Alexios I Komnenos | BI Aspron Trachy

Reference: SB 1918
Date: 1092-1118 CE
Obverse: IC - XC; Christ enthroned facing on square-backed throne, holding Gospels in both hands
Reverse: ΑΛΕΖΙ ΔΕC; Bust of Alexius I facing, wearing crown and jewelled chlamys, holding cruciform scepter in right hand and globus cruciger in left
Mint: Constantinople
Size: 28.6 mm
Weight: 4.20 grams

HIGH SILVER CONTENT. In the wake of Manzikert, the fate of the Roman Empire looked grim. The frontiers were collapsing and threats pressed forward on all fronts: the Seljuk Turks in Anatolia, the Normans in the western Balkans, and the Pechenegs on the Danube. Like so many times before in Roman history, the Empire managed to successfully stave off these threats and stabilize itself for centuries to come. In a cunning combination of military and diplomatic acumen, Alexius I drove back the Norman invasion of the Balkans; decisively defeated the Pechenegs at Levounion ; and successfully recruited the powers of Western Europe to launch the First Crusade against the Turks and the Fatimid Caliphate. 

In addition to these military feats, Alexius I reformed the Roman monetary system in 1092 CE. The heavily debased gold histamenon was replaced with a nearly pure gold coin called the hyperpyron. The famous cup-shaped trachy was introduced in electrum and billon alongside a bronze coin called the tetarteron. Alexius I's near-heroic feats -- recorded by his daughter, the Roman princess and historian Anna -- ushered in a century of imperial prosperity and success. 


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