and pardoned, but accorded even higher honors.BZ95867. Bronze follis, Bendall Trebizond p. 133, 13B & pl. 7, 19; DOC IV-1 p. 433, 13b; Schlumberger pl. ii, 5; Hendy -; Wroth BMC -; Ratto -, gF, overstruck on Michael IV follis, dark brown patina, obverse off center, light marks, weight 6.735 g, maximum diameter 26.3 mm, die axis 180o, Trebizond (Trabzon, Turkey) mint, reign of Alexius I Comnenus, c. 1103 - 1106 A.D.; obverse facing bust of Christ, bearded and nimbate, wearing tunic and himation, Gospels in right hand, IC - XC (Greek abbreviation: Ihsoús Xristós - Jesus Christ) across field; reverse Latin cross on three steps, globule at end of each arm, A-Λ / B - P (Greek abbreviation: Αλεξιο Βασιλευς Ρωμαιων - Alexius king of the Romans) in angles, Arab countermark 'Lillah" (For Allah); rare; SOLD
Byzantine Empire, Duchy of Chaldia, Constantine Gabras, c. 1126 - 1140 A.D.
Constantine Gabras (or Gavras) was the governor or doux (duke) of the Byzantine province of Chaldia, centered on the Black Sea port of Trebizond and its mountainous hinterland, the Pontic Alps, in northeast Anatolia, now part of Turkey. Gabras rebelled against the Byzantine emperor John II Komnenos and ruled Chaldia as a semi-independent prince between 1126 and 1140. Following the dissolution of the Byzantine Empire by the Fourth Crusade in 1204, the region became the center of the new Empire of Trebizond which survived until falling to the Ottomans in 1461.BZ95865. Bronze follis, Bendall Trebizond (NC 77), pl. 7, 28; DOC IV Trebizond p. 433, 14; Hendy -; SBCV -, F, uneven strike with some weak areas, reverse off center, earthen encrustations, weight 1.146 g, maximum diameter 16.5 mm, die axis 0o, Trebizond (Trabzon, Turkey) mint, c. 1126 - 1140 A.D.; obverse cross fourchée within circular border; reverse cross fourchée within circular border; rare; SOLD
Byzantine Empire, Duchy of Chaldia, Constantine Gabras, c. 1126 - 1140 A.D.
Constantine Gabras (or Gavras) was the governor or doux (duke) of the Byzantine province of Chaldia, centered on the Black Sea port of Trebizond and its mountainous hinterland, the Pontic Alps, in northeast Anatolia, now part of Turkey. Gabras rebelled against the Byzantine emperor John II Komnenos and ruled Chaldia as a semi-independent prince between 1126 and 1140. Following the dissolution of the Byzantine Empire by the Fourth Crusade in 1204, the region became the center of the new Empire of Trebizond which survived until falling to the Ottomans in 1461.BZ76967. Bronze follis, Bendall Trebizond pl. 7, 28; DOC IV Trebizond p. 433, 14; SBCV -, VF, dark green patina, typical uneven strike, clipped flan, and generally crude manufacture, weight 1.362 g, maximum diameter 18.3 mm, Trebizond (Trabzon, Turkey) mint, c. 1126 - 1140 A.D.; obverse cross pattée within circular border; reverse cross pattée within circular border; rare; SOLD
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