Solidus (Coin) of Empress Irene
797-802
Medium
Gold
Dimensions
Diam.: 2.2 cm (7/8 in.)
Classification
coin
Department
Arts of Greece, Rome, and Byzantium
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
221685
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Coins were the ideal way for Byzantine rulers to rapidly circulate their images throughout the empire and beyond, since they were used to pay for imported merchandise and foreign mercenaries. They could also be employed as powerful vehicles for propaganda, promoting messages of dynastic legitimacy and the divine source of the emperor’s right to rule. After Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire, the Byzantine emperors adopted Christian themes and symbols, most notably the...
About the Artist
Byzantine
"Byzantine" is the collective attribution given to anonymous artists working within the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, whose creations spanned from the 4th to the 15th centuries, primarily in Constantinople and its cultural sphere. These masters produced a vast body of art that defined an era, with museums like the Walters Art Museum and the Art Institute of Chicago cataloging numerous works un...