Byzantine Coins -- reference works
including web sites, books, and auction catalogs
Some web sites are first, then books, then sale catalogs.
Skip down to book reviews.
Skip down to the part on sale catalogs.
Web sites
Note: Most web sites are just images of coins with little commentary. I will mention if they have educational content beyond just images. Most links open in new tabs. Close the tab or window to get back to this page.
Here is my web site for beginners: "Introduction to Byzantine Coins (491-1453)."
For identification only: wildwinds Byzantine: http://wildwinds.com/coins/sb/i.html (Many collectors use wildwinds for basic attributions. It also records some prices.)
A site with one nice coin of virtually every Sear number (no discussion whatsoever):
http://labarum.info/lbr/index.php?sf_refsear=&sf_main_search=&sf_submit=Search&sf_state=Byzantine&sf_ruler=&sf_mint=&sf_denom=
Here it is restricted to AE:
https://coins.labarum.info/en/catalog?metals=5
Doug Smith's page on "Lettered Byzantine Bronzes": https://www.forumancientcoins.com/dougsmith/acmbyz.html
The NGC web site has several good articles for beginners:
An article for beginners: "Collecting Byzantine Coins on a Budget" https://www.ngccoin.com/news/article/7470/ancient-byzantine-coins/
An article for beginners: "Byzantine Rulers you can Collect, Part I:" https://www.ngccoin.com/news/article/1735/Byzantine-Rulers-You-Can-Collect/
An article for beginners: "Byzantine Rulers you can Collect, Part II:" https://www.ngccoin.com/news/article/1770/byzantine-coins/
An article for beginners: "Byzantine Coin Portraits," https://www.ngccoin.com/news/article/7020/Ancient-coins/
An article for beginners: "A Guide to Denominted Byzantine Bronzes" https://www.ngccoin.com/news/article/6307/ancient-byzantine-coins/
An article for beginners: "Christ portraits on Byzantine Coinage," https://www.ngccoin.com/news/article/5792/Christ-portrait-ancient-coins/
An article for beginners: "Post-Reform Bronze Issues of the Byzantine Empire" https://www.ngccoin.com/news/article/2391/Chaos-and-Coinage-Post-Reform-Bronze-Issues-of-the-Byzantine-Empire/
A general collection: http://hourmo.eu/08_Sylloge_Byzantium/Index_08_Byzantium.html
A collection (with small images): http://www.byzantinebronzes.ancients.info/
A book on Byzantine AE on-line in pdf form "Early Byzantine Copper Coins: A Catalogue of an English Collection," author anonymous: https://www.byzantine-ae.info/ (You must download it chapter by chapter. It is mostly identified images, but has some notes too.) This is an extensive collection. I don't undertand why it was not put on the web in the usual web format, rather as 36 downloadable pdf chapters.
A collection of late AE tetartera: https://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/index.php?cat=10240 (The details of each coin are discussed.)
Byzantine coins of the Cherson mint: http://augustuscoins.com/ed/Cherson/ (a complete list with lots of commentary)
Justinian from the Antioch mint. http://augustuscoins.com/ed/interesting/Justinian.html (lots of commentary)
Monograms on Byzantine coins indexed to Sear: http://www.forumancientcoins.com/board/index.php?topic=26315.0
Images of (mostly) gold coins of each emperor: http://www.romancoins.info/Byzantines.htmlout anonymous folles (just excellent images, but not even given Sear numbers, just organized by emperor)
A Forum site on anonymous folles: http://www.forumancientcoins.com/numiswiki/view.asp?key=Anonymous%20Follis
My own site on anonyous folles: http://augustuscoins.com/ed/ByzAnon/
A very extensive collection of late Byzantine copper tetartera: https://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/index.php?cat=10240
A collection of late Byzantine trachea: http://labarum.info/cat/index.ph
A Forum member's collection: http://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=4910
A collection of early Byzantine copper with a cross above the head: http://augustuscoins.com/ed/ByzCross/Cross-above-head.html (some commentary)
A man who studies late Byzantine coins in great detail has put some articles on-line here (these are not for beginners or even moderately-advanced collectors):
http://www.glebecoins.net/paleos/Articles/articles.html
A very informative post on Numis Forums about Byzantine silver hexagrams:
https://www.numisforums.com/topic/2313-two-heraclian-hexagrams/#comment-39021
Books:
Beginners Books:
Sayles, Wayne. Ancient Coin Collecting V: The Romainon/Byzantine Culture. 1998. Hardcover. 197 pages. A very attractive small book. Enlarged photographs on almost every page, and some pages with several or many.
This book is in series of books for beginning ancient-coin collectors. I think it is better and more useful than most of the others in the Sayles series. It has a good outline of how to read legends, denominations, dates, iconography, maps, and mints, followed by a one-page biography of each emperor accompanied by a bibliography right on that same page. Each emperor is illustrated by the obverse of an excellent gold coin (I wish the reverse images had been included). vcoins has it in paperback for $16 plus shipping.
Fitts, Prue Morgan. The Beginner's Guide to Identifying Byzantine Coins. 2015. Cardcover. Spiral bound. 133 pages. This book has a lot of useful information, but I dislike it for its layout. All the coin photographs on on a page are printed the same size, making it impossible to tell which coins are large and which are tiny. Many photographs are far smaller than life size, which is inexcusable. Mints are listed on page 23 as if they were all equally important, which is very far from the case because it lists a dozen obscure mints beginners don't need to hear about and probably won't see any coins of for years. Monograms are tabled on page 22 long before there is any discussion about (unusual) coins with monograms. There are long useless tables of denominations issued by various rulers. There is a substantial discussion of the clothing depicted on coins before we know anything about the general outline of the coinage. Where was an editor? I don't recommend it.
Important Byzantine-coin books in approximate order of usefulness.
Sear, David. Byzantine Coins and Their Values, second edition. 1987.
Abbreviated "Sear" on many sites. The primary collectors' handbook, with short histories of the emperors, a very nearly complete listing of Byzantine coin types, and many photographs, especially of the main types, but also even more types are not photographed. This is the book usually cited for identifying Byzantine coins. It is essential for collectors. Do not get the first edition. The second is far more complete, especially for late Byzantine coins.
It has short biographies on each emperor, and occasional one-line comments about types. It has a list of monograms (p. 32) and many of the inscrptions are translated (pp. 33-34). It is not a book to read, rather a book to consult. Many common types can be identified by comparison with Sear's photographs, but very many types are merely well-described. The first edition of Sear had little coverage of very late Byzantine coins. The second edition was greatly expanded and it much superior. As I write, the second edition is on vcoins at $45 and it is well worth it. Buy it!
If you want illustrations of the high percentage of the Byzantine coins you will encounter, Sear's book is not enough. Grierson's Byzantine Coins has 1527 coin illustrated--almost all the types you will encounter (see the second next review). The numerous (nine!) very large Dumbarton Oaks volumes have a nearly complete list and photographic coverage, often of several examples of any given type.
Using Sear. For each type Sear cites other major reference works which have examples and photographs. If a given work does not have it, a dash is used, e.g. D.O.-- means the type is not in the Dumbarton Oaks catalogs. This would be very unusual because D.O. is nearly complete and has good illustrations of almost every type. The citation "B.M.C. 167" means coin 167 in the British Museum Catalogue is that type. (See my other, more detailed, page on Byzantine references.) Major catalogs and their abbreviations are on page 523. Pages 33-34 have many inscriptions translated. Page 31 has how to read explicit dates. Page 32 illustrates monograms. If you have the Sear number it will show you the monogram, but not the other way around. You can go from the monogram to the Sear ID number on a Forum page here. Sear was written before the final volume of Dumbarton Oaks was published, so late Byzantine types do not cite D.O. as a reference. Some cite Hendy ("H.") although I'm sure those citations would be replaced by D.O. citations if a new edition were to appear. (Most collectors do not emphasize coins that late anyway.)
Whitting, P. D. Byzantine Coins. 1973. In the "World of Numismatics" series. Hardcover. 311 pages. Beautifully printed. 457 enlarged photographs of sides of coins within (usually both sides in two photos, but sometimes only one side, and many in color). Much scholarly information, but directed toward people with a deep interest but not a lot of previous knowledge. Very entertaining and informative. You will learn what makes Byzantine coins interesting. A fun read. Highly recommended.
This is an excellent book on Byzantine coins, This would be my top or second-favorite book (Grierson is the other) for general knowledge about Byzantine coins. It is more lively and entertaining than Grierson and the enlarged photos are more fun to look at, but the text is less systematic and thorough. I love this book and would recommend it right after Sear as a book for collectors. I think he wrote this book because he loved how interesting Byzantine coins are and it shows. As I write Amazon has one "like new" for $35 plus shipping and at that price it is an excellent deal. Buy it!
Grierson, Philip. Byzantine Coins. 1982. Hardcover. It has 385 pages of text and 1527 coins well-illustrated in black-and-white on 95 page plates.
This is the best book for understanding Byzantine coinage, but it may be too deep for beginners. A prominent scholar gives the entire history of Byzantine coinage in one volume. It is not a book for beginning collectors, rather the latest scholarly word (as of 1982, but not yet superseded) on Byzantine coins. It is not a colorful and chatty book like Whitting. Grierson is well-organized chronologically and attempts to be systematic and thorough. I consulted it very many times when writing my web pages on Byzantine coins. It is excellent. Highly recommended if you are serious about Byzantine coins. As I write (Dec. 2022) it is available on the web used for about $100 plus shipping.
"Dumbarton Oaks". Catalogue of the Byzantine Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore Collection, in 5 volumes in 9 big books, plus 1 pre-Byzantine. Volume 1, Anastasius through Maurice, does not have much commentary. It is basically a list of coins with one or more of each type illustrated. Beginning with volume 2 the intent widens to include a study of the coinage with extensive commentary. Anybody who collects Byzantine coins wants/needs Dumbarton Oaks for its near-complete photographic coverage and (after volume 1) extensive commentary. If a type was known but not in Dumbarton Oaks, they inserted it (with its number in parentheses) in order to make the work complete. It is massive (12" tall and 14" of shelf space).
[Hahn below lists some, but not many, varieties DO did not have.]
Dumbarton Oaks has made them available as downloadable pdfs. Links are next.
Bellinger, Catalogue of the Byzantine Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore Collection: Vol. 1, Anastasius I to Maurice, 491-602
Grierson, Catalogue of the Byzantine Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore Collection: Vol. 2, Phocas to Theodosius III, 602-717, 2 vols.
Grierson, Catalogue of the Byzantine Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore Collection: Vol. 3, Leo III to Nicephorus III, 717-1081, 2 vols.
Hendy, Catalogue of the Byzantine Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore Collection: Vol. 4, Alexius I to Michael VIII, 1081-1261, 2 vols.
Grierson, Catalogue of the Byzantine Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore Collection: Vol. 5, Michael VIII to Constantine XI, 1258-1453, 2 vols.
Late Roman before Byzantine (Arcadius and Honorius to Anastasius): Grierson and Mays, Catalogue of Late Roman Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore Collection: From Arcadius and Honorius to the Accession of Anastasius
"MIBE" or "Hahn", formerly "MIB" = Moneta Imperii Byzantini, by Wolfgang Hahn (volumes 1 and 3) and Wolfgang Hahn and Michael Metlich (volume 2), in three volumes. MIBE = Money of the Incipient Byzantine Empire is the second edition, in English, of a work originally in German. Each volume is a fully illustrated list of all Byzantine coin types with some introductory commentary and pull-out charts with dates for the various issues. It includes in each listings the citations for one or more examples. (If only one is cited, it is very unusual. If seven are cited, it is not.)
Volume 1 covers Anastasius through Justinian I and includes 78 pages of introductory commentary in English.
Volume 2, "MIBE, continued", covers Justin II through the revolt of the Heraclii with 72 pages of introductory commentary in English.
Volume 3 covers Heraclius through Leo III (in German, but you probably want the list with photographs. The few German words you will want to know to read the listings are pretty easy to figure out from the pictures. You won't get much out of the 208 pages of commentary in volume 3 unless you read German. Unfortunately, Hahn retired and it is unlikely that volume 3 will be revised and published in English, and it is unlikely the series will be continued chronologically to cover later emperors.)
Volumes 1 and 2 are now in English. The awkward name MIBE is, I think, an effort to keep the abbreviation in English similar to the previous abbreviation to capitalize on the name recognition it had accumulated. If you want a complete list and photographic coverage of Byzantine types up through Leo III (720 AD), this series of three works is for you, even though the third volume is only in German.
"Berk" Eastern Roman Successors of the Sestertus, by Harlan J. Berk. Hardcover. 1986. Hardcover. A price guide to 979 types of AE coins (ending 1118 AD), many with line drawings, on unnumbered pages plus two page plates of photographs. Prices are given in four grades by a major dealer who knew what the coins were really worth. Useful if you collect early Byzantine copper.
Roman Gold Coins of the Medieval World, 383-1453 AD, by Harlan J. Berk. Hardcover. 1986. 368 types of gold coins, all illustrated in B&W photographs and a few enlarged, priced in three grades.
"Ratto" a reprint of an auction-sale catalog of Rudolfo Ratto from 1930. The sale helped put Byzantine coins on the map. Hardcover. 2701 Byzantine and related coins listed on 151 pages, many, but far from all, photographed on 68 page plates. This was one of the first works used to reference Byzantine coins and is still sometimes cited. It is still useful for illustrating excellent examples of many types.
There is a series of massive books on Byzantine coins. (I got the first four of mine sent in one box from Italy by a retail eBay seller.)
All have the same fomat. Cardcover. 8 1/4" by 11 3/4" (large and heavy with high-quality paper and many color photos). 321 pages plus a 6-12-page "market estimate" loose insert with prices in three grades of the types. Bilingual, Italian and English.
Byzantine Coinage in Italy, Volume I (Justinian through Phocas), by Alberto D'Andrea, Cesare Costantini, and Marco Ranalli. 2015. Cardcover. 8 1/4" by 11 3/4". 321 pages plus a 6-page "market estimate" loose insert with prices in three grades of the 280 types. Bilingual, Italian and English. 106 pages of introduction about Constantine through Justin I (with no photos), half Italian and half English. Then each reign has a long introduction, half Italian and half English, followed by photos and identifications. The coins are very well-illustrated in color and described in English (not Italian), some with more than one photo. At the end the source of each photo is given. Most are from auctions with the firm, auction number, and lot number given.
Byzantine Coinage in Italy, Volume II (Heraclius through Justinian II), by Alberto D'Andrea and Andrea Torno Ginnasi. 2017. Same format as volume I, including a price insert. 424 pages (without the long 106-page pre-Justinian part). Types 281-688, again with lovely color photos, some with more than one photo.
Byzantine Coinage in Italy, Volume III (Philippus Bardanes - Leo VI, and Anonymous folles, 711-1071), by Alberto D'Andrea, Cesare Costantini, and Andrea Torno Ginnasi. 2017. Same format as Volumes I & II, including the price insert. 432 pages. Types 699-903, again with lovely color photos, some with more than one photo, plus a few imitations and anonymous folles.
Byzantine Coinage in Africa and Spain, by Alberto D'Andrea and Andrea Torno Ginnasi. 2017. Same format as the Italian volumes, including the price insert. 397 pages. 34 pages of the history of the Exarchate of Africa (in Italian and English) followed by 425 types discussed and well-illustrated in color, some with more than one image.
Byzantine Coinage in the East, volume I, by Alberto D'Andrea, et al. 2019. 277 pages. Anastasius through Justin II. Same format as the other volumes, including a price insert.
Byzantine Coinage in the East, volume II, by Alberto D'Andrea, et al. 2020. 355 pages. Tiberius II through Justinian II second reign. Same format as the other volumes, including a price insert.
Byzantine Coinage in the East, volume III, I have not seen it yet.
Die Münzen des Byzantinischen Reiches 491 - 1453: Mit einem Anhang: Die Münzen des Kaiserreichs von Trapezunt, by Andreas Urs Sommer 2010. Hardcover. 536 pages. This is similar to Sear, but more recent and in German. The prices are more up to date. It is used primarlily by European dealers. Detailed long descriptions of each obverse and reverse in German and a photo of each type he lists, which is virtually all types.
La Monetazione di Ravenna Antiqua, by Edidio Ranieri. Hardcover. 2006. 8 1/2" by 12 1/4". Xvii plus 250 pages. 850 types illustarted in black-and-white, with detials described in Italian throughout, with introductions to each reign in Italian and English. Coins from Arcadius through Constantine V (775) and Aistulf (749-756).
Late Byzantine
Coinage and Money in the Byzantine Empire, 1081-1261 by Michael F. Hendy, published by Dumbarton Oaks. A monumental early scholarly study, now largely superseded by his "Volume 4" of DO above. This book is for very advanced specialists.
A Private Collection of Palaelogan Coins by Simon Bendall (privately published in an edition of only 250 copies, but important for study of Palaelogan series). [See Lianta, below, for a book that supercedes this.]
The Later Palaeologan Coinage, 1282-1453, by Simon Bendall and P. J. Donald. Paperback. Enlarged line drawings for identification of these poorly-struck types. Line drawings can show all the details from several examples, whereas photographs of individual coins, no matter if they are the best for type, do not.
Late Byzantine Coins, 1204-1453, in the Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford, by Eleni Lianta, Spink 2009. 335 pages, 1128 coins illustrated throughout, most from the Bendall collection (Overlapping "A Private Collection" above.)
The coins of the Byzantine Palaeologos Family in the Coin Circulation of the Bulgarian Kingdom in Period 1259-1396, by Konstantine Dochev. 2007. Card covers. 8 1/4" by 11 3/4". Two volumes. Bilingual, Bulgarian and English. It has photographs with line drawings alongside them, which is very helpful because it is much easier to see the line drawings. The descriptions are below the photos in two columns, with Bulgarian on the left and English on the right. The "Catalogue" volume has 214 pages with three coins per page, plus 4 page plates. The other volume has 300 pages of commentary in Bulgarian with no photos and only 7 pages of English summary.
An article by Mike Markowitz on cup-shaped coins: https://www.academia.edu/3455689/Why_Did_Byzantine_Coinage_Become_Cup-Shaped_in_the_11th_Century
Less critical books:
Imperial Byzantine Coins in the British Museum, by Warwick Wroth. Hardcover. 1908, reprinted as the orginal two volumes in one by Argonaut in 1966. 686 pages plus 78 page plates. This book was very well done for what was know back then, but some of its attributions have been revised in the century since it was published. Also, modern photography is better. If you have modern references and care about the Byzantine series, this book will show you what the BM had and that is fun, but minor information compared to Grierson or Whitting. Buy a copy only if it is cheap.
Byzantine and Early Medieval Western European Coins in the Hunter Coin Cabinet, University of Glasgow, by J. D. Bateson and I. G. Campbell. Hardcover. 180 pages plus 29 page plates of photos in black-and-white. The collection is very far from complete, but has nice examples of many of the major types.
Byzantine Coins from the National Museum in Belgrade, by Vesna Radic and Vujadin Ivanisevic. Cardcover. 2006. Bilingual. 232 pages with page plates opposite descriptions. Photos in black-and-white of 1106 coins on 68 pages plates included in the page count. Of the pages of introduction, pages 43 through 74 are in English. Coin identifictions transcribe the legends and give citations to Dumbarton Oaks, BMC, MIBE, and Ratto, but not Sear. Few details are given and those that are given are in Serbian.
Speedy Identification of Early Denominationally Marked Byzantine Bronzes, by C. Daniel Clark. Spiral-bound with 130 cardstock pages which can be laid flat while you are working on identifying a pile of low-grade Byzantine bronzes. Reverse types are classified by their design and the Sear numbers of the possibilities given. Do you want to know who issued "XXXX" types? With ANNO above? This book makes it easy to find out.
Decades ago people from source countries brought bags with thousands of Byzantine bronzes to coin shows in the US. Many were low-grade and there was the possibility of finding something special if you searched a huge group. This book helped with the identification process. This hardly happens in the US any more with restrictions on moving coins, but I can imagine this book is still useful whereever large groups of Byzantine bronzes show up.
Le Monete Siciliane dai Bizantini a Carlo i d'Aangio (582-1282), by Rodolfo Spahr. 1976. Green Cloth. This is one volume of a two-volume set. (The second volume covers 1282-1836). 240 pages plus 28 page plates of black-and-white photographs, 14 plates of which are of Byzantine coins..
Introduction to East Roman (Byzantine) Coinage, by John F. Lhotka. Paperback. 1989. 113 pages plus 60 coins on four page plates plus some coins illustrated within. The photos are poor. They are okay, but much below modern sale-catalog quality. This was written before Byzantine coins were popular in a series of articles in the ANA's journal, The Numismatist. Then they were put together and published as this book. It is definitely aimed at collectors and emphasizes commonly available coins, especially copper coins. It is loaded with charts and notes that a collector might make as he was learning to grasp the subject. There is a lot to like about this book even though the production quality is low.
ERIC II. The Encyclopedia of Roman Imperial Coins, second edition, known as ERIC II, by Rasiel Suarez, is a beautiful and massive 1455-page book that lists virtually every Roman imperial coin type beginning with Augustus. Perhaps unexpected from the title is that even the later Roman coins normally called "Byzantine" are included in the last 200 pages. Do not buy the first edition ERIC--if you want one be sure to get ERIC II, which is far more complete. (ERIC III is in the works, but it may be a long time coming.)
It is not a price guide. Types are all described by one small-print line without comment on their historical interest or individual value. Each ruler (or empress, or other relative) is introduced with a short history of his reign and a note on how common or rare his coins are in general, including a rank among the 207 Roman imperial (not including Byzantine) people from most common (Constantine) to rarest (Silbannicus) and a brief comment on typical costs.
The arrangement of the list with over 50,000 entries is necessarily concise. For each emperor all his obverse bust types are listed and given codes as B01, B02, etc. Most are illustrated with a gorgeous image. Then all possible obverse legends are listed and coded -- O01, O02, etc. and all reverse legends are listed and coded R01, R02, etc. All reverse types are listed and coded with T01, T02, etc. and many, including all the common ones, are illustrated, again in color with one side of an excellent example. If more than one mint was issuing coins, a mint code is added, prefixed with M. Types are grouped by denomination and each type gets a single line with a type number among the types of that emperor which includes a date range and RIC and Cohen references. A line describing type #213 of Trajan (a denarius) looks like this:
213) B05, O18, R040, T038, M2 98-99 RIC II 3 C 211
There is a broad gap between the codes and the dates than is, in a small fraction of the cases, filled with additional details of the reverse type such as lettering across the field. The dating is more precise than just the dates of the reign.
Compiling all this information was an unbelievable amount of work. I am really surprised any one person did it!
Color is used very well to color-code part of the outer edges of the pages associated with each emperor, making it easy to identify and turn to pages of coins of a particular emperor.
The illustrations are all of only one side of a coin and all about the same size -- about an inch and an eighth, which is a nice enlargement for most types.
Catalogue of the Late Byzantine Coins, 1081-1453, Volume I, by Valentin Marchev and Robert Wachter. 2011. English. (Volume II will not appear because of the death of Marchev). I have not seen it, but have been told the line drawings are excellent and helpful. It has rarity ratings which are only their impressions and not much researched--one specialist says many rarities are wrong.
"Goodacre" A Handbook of the Coinage of the Byzantine Empire, by Hugh Goodacre. Hardcover. 1957. An old price guide with a page or two of biography for each reign. Sparingly illustrated throughout. An old classic superseded by Sear.
"Sabatier" Monnaies Byzantines. 1862, reprinted in 1965. In French. HC in two volumes, one 4 1/2" by 6 3/4", small, but with, with 378 pages and no images, and the second 6 1/2" by 9 1/4" with 70 pages plates of very good line drawings. Of historical interest, but not a modern reference.
Byzantine-coin sale catalogs (emphasizing AE) [For silver, see below]
N.B. Most of the major firms regularly have Byzantine gold coins in their catalogs. 50 or 100 pieces in a single sale would not be unusual for any of the top firms. The catalogs listed below are different in that their emphasis on Byzantine AE coins is especially strong. See my "catalog contents" webpage for the numbers of Byzantine coins in other catalogs of each firm. You may assume that the number given will be almost all gold coins (maybe with a few silver coins) unless I specifically mention AE.
I am sure this list is far from complete. I welcome contributions from more-experienced collectors who can add to this list.
Write me, Warren Esty, at 
Green means important. Bold Green means very important. Return to the main page "Ancient Coin Auction Catalogs - Contents" (listed by firm) or the page of catalogs listed by theme to find the meanings of the other abbreviations used here.
Note: Byzantine gold is common, and there are very many sales with a large selection of Byzantine gold pieces. I will list some of them, but have mostly emphasized sales with outstanding selections that include AE as well. Most of these sales emphasize copper coins.
Berk-England
1989, Dec. 7. 368 Byz AE, well photographed. This may be the best sale catalog for Byz AE.
Byzantine AE (368)
Goldberg
2009, May 26 "Pre Long Beach sale" HV. HQP. 875 ancients among 2257, all in color, a few enlarged, plus 1 color E. 188 G, 84 Jewish and related, 96 RI, some of the highest quality, including the largest silver Roman medallion, 66 mm in diameter of Valentinian, 484 rare Byzantine "The Christov family collection"). [See F&S 17 for nice, but not outstanding, copper from this collection.]
Byzantine (484 rare, mostly gold but including some very rare AE and AR)
2009, Oct. 28-29. HV. HQP. 638 ancients among 1709 lots which include 63 antiquities, all in color and some enlarged in color. 107 HV Greek, 17 RR, 95 RI, 377 rare Byz, mostly AE, 4 Trebizond (numerous large lots of Roman and Byzantine).
Byzantine AE (and AR) (377)
Stack's 2009, Jan 12, "Moneta Imperii Romani Byzantini" 640 ancients, illustated throughout in color with almost all also x2 in color. 44 late Roman (mostly gold rarities), 344 Byzantine rarities, mostly gold but lots of silver and copper too, 281 Byzantine-related and early European coins (almost all outstanding), including 12 Ostrogoths, 3 Visigoths, 7 Merovingians, 10 Axumite, 3 Lombards, 3 Duchy of Naples, 4 Lombards, 14 Normans in South Italy, 14 Arab-Byzantine, 7 Georgia, 27 Armenian, 9 Latin East Crusaders, 3 Kingdom of Cyprus, 27 Turkoman, 16 Bulgarian empire, 13 Kingdom of Serbia, 1 of Bosnia, 1 of Venice, 4 of Patriarchate of Aquileia, 1 of Trieste, 3 Anglo-Saxon, 7 Norman and Platagenet England, 58 other early Europe.
Late Roman (44), Byzantine (344), Byzantine-related (over 100), early medieval (over 100)
Kovacs
mail bid sale XIV (10/98) 496 ancients. 99 G, 42 RP, 9 RR, 96 RI, 244 Byz AE.
An amazing group of AE rarities: 7 Constantine IV, 4 Justininian II (1st reign), 18 Leontius, 6 Tiberius III, 5 Justinian II (second reign), 14 Philippicus, 11 Anastasius II, 4 Theodosius III, etc.
244 Byzantine AE
Elsen, Jean (Brussels, Belguim)
53 14 March 1998 "Collection G. W. de Wit: Les deux Rome de Diocletian to the fall of Constantinople." MLV. MQP. 1209 ancients among 2046. 562 Diocletian through Byzantine, mostly AE, on 16 ppl, plus another 21 ppl with 84 G, 125 RR, 184 RI before Diocletian, plus another 254 Diocletian-Byzantine.
Late Roman AE and Byzantine AE (among 800)
CNG
19 (2/92) mbs. 588 Byzantine, mostly AE, and 27 closely related. [Perhaps second best for Byzantine AE.]
Byzantine AE (all but a few among 588)
28 (12/93) 699 ancients among 759. 212 G including 32 Athens new style, 31 RR, 78 RI, 14 RP, 289 Byz, 75 Turkoman bronze (Spengler/Sayles I)
Athens new style (32), Byzantine (289), Turkoman (Artuqid, 75)
29 (3/94) mbs. 1395 ancients among 1753 (+ numis literature). 404 G, 107 RR, 399 RI, 146 RP, 264 Byz, 4 DA, 69 Turkoman (Spengler/Sayles II, Artuqid) 17 Celtic England, 18 England
Byzantine (264, including AE), Turkoman (Spengler/Sayles II, Artuqid, 69)
Leu
13 (4/75) VHV. HQP. 785 ancients on 39 ppl + 4 E. 345 G, 220 R, 220 Byz (almost all gold).
220 Byzantine
NAC (Numismatica Ars Classica)
"Arcadius to Constantine XI" (5/93) HV. VHQP. A specialized collection of Byzantine and related coinages, in English
29 late Roman, 492 Byz (mostly gold, but some nice AE), 31 Vandal, 12 other DA, 31 Papal-Byzantine silver
37 ppl, Papal-Byzantine life-sized and 2x in B&W, plus 5 ppl of very large enlargements. 4 additional ppl of color enlargements
Byzantine gold, late Roman gold, Vandal, Papal-Byzantine silver
This is the primary offering of Papal-Byzantine silver, with the hoard throughly written up and extensively expounded.
D (lettered catalog, 3/94) 1329 ancients on 65 ppl. 623 G, 542 R, 166 Byz
Byzantine (166, including AE)
NFA
18 (March 31 and April 1, 1987, in two parts) VHV. VHQP. Two thick volumes. Part I: "Ancient Greek coins and coins of the Seleucid Kings" 402 G. Very extensive commentary on many. Spectacular catalog. Plus many enlarged in the text plus 2 ppl in color plus two ppl of a single coin hugely enlarged.
Seleucid (Seleukid) Greek [no Byzantine in part I]
Part II: "Roman and Byzantine" 591 ancients. 208 R, 383 Byz. Very extensive commentary on many. Spectacular catalog. Plus many enlarged in the text plus 1 color ppl.
Byzantine gold
Sotheby's
1990, 5-6 Dec. (New York) VHV. QP. Hardcover. "The William Herbert Hunt Collection of Highly Important Byzantine Coins" 961 Byzantine on 67 ppl. (the photos are okay, but not as good as most catalogs. (The quality of this catalog is far below that of the Bunker Hunt Greek and Roman catalogs.)
Byzantine (961)
1991, June 21 (New York) HV. QP. 646 lots, 114 of individual Byz gold, the rest multiple-coin lots of Byzantine gold, most not illustrated. "The William Herbert Hunt Collection of Important Byzantine Coins"
Byzantine (114 + large lots)
1998, 2 Nov. (New York) "An Important Private Collection of Byzantine Coins" HV. VHQP. 599 Byzantine gold + 1 E + 11 color E + some enlargments thoughout. Very long coin descriptions.
Byzantine (599)
Spink
2000, July 13. The Dr. Anton C. R. Dreesmann Collection of Ancient Coins, Part II: Byzantine and Early European Gold Coins. HV. HQP. 573 ancients + 7 color ppl. 364 Byz gold, many DA: 94 Ostrogothic, Lombard, etc., 20 early Arabic gold, 31 early Italian gold, 4 crusader, 12 florins, 37 Aksumite
Early European gold (512) including Byzantine (364), Dark ages (94), Aksumite (37)
Sternberg
(11/75) [#5, unnumbered] HV, HQP. 760 ancients. 548 R, 218 Byz including AE. 38 ppl + 4 of enlargements + 1 in color.
Byzantine AE (about half of 212)
8 (11/78) MV, HQP. 1015 ancients. 339 G, 41 Aksum, 374 R, 238 Byz including AE, 18 Arab-Byz, on 50 ppl + 2E
Aksumite (41), Byzantine AE (among 238)
UBS (Zurich, Switzerland)
45 (9/98) 1235 ancients among 3225. MV. MQP. Very thick catalog. 318 G, 382 Roman Republican, 346 R, 153 Byz.
Aes grave (among 62), Byzantine gold (153)
Vecchi
4 (12/96) 738 ancients on 43 ppl plus 4 E. 417 R, 321 Byz, including AE,
sestertii, Byz AE
8 (12/97) MV. HQP. 675 ancients illustrated within + 10 E + 6 ppl of enlargements in color. 157 G, 237 R, 282 Byz.
Byzantine and Byzantine AE (282)
Berk
4 (Spring 1976) "All Byzantine Bronze" 345 Byz AE (surprisingly poor photos, but good coins)
345 Byzantine AE
Bonham's (London)
3 (Dec. 3, 1980) 404 Byz gold on 19 ppl. + 22 ppl. of B&W enlargements. Good photographs, some with slight glare problems.
Byzantine gold (404)
Freeman and Sear
6 (10/00) 663 ancients among 701. 181 Byz AE, 182 G, 72 architectural RP, 210 R, 18 Byz AV.
Byzantine AE (181), architectural Roman Provincial (72)
17 (2009, Dec. 15) MV. MQP. 736 ancients. B&W photos throughout, some enlargements, plus 4 color E. 15 G, 32 Parthian, 5 sub-Parthian, 16 central Asian, 104 RR, 440 RI, 120 Byzantine AE from the "Christov family collection" (very nice, but not outstanding) [see Goldberg, 2009, May 26 for rare Byzantine from this collection]
Byzantine AE (120)
Baldwin's (London)
5 (11 Oct. 1995) "Byzantine Gold Coins from the P. J. Donald Collection" 285 Byz gold on 12 large ppl. Photos okay but worse than most.
Byzantine gold (285)
fixed price list #37, Nov. 2001. 77 Byz, well photographed, One third are AE
Swiss International Coin Auction AG (SINCONA) Zurich
Auction 3 (2011, Oct. 25) "Important Collection of Byzantine Coins" HV. HQP. 539 Byzantine gold coins in color and enlarged in color. Descriptions in English.
Byzantine gold (539)
Berk 116 (10/2000) Palaeologean Thessalonica, lots 682-717.
Kovacs fp list 16 (1982) 5 page plates of AE
Byzantine silver (just two I noticed)
Berk 52 (1988, Feb. 22) lots 256-268 are small Byzantine silver from Carthage.
Berk 80 (1994, Jan 18) lots 703-717 are Berk's famous hoard of Constantine XI, the last Byzantine emperor.
Other:
Byzantine Seals
Spink 127 (7 Oct. 1998) "Zacos collection, part I"
Spink 132 (25 May 1999) "Zacos collection, part II"
Spink 135 (6 Oct. 1999) "Zacos collection, part III"
Schulten (3/1990) lots 1105ff (46 pieces)
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