Justin I with cross-above-head

Constantinople mint. Copper coins of Constantinople are Sear 62-77. This page has examples of Sear 62, 63, 68, 71, and 73 from Constantinople.

Copper coins of Justin from Nicomedia are Sear 83-93B. This page has cross-above-head examples for Sear 84, 86, 88A, and 91, and 9 3. It also has a Hand of God holding a wreath: Sear 85A, and star above head: Sear 85.
Copper coins of Justin I from Antioch are Sear 100-111. This page has cross-above-head examples for Sear 100, 100v, 101, 103, 104, 108, and 110.

Sear 62 = Hahn 11¹, illustrated, plate 6. 40-nummia.
Stars to the left and right of M, cross above. Officina number below. CON in ex.
Sear says "Sometimes with cross rising from in front of diadem," but is illustrated without it. Hahn says "sometimes with cross."
DO 8 variety, which neither mentions nor illustrate cross-above-head.

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 62.
33 mm. 17.76 grams. 6:00.
Clear cross above head.
Ex. CNG e-auction 170 lot 283
Officina A.

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 62.
32-30 mm. 17.36 grams.
Clear cross above head.
A below M

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 62.
30-27 mm. 12.09 grams. 6:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina A.

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 62.
31 mm. 15.26 grams.
Clear cross above head.
weak A below M

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 62.
33-30 mm. 15.84 grams. 12:30.
Clear but weak cross above head.
Officina A.

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 62.
31-29 mm. 18.31 grams. 6:30.
Bold cross above head at 12:30.
Officina Γ

Sear 62

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 62.
32 mm. 16.28grams. 6:30.
Clear cross above head.
Officina Γ

Sear 62 is common. For more examples of Sear 62, mostly in lesser condition, see here.

The next one is probably an ancient imitation.

Sear 62 imitation

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 62.
30-29 mm. 10.96 grams. 7:30.
Cross above head is clear, but the crossbar is not perpendicular.
The weight is low (most are 15 grams and up).
The die axis is unusual (most are clase to 6:00 and some near 12:00).
The bust is particularly crude.
The mintmark letters are more spread apart than usual.
All indications point to this being an ancient imitation.

The coins above have a distinct cross above the head. Others, such as the next variety of Sear 62, might be described by some as having something like a "cross at end of diadem." They merely have a distinct (almost, but not quite) perpendicular at the end of the diadem, which is not clearly a cross. For another example, see the last coin at the Sear 62 link.

Sear 62

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 62.
32-31 mm. 17.66 grams. 12:00.
Perpendicular at end of diadem.
Officina Epsilon.

Sear 62 is common. For more examples of Sear 62, mostly in lesser condition, see here.

Sear 63 = Hahn 12², illustrated, plate 7. 40-nummia.
Star to the left and cross to the right of M. Cross above. Officina number below. In ex: CON
Sear says "Sometimes with cross rising from in front of diadem" but Sear 63 is not illustrated. Hahn says "sometimes with cross".
DO 10 "cross rising from in front of diadem" which is not illustrated and only one example.

Sear 63

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 63.
32-31 mm. 15.83 grams. 5:30.
Small but clear cross above head.
Officina A.

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 63.
30 mm. 17.00 grams. 5:30.
Weak, but certain, cross above head.
Weak officina Γ.

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 63.
30-27 mm. 17.36 grams.
Cross above head, partially off the flan.
Officina A.

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 63.
29 mm. 16.46 grams. 6:00.
Cross above head largely off the flan.
Officina Γ.

Sear 66. About Sear 66: Sear 162v for Justinian is very similar to Sear 66 = DO 13 which has "crecent outwards." Neither is illustrated in Sear or DO (only one example with "very obscure" officina).
The Clark collection has two examples illustrated as "Sear 162 type variety" that have weak legends that might really be Sear 66 and belong here on this page. The example of Sear 66 illustated as Hahn 17 does not have have the cross in field associated with Justinian as Sear 161 type variety, so it seems they are more likely to be Justinian and I have tentatively attributed those pieces to Justinian.

Sear 68. Hahn 18 variety. 20-nummia.
Cross left of K, officina number to right.
Sear says "Sometimes with cross rising from in front of diadem." Sear 68 is not illustrated. 20-nummia.
Hahn 18 does not mention the cross and the two illustrations (Plate 6) do not illustrate it. DO 14, which neither mentions nor illustrates cross-above-head.

Sear 68
Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 68.
27-26 mm. 9.17 grams.
Clear cross above head.
Officina A.

Sear 68

Justin I.
26-25 mm. 10.69 grams. 6:30
Clear, small, cross above head.
Officina A

Sear 68

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 68.
27-25 mm. 7.99 grams.
Cross above head partially off the flan at 11:30.
Officina Γ.

Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 68.
26 mm. 9.40 grams.
Clear cross above head.
Officina G

Justin I.
25-23 mm. 8.96 grams. 12:30.
Bold cross above head.
Officina Γ.

Sear 68

24-22 mm. 5.91 grams. 6:30.
Corroded, but visible, cross above head.
Officina B
(Harshly cleaned and now porous.)

Sear 71. Hahn 24 variety. 10-nummia.
Stars either side of large I. Cross above. No officina number. In ex: CON
Sear says "Sometimes with cross rising from in front of diadem." Sear 71 is not illustrated. Hahn 24 does not mention a cross and Hahn 24 does not illustrate it (plate 6).
Sear 71 = DO 17, which does not mention a cross-above-head and the coin chosen to illustrate DO 17 (from only two examples) is not in good enough condition to tell what is above the head.

Sear 71
Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 71.
22-21 mm. 4.28 grams.
Barely a short perpendicular at the front of the diadem.
I do not consider this to be a cross, but illustrate it here anyway.
Note how Sear 19 of Anastasius sometimes has a clear cross and sometimes has a diadem end like this.

Sear 73 = Hahn 26 variety. DO 19c.2, illustrated, plate VIII. 5-nummia.
Epsilon with pellets in upper and lower parts, officina number to right
Sear 73 mentions it has the same obverse as a Sear 60 which says "Sometimes with cross rising from in front of diadem." Sear 73 is not illustrated.
Hahn 26 does not mention a cross and Hahn 26 does not illustrate it. DO 19 is this type with two pellets but does not mention the cross, but DO 19c.2 (Δ) illustrates it with an example with a tiny and weak but clear cross.

Sear 73 Justin I. Constantinople. Sear 73.
12 mm. 1.83 grams.
Clear cross above .
Officina B

Nicomedia Mint. Go to the page on coins of Justin from Constantinople or Antioch.
Go to the pages on the coins of Anastasius or Justinian.
Return to the main page on cross-above-head coins.

Copper coins of Justin from Nicomedia are Sear 83-93B. This page has cross-above-head examples for Sear 84, 86, 88A, and 91. It also has a Hand of God holding a wreath: Sear 85A, and star above head: Sear 85e

Sear 84. Hahn 35a³, illustrated, plate 7. DO 29a.1, illustrated, plate IX.
Stars either side of M. Cross above. Officina below. In ex: NIKM.
Sear 84 is not illustrated, but Sear 83 is. (Sear 84 is the listing for Sear 83 with the addition of the cross above head.)
Hahn 35a says "sometimes with cross or star." DO 29 is as DO 28 but "with cross rising from in front of the diadem." Illustrated with two examples on plate IX.

Sear 84

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 84.
31-29 mm. 12.51 grams. 6:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina A

Sear 84

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 84.
30-29 mm. 14.13 grams. 6:30.
Bold cross above head.
Officina A

Sear 84

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 84.
33-31 mm. 15.10 grams. 6:30.
Clear cross above head.
Officina A.

Sear 84

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 84.
31 mm. 17.03 grams. 6:30.
Lovely even green patina.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B.

Sear 84

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 84.
30 mm. 16.81 grams
Clear cross above .
Weak B below M.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 84.
31-29 mm. 16.12 grams. 6:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 84.
30-29 mm. 15.24 grams. 6:30.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B (The B is narrow)

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 84.
34-31 mm. 15.43 grams. 6:30.
Bold cross above head.
Officina B.

Sear 84
Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 84.
28 mm. 13.53 grams. 6:30.
Large bold cross above head.
Officina B.

Sear 84 is common. For many more examples, mostly in lesser condition, see here.

   Justin I. Sear 84 very minor variety
   with open-loop diadem.
   (Not a cross-above-head variety)
    32-31 mm. 16.69 grams. 6:30.
   Officina A.

Is this one Justinian?
   There is a faint "ANV" to the right of the break.
   If so, it is Sear 199, officina B.
   (This is not a cross-above-head variety)
Open loop at tend of diadem.
29 mm. 16.13 grams. 6:00.

Sear 85. Hahn 35a⁴, illustrated, plate 8. 40-nummia.
Stars either side of M. Cross above. Officina number below. In ex: NIKM
Sear says "with star above head" and Hahn 35a says "sometimes with cross or star [above head]."
Sear 85 is not illustrated. It is as Sear 84 (and Sear 83) -- neither illustrated-- but with star (instead of cross) above head. 40-nummia.
DO (30) is listed with star above head, but not in the collection and not illustrated.

Sear 84

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 85.
30 mm. 17.42 grams.
Star above .
Officina A.

Sear 85
Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 85.
30 mm. 16.48 grams. 6:30.
Officina A.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 85.
28 mm. 15.36 grams. 6:30.
Officina uncertain.
DC thought it was B.
In hand, looking at it from every angle, I cannot tell.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 85.
(This might be Sear 84 with an ill-formed cross.
32-31 mm. 15.83 grams. 6:30.
Officina B.

Sear 85A. Hahn 35c, illustrated, plate 8. 40-nummia.
Distinguished by the hand of God holding a wreath above the head.
Stars either side of M. Cross above. Officina number below. In ex: NIKM.
Sear 85A is not illustrated. Not in DOC.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 85A.
33-32 mm. 15.67 grams. 6:30.
Hand of God holding wreath above head.
Officina A.

Sear 86. Hahn 39², illustrated, plate 8. DO 31, illustrated, plate IX.
Star to left and cross to right of M. Cross above. In ex: NIKM
Sear says, "Cross rising from front of diadem" and Hahn says "sometimes with cross." 40-nummia.
DO 31 "cross on diadem" (only one example, illustrated).

Sear 86

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 86.
29-28 mm. 16.36 grams. 6:00.
Small cross above head at front of diadem.
Officina A.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 86.
31-29 mm. 15.57 grams. 6:30.
Cross above head.
Officina A.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 86.
31-29 mm. 12.51 grams. 6:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina A.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 86.
31 mm. 16.05 grams. 6:30.
Clear cross above head.
Officina A.
(Die break at bottom left of A)

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 86.
30-29 mm. 16.62 grams. 6:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina A.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 86.
28 mm. 15.23 grams. 6:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina A.

For more examples of Sear 86, see here.

Sear 88A = Hahn 38a², illustrated, plate 8. 40-nummia.
Crosses either side of M. Officina number below. In ex: NIKM
Sear 88A (not illustrated) is the listing for Sear 88 with the addition of the cross-above-head. Hahn 38a says "sometimes with cross." 40-nummia.
DO 33 neither mentions nor illustrates a cross.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 88A.
30-27 mm. 12.68 grams. 7:30.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 88A.
30-29 mm. 17.28 grams. 6:30.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 88A.
32 mm. 14.34 grams. 6:30.
Clear cross above head (with flan flaw)
Officina not struck up.
It is no clearer on the coin than in the photo.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 88A.
28-27 mm. 14.62 grams. 6:30.
Large cross above head, in the 1:00 position, which is unusual.
Officina B.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 88A.
30 mm. 15.74 grams. 6:00.
Worn but certain cross above head.
Officina obscure.
The photo is as good as the coin iteself.

Sear 91. Hahn 42a², illustrated, plate 7. DO 35, illustrated, plate X. 20-nummia.
Cross with N I on either side, to left of large K. Officina number to right.
Sear 91 says "with cross above the head." Sear 91 is not illustrated. Hahn 42a says "sometimes with cross or star."
DO 35, illustrated, plate X, says "cross on diadem" (otherwise as DO 34), only one example.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 91.
27-25 mm. 9.32 grams. 6:30.
Bold cross above head.
Officina A.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 91.
27-26 mm. .48 grams. 6:30.
Clear cross above head.
Ill struck "N" to left of cross.
Officina A.

Sear 91
Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 91.
25-23 mm. 9.19 grams. 7:30.
Weak, but certain, cross above head.
Officina B.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 91.
28-26 mm. 10.02 grams. 6:30.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B.

Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 91.
27-26 mm. 8.46 grams. 6:30.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B

Sear 93 variety. Hahn 47 variety. DO37 variety.
Large chi-rho. N left and Epsilon right. Two pellets beneath the chi-rho, otherwise as Sear 92 = Hahn 46 = DO 36.
None mention or illustrate a cross-above-head. 5-nummia.

Sear 93
Justin I. Nicomedia. Sear 93.
14 mm. 2.14 grams. 12:30.
On the coin it is clear there is a small cross above head at 11:40.

Antioch mint. Go to the coins of Justin from Constantinople or Nicomedia (above).
Return to the coins of Anastasius at Constantinople, Nicomedia, or Antioch. Continue with the coins of Justinian.
Return to the main page on cross-above-head coins.

Copper coins of Justin I from Antioch are Sear 100-111. This page has cross-above-head examples for Sear 100, 100v, 101, 103, 104, 108, and 110.

Sear 100. Hahn 58¹ and 58², both illustrated, plate 9.
Crosses to the left and right of M. Officina number below M. In ex: ANTX.
Sear says, "Sometimes with cross above head." Sear 100 is not illustrated. Hahn 58, "sometimes with a cross."
DO 45, neither mentions nor illustrates cross-above-head.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 100.
31-29 mm. 17.26 grams.
Clear cross above head.
Officina A

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 100.
30-28 mm. 16.20 grams. 5:30.
Broad cross above head.
Officina A.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 100.
34-32 mm. 14.58 grams.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B.
Is this a cross on globe? I think not. I think the "globe" is just the dot at the end of the diadem.
Compare with the coins five down (officina Δ) and seven down where the diadem clearly ends in a dot that is not connectd to the cross.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 100.
30-28 mm. 13.95 grams. 6:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 100.
32-29 mm. 13.84. 6:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina Γ.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 100.
33-31 mm.18.85 grams.
Clear cross above head.
Officina Γ weak.
Ex CNG e-279 lot 644.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 100.
31-30 mm. 12.10 grams. 6:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina unclear, possibly Δ.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 100.
30 mm. 17.98 grams. 6:00.
Bold cross above head.
Officina Δ.
Higher than usual relief on portrait.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 100.
31-28 mm. 16.43 grams. 6:30.
Clear cross above head.
Officina Δ

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 100.
31-30 mm. 13.26 grams. 6:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina Δ

Sear 100 with a countermark on the reverse of an eagle facing with wings partially spread.

100

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 100.
39-32 mm. 12.54 grams. 6:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina A.
Countermark of eagle with wings partially spread.

An article by David Woods about this type of countermark appears in Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies, 55 (2015) 927-945. He thinks it may have been struck in 610 during the revolt of Heraclius to signal the change of government from Phocas to the Heraclii as consuls. This coin is Figure 2 in that article.

Sear 100 is common. Here is a page with additional examples.

Sear 100, type variety. Completely unlisted.
Crosses to the left and right of M. Smaller cross above with star below it. Officina number below M. In ex: ANTX.
Sear 100 is "Sometimes with cross above head," but not with star below the top cross on the reverse.
Hahn 58 major variety. The star below the middle cross is unlisted in Sear or Hahn or Dumbarton Oaks. DO 45 major variety.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 100 variety.
34-33 mm. 17.08 grams.
bold cross above head.
Officina Γ weak
The star below the cross above the M is unlisted.

Sear 101 variety. Hahn 59 variety. 40-nummia.
Star to left and crescent upwards to right of M. Cross above. Officina number below. In ex: ANTX
Sear 101 is not illustrated. Sear does not mention the cross above head. Hahn 59 does not mention the cross and the two examples do not illustrate the cross (plate 10). DO 47, which neither mentions nor illustrates a cross-above-head.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 101.
32 mm. 16.09 grams.6:30.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 101.
32 mm. 15.21 grams. 6:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B not clear.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 101.
32-30 mm. 15.25 grams. 6:00.
bold cross above head.
Officina obscure, possibly A.

Sear 103 variety. Hahn 59 variety, also Hahn 60 variety. 40-nummia.
Star to left and crescent outwards to right of M. Cross above. Officina number below. In ex: ANTIX
Sear 101 is similar, but with crescent upwards; they are barely different.
Sear 103 is not illustrated. Sear does not mention the cross above head. Hahn 59 and 60 do not illustrate or menion the cross. Hahn 59 has the crescent opening right and Hahn 60¹ illustrates the crescent upwards (barely different). DO 49, which neither mentions nor illustrates a cross-above-head.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 103.
33-31 mm. 13.97 grams. 5:30.
Clear cross above head.
Officina A weak.

Justin I. Sear 103?
31 mm. 13.02 grams. 6:00.
Not a certain cross. The legend says
DNIVSTINV S PP AVG
and there may be a cross between the V and the S
(with its crossbar overlapping the top of the V).
There is, as in the photo, a vertical at the bottom of the lettering
between the V and the small and weak "S". Maybe that squiggle is not
the S and the vertical is part of a poorly executed S. The photo is good.

Sear 104, illustrated. Hahn 61², illustrated, plate 9. 20 nummia.
Cross to left of K, A N / T X on either side of cross. Officina number to right.
Sear 104 is illustrated with cross-above-head. >Sear says, "Sometimes with cross above head."
Hahn 61 is "sometimes with cross." DO 50, neither mentions nor illustrates the cross-above-head. DO 50b might have one, but that part of the illustrated coin is partially off the flan and too weak to tell.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 104.
26 mm. 8.71 grams.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 104.
28-25 mm. 7.56 grams. 6:00.
Cross above head.
Officina Γ.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 104.
28-27 mm. 7.55 grams. 12:00.
Certain, but not bold, cross above head.
Officina Δ.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 104.
25-23 mm. 7.60 grams. 5:30.
Large and bold cross above head.
Officina A.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 104.
26 mm. 9.02 grams.5:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B, not fully clear. (See the image.)

Sear 108 variety. Hahn 62. 10-nummia.
[officina number] CON-CORDI around large I with cross above. [Two dots in field either side of the I.] In ex: ANTX
Sear does not mention the cross above head. Sear 108 is illustrated without the cross-above-head.
Hahn 62, plate 9, says "sometimes with cross" and illustrates three pieces, none with a cross. DO (54) [the variety with pellets] is not in DO and not illustrated. The similar decanummia types DO 53 and 55 neither mention nor illustrate a cross-above-head.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 108.
20-17 mm. 3.82 grams.
Clear cross above head.
Officina Γ
ex CNA (CNG) XIX lot 64, 2/19/92

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 108.
20 mm. 5.02 grams.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 108.
22-19 mm. 2.74 grams. 6:00.
Weak cross above head.
Officina B

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 108.
21-18 mm. 3.49 grams. 6:00.
Bold cross above head.
Officina Δ.

Sear 110 variety. Hahn 66, illustrated, plate 9. 5-nummia.
E, with A[officina letter]N upwards to right.
Sear does not mention cross above head. "Usually legend only partially visible." Sear 110 is not illustrated.
Hahn 66, "sometimes with cross." DO 56, which neither mentions nor illustrates a cross-above-head.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 110.
11 mm. 2.11 grams. 12:00.
Clear cross above head.
Officina letter likely an A.
Emperor's name weak but
N IVST is there.

Justin I. Antioch. Sear 110.
12 mm. 2.04 grams.
Clear cross above head.
Officina B
Emperor's name unclear.
It seems to have INVH on the right.
If this must be either Anastasius, Justin, or Justinian, it seems closest to Justin.

Justin? or Justinian?
14-13 mm. 1.55 grams. 11:30.
Obverse legend blundered, but does not seen to be Sear 53 for Anastasius.
Clear cross above head.
Letters A..N upwards to right.
(Middle letter flat and uncertain.)

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Cross references (a concordance) to other collection