Byzantine Coins in Central Europe between the 5 th and 10th Century M. Wooszyn (ed.) MORAVIA MAGNA, vol.

V Krakw 2008, p. ....

TOMISLAV EPAROVI

COIN FINDS OF EMPEROR CONSTANTINE V COPRONYMUS IN SOUTHERN CROATIA

Abstract. Coin Finds of Emperor Constantine V Copronymus in southern Croatia. The paper publishes some informations about the finds of golden coins (golden solidus) of Byzantine emperor Constantine V Copronymus in southern Croatia. By their features the coins belong to the same coin type mint in the period 760-775 in the mint of Syracuse, particulary actively in the second half of the 8th century. Croatian museums keep numerous coins of this type. Their multitude in the area between the Zrmanja and the Cetina rivers, the time and the reasons of their arrival here and their function as grave contributions, especially as related to dating of graves at the important old-Croatian site Biskupija near Knin, made them topics of scientific discussions over a long period of time. It appears that their presence in the southern Croatia may be explained by the common political situation prevailing in the second half of the 8th century. This is the time following the fall of the Exarchate of Ravenna, when Dalmatian towns remained the scarce Byzantine strongholds at the Adriatic, besides Venice, wherefore Byzantium tried to secure them by giving large quantities of gold coins to the Croats in their back, for the case that Byzantium is to employ militarily against the strengthening Frank state. The Croatian ruling stratum, not familiar with monetary economy and still undergoing Christianisation, for several decades utilised the received gold coins as valuables only. Some of the coins were placed, with other objects, into graves, and some have probably been cast into jewellery. Coin finds, both individual and group, represent one of the most important types of historical evidence. By studying them we can make significant deductions about the economic, and also political, history of particular areas. When discussing the period of the early Middle Ages in the area of southern Croatia, it is very difficult to talk about the circulation of money because the exchange of money for goods was poorly developed at that time and finds are relatively rare. Therefore the requirement is imposed on us to develop a numismatic topography in order to illuminate this period as much as possible from the aspect of coin finds. One of the most intriguing questions of early mediaeval or, in this case, Byzantine numismatics in southern Croatia is certainly that of the finds of a large number of gold solidi of Constantine V Copronymus of exactly the same type and from the same mint. The obverse of the coin contains a depiction of the bust of Constantine V and of his son Leo IV facing. They are both dressed in a chlamys and wear a stemma. Above their heads is a cross. Because of the cut of the coin, the legend on the obverse is not visible but generally this consisted of the names of these co-regents. On the reverse is the bust of Leo III, father of Constantine V, facing, dressed in a loros, wearing a stemma and holding a cross in his right hand. Around this depiction is a legend (Fig. 1). By its characteristics this coin belongs to the type which was minted in the mint of the city of Syracuse which was especially active in the second half of the 8th century (Morrisson 1970, 471). The mint in Syracuse was founded for emperor Maurice Tiberius, and was active up to 878 when this city was captured by the Arabs.

Tomislav eparovi

Fig. 1. Biskupija Crkvina near Knin, ibensko-Kninska upanija, Grave 7. The obverse and the reverse of gold solidus of Constantine V Copronymus minted in Syracuse 760 775 (Photo Z. Alajbeg).

The time span in which such examples were issued ranges from 760 until death of Copronymus in 775. This type of money was minted during the joint reign of Constantine Copronymus and his son Leo IV. Copronymus pronounced Leo IV as Augustus, that is took him as his co-regent in 751 when he was still a two-year-old child. The dating is determined as the last third of Copronymuss reign because of the depiction of Leo IV as a young man. Museums in southern Croatian possess numerous examples of Copronymus gold coins of this type but unfortunately the data on the place or circumstances in which the majority of them were found is not known1. A pierced Copronymus gold coin of this type which had a secondary use as a piece of jewellery or an ornament on national dress was found in the coastal area of Makarska (eparovi 2003, 130). The most famous location in which they were found is certainly Biskupija near Knin (Fig. 2). There at Crkvina, Copronymus

Fig. 2. Biskupija Crkvina near Knin, ibensko-Kninska upanija. Grave 7 with a gold solidus of Constantine V Copronymus (Photo Z. Alajbeg; no scale).

The Museum of Croatian Archaeological Monuments possesses a total of 22 examples, the Archaeological Museum in Split 48 examples, the Archaeological Museum in Zadar 2 examples, the ibenik County Museum 1 example.

Coin Finds of Emperor Constantine V Copronymus in southern Croatia

gold coins were found in the function of an obolus alongside numerous grave goods in the graves to the south of the early mediaeval church of St Mary (not in all graves; Delonga 1981). One other example originates from the same location which was found in summer 2000 during the revision investigations, but out of context (Gudelj 2000). It is supposed that this also originated in one of the graves. All of the above examples are kept in the Museum of Croatian Archaeological Monuments (Delonga 1981). The locations of the other finds can be seen on the accompanying map (Fig. 3).

Fig. 3. The area of southern Croatia. Locations of the finds of Constantine V Copronymus gold solidi: 1. Nin, Zadarska upanija; 2. Islam Latinski, Zadarska upanija; 3. Bribir, ibensko-Kninska upanija; 4. Piramatovci, ibensko-Kninska upanija; 5. Dubravice, ibensko-Kninska upanija; 6. Mokro Polje, ibensko-Kninska upanija; 7. Prevjes, ibensko-Kninska upanija; 8. Vrpolje, ibensko-Kninska upanija; 9. Topolje, ibensko-Kninska upanija; 10. Biskupija Crkvina, ibensko-Kninska upanija; 11. Cetina (Glava), ibensko-Kninska upanija; 12. tikovo, ibensko-Kninska upanija; 13. Gradac, ibensko-Kninska upanija; 14. Danilo Gornje, ibenskoKninska upanija; 15. Gornje Utore, Splitsko-Dalmatinska upanija; 16. Mu, Splitsko-Dalmatinska upanija; 17. Bajagi, Splitsko-Dalmatinska upanija; 18. Gardun, Splitsko-Dalmatinska upanija; 19. Trilj, Splitsko-Dalmatinska upanija; 20. Klis, Splitsko-Dalmatinska upanija.

The appearance of coinage in the function of an obolus in the context of old Croatian graveyards with a pagan method of burial also demands explanation. L. Karaman thought that the oboli could be interpreted as pagan beliefs similar to those from ancient religions according to which the ferrymen Charon was paid to transport the dead across the river Acheron or Styx to the underworld (Karaman 1940, 24-25). The money was placed under the tongue of the deceased so that they would be able to pay for the ferry journey (Fig. 4). This tradition continued in the ancient world long after the victory of Christianity and thence also entered into the funerary customs of other peoples (Zamarovsk 1973, 111). But in Late Antiquity, at the time when the Croats were settling, such phenomena can no longer be expected and therefore oboli in graves cannot be interpreted as a tradition inherited from the indigenous population. The appearance of oboli in areas settled by Slavs is usually connected with western influences but not until the 9th century. Following some older ideas (Vaa 1958, 203), E. Kolnikov (1967) devoted considerable attention to this problem and came to

Tomislav eparovi

Fig. 4. Dubravice near Skradin, ibensko-Kninska upanija. Grave 34 with the position of coin marked by arrow (photo taken from Gunjaa 1989, 148).

the conclusion that the obolus as a tradition appeared for the first time among the Slavs in places where the political, economic and cultural influence of the Frankish state can be confirmed, and its appearance is limited exclusively to the graves of the higher social class. Taking into consideration just the finds from Biskupija and Trilj, this author places the appearance of the obolus in Croatia in the period after 800. J. Werner (1979) thinks similarly and concluded that the Croatian nobility used Constantine V gold coins as oboli only for special occasions in the same way that the nobility of Greater Moravia used them. In the area of Greater Moravia in one of the graves next to a three-aisled basilica (the so-called first church in Mikulice), a gold coin of Michael III used as an obolus was discovered, while in certain graves in Stare Mesto gold leaves were in the mouths of the deceased (Kolnikov 1967, 233). Nor was money found in the mouths of the deceased in all the graves at Crkvina in Biskupija; in the fifth grave was a golden headband with a pendant in the shape of a tile and in the ninth grave a gilded silver earring of the grape-shaped type. In the early Carolingian period we find oboli which will replace all other items in the grave. This is precisely the period when the first influences from the West are observed in our region through archaeological depositories. Therefore it can be stated that the Croats acquired this tradition from the West but that this could have happened even before 800. It should also be emphasised that Byzantine coinage in graves in this area was not always used as an obolus which is confirmed by the finds from Grave 140 by the church of St Cross in Nin (Beloevi 1969, 210) and the sarcophagus at Crkvina in Biskupija (Delonga 1981). The custom of placing an obolus continued right up until the middle of the 9th century which is testified by Grave 62 at drijac in Nin with the silver denarius of Lothar I (Beloevi 1980, 295). The numerous finds of Copronymus gold solidi in the area between the rivers Zrmanja and Cetina, the time and reason for the arrival in this area and their function as oboli, especially connected with the dating of the above graves in Biskupija, have long been the subject for debate in professional and scientific literature (Delonga 1981, 205-206). Many authors have tackled this problem and some of them have used these gold coins as an argument for the approximate dating of the Biskupija graves to the south of the basilica to the end of the 8th century (Karaman 1929, 183; Vinski 1970, 138). U. Giesler also thought that they had some dating validity and used them to date these graves to the last third of the 8th century (Giesler 1974, 532). Z. Vinski later corrected his opinion raising the dating of some graves right up to the mid 9th century (Vinski 1981, 22). In doing so he accepted the theory of J. Werner who considered that the gold coins originate from some family treasure which for some unknown reason came into the hands of the ruling class of Croats who placed

Coin Finds of Emperor Constantine V Copronymus in southern Croatia

them in graves throughout the whole of the 9th century, and that therefore they do not have any kind of dating validity (Werner 1979, 228). This interpretation was also accepted by P. Koroec (1996) who in a debate about the golden jewellery from Trilj ascribed this important find to a Moravian aristocrat and dated it to the second half of the 9th century. An interesting proposal for solving this problem was proposed by V. Delonga at the Archaeology of Sinj Field scientific gathering which was held in 1994. She leaves open the possibility that the gold coins originate from Frankish stocks created as a result of Byzantine missions to the Frankish court, and to subsequent plundering in the long war fought in Pannonia with the Avars. This well-known high quality Byzantine currency would have arrived in the area of the eastern Adriatic as support to the Croatian border principality in the overall Frankish confrontation with Byzantium. Concerning the dating validity of this coinage the author earlier stated that it should be taken only as a rough terminus post quem. More recently, A. Miloevi also debated the gold coins during the Croats and Carolingians exhibition. He wondered whether these gold coins had perhaps come into the possession of the Croatian ruling class during the time of the short-lived occupation of Byzantine cities in Dalmatia by the Franks in 803 (Miloevi 2000, 119). Answers to the questions of the time and reason for the arrival of these coins in Dalmatia should certainly be sought in the context of the general political situation in which the eastern coast of the Adriatic found itself in the second half of the 8th century. In that period in Dalmatia, cities were under Byzantine rule while in the hinterland were various Slav groups organised in tribes which gradually settled in this area from the first half of the 7th century. Among these the Croats were dominant in the area of central and northern Dalmatia and would form their own state here in the first half of the 9th century. It is possible that at one moment a serious crisis arose in the relationship between the Dalmatian cities and the Croats in the hinterland to whom the cities were forced to give large quantities of gold coinage as tribute and a contribution to their security. This is reinforced by the fact that this is a question of a large quantity of coinage of the same type minted in just one mint, that at Syracuse, even though mints at Constantinople and Rome were issuing coinage at the same time (Morrisson 1970, 471)2. Therefore we have even more reason to believe that the acquisition of this coinage by Croats must have happened during the actual reign of Constantine V Copronymus and his son Leo IV and at the latest during the 780s (eparovi 2003, 132). It is significant that after 768 and the accession of Charlemagne to the Frankish throne, the Frankish state became ever stronger and had a very great influence in the Adriatic Slavic principalities. The weakened cities in fear of the ever stronger arrivals who were obviously helped by the Franks whose missionaries at that time were intensifying their activities in this area, which is also archaeologically confirmed (Buri 1996, 139-141; Miloevi 2000, 110-114), were forced to render a great amount of gold coinage to the Croatian ruling class in order to insure themselves from potential attack. Perhaps this happened in the time of the rebellion against Frankish rule in Italy which was aided by Byzantium who wished to secure the Dalmatian cities with gold coins in case it had to become seriously involved on the side of the rebels. The rebellion of 775 was initiated by Adalgis, son of the Lombardian King Desiderius, after which he fled before the Franks to the Byzantine court (Goldstein 1992, 82). Generally, the fact that these cities remained rare Byzantine strongholds on the Adriatic after the fall of the Exarchate of Ravenna in 751, and that it was certainly in the interests of the Empire to defend them, sheds light on the political situation in this area in the second half of the 8th and beginning of the 9th century. During that period only the area of Venice remained under Byzantine rule on the Adriatic if we except Otranto which is located much further south, and Gallipoli which is on the coast of the Gulf of Taranto. Disregarding what kind of explanation is accepted, the fact remains that the Croatian ruling class which did not have knowledge of a currency-trading economy and which was just at the phase of converting to Christianity, used the acquired gold coinage over a period of several decades exclusively as precious items. Part of this coinage together with many other artefacts was placed in graves, and part was probably melted down for jewellery.

Let us say that the mint at Syracuse was also issuing at the same time golden semis with a depiction of Leo III and Constantine V.

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Coin Finds of Emperor Constantine V Copronymus in southern Croatia Vaa Z. 1958 Vinski Z. 1970

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Adress of the Author: Dr. Tomislav eparovi Muzej hrvatskih arheolokih spomenika Stjepana Gunjae bb 21000 Split Croatia e-mail: tomislav.separovic@st.t-com.hr