Solidus of Maurice Tiberius

Gold Solidus of Valentinian I (364–75), Made in Nicomedia (Modern Izmit, Turkey), Material: Gold. Valentinian restored Christian symbols, including the Chi-Rho emblem atop the emperor’s standard. On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 301. The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) is one of the world’s largest and finest art museums. Its collection includes more than two million works of art spanning five thousand years of world culture, from prehistory to the present and from every part of the globe. Public Hours: 10:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Open seven days a week.

Leaf-shaped pendant in opus interrasile embossed and chased with a foliate design. Period: Early Byzantine, circa: 7thc. Materials: gold. British Museum is closed 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January, but is open every other day of the year. Fast facts about the British Museum: Founded: 1753, Collection size: 8 million objects, Oldest object in the collection: Stone chopping tool (nearly 2 million years old).

Book Cover with a Cross Flanked by Cypress Trees, Period: Early Byzantine, circa: Mid 6th Century. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.

Steelyard Weight with a Bust of a Byzantine Empress and a Hook. This Byzantine steelyard weight dates from the first half of the 5th century. The bronze hook would permit it to be suspended from and moved along a ruled steelyard to determine the weight of an item hung from the opposite end. The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) is one of the world’s largest and finest art museums. Its collection includes more than two million works of art spanning five thousand years of world culture, from prehistory to the present and from every part of the globe. Public Hours: 10:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Open seven days a week.

Ring Decorated with a Monogram, Period: Early Byzantine, circa: 7th century. Found: Pereshchepina Complex. near Poltava, the Village of Malaya Pereshchepina. Materials: gold. Technique: cast, polished, soldered and engraved. The collection of the State Hermitage includes over 3 million works of art and world culture artefacts. It contains paintings, graphic works, sculptures, works of applied art, archaeological artefacts and numismatic objects. The Hermitage is considered to have been founded in 1764, when Empress Catherine the Great acquired an impressive collection of works from the Berlin merchant Johann Ernst Gotzkowsky. The museum celebrates the anniversary of its founding each year on 7 December, St. Catherine’s Day. Opening Hours: Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, Sunday: 10.30-18.00 Wednesday, Friday: 10.30-21.00 Closed: Monday.

The Attarouthi Treasure, Period: Early Byzantine, circa: 500-650s. Made in Attarouthi, Syria. Materials: Silver, silver-gilt. On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 300.

These well-wrought liturgical items– chalices, censers, a filter, and also a depiction of the dove of the Holy Spirit– were amongst the belongings of a Christian church in the wealthy seller city of Attarouthi in Syria, after that among the wealthiest lands of the Byzantine Empire. The chalices, censers, and also filter were made use of for the Divine Liturgy, or Eucharist, where Christians take consecrated wine and bread in ceremony of the Last Supper and also Christ’s death. According to their inscriptions, written in Greek with several spelling variants, many of the objects were offerings of local citizens to the major church of the town, which was dedicated to Saint Stephen, and to a smaller church dedicated to Saint John (probably Saint John the Forerunner [the Baptist]).  In the very early 7th century Syria dropped initially to the Sasanian Persians and afterwards to the militaries of Islam. These works were most likely hidden in haste in a safety container at some minute when the Byzantine military was pulling away from strikes on the area.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) is one of the world’s largest and finest art museums. Its collection includes more than two million works of art spanning five thousand years of world culture, from prehistory to the present and from every part of the globe. Public Hours: 10:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Open seven days a week.

Mosaic, Two Peacocks Perch on a Fountain, Period: Early Byzantine, circa: A.D. 450–462. The MFA is open 7 days a week. Monday and Tuesday 10 am–5 pm, Wednesday–Friday 10 am–10 pm, Saturday and Sunday 10 am–5 pm.

Tapestry panel: Head of a man. Coptic, Egypt. Period: Early Byzantine circa: 4th-5th century A.D. Dimensions: 23.5 x 20 cm (9 1/4 x 7 7/8 in.); Legacy dimension: 23.5 x 20.0 cm. Materials: Wool.  The MFA is open 7 days a week. Monday and Tuesday 10 am–5 pm, Wednesday–Friday 10 am–10 pm, Saturday and Sunday 10 am–5 pm.

Paten with Christogram and Repousse Border, Period: Early Byzantine, circa Mid 6th Century. Materials: silver, gilding and niello. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.

Chain with Two Pendants and a Cross, Period: Early Byzantine; circa: 6th century. Type of art work: Jewelry Materials: gold with granulation and a garnet.  Overall: h. 45.7 cm (18 in.); Part 1: 2.6 x 2.6 cm (1 x 1 in.); Part 2: 2.8 x 1.9 cm (1 1/16 x 3/4 in.); Part 3: 1.9 x 1.1 cm (3/4 x 7/16 in.). The Cleveland Art Museum Hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays 10:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. Closed Mondays.

Solidus of Constantius II (333–361). Material: Gold. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.

Chain with Pendant and Two Crosses, Materials: Gold with enamel and glass. Period: Early Byzantine, 500’s. The Cleveland Art Museum Hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays 10:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. Closed Mondays.

Solidus of Constans II, Period: Early Byzantine, circa: 651–654. Minted in: Constantinople. Material: Gold. The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston is open 7 days a week. Monday and Tuesday 10 am–5 pm, Wednesday–Friday 10 am–10 pm, Saturday and Sunday 10 am–5 pm.

Ornament (Gammadion and Segmentum) from a Tunic, Period: Early Byzantine; circa: 6th century. Materials: tabby ground, inwoven tapestry ornament; wool. The Cleveland Art Museum Hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays 10:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. Closed Mondays.

Fragment from a Curtain, Materials: tabby weave with inwoven tapestry ornament, linen and wool. Period: Early Byzantine circa: 5th – 6th century. The Cleveland Art Museum Hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays 10:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. Closed Mondays.

Gold Finger Ring, Period: Early Byzantine (6 th. c.) flat hoop cut into eight alternating circular and hexagonal panels; circular panels engraved alternately with dove and palmette; hexagonal panels with S-shaped line crossed by bar, lines terminating with punched dots. Found/Acquired: Beirut. British Museum is closed 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January, but is open every other day of the year. Fast facts about the British Museum: Founded: 1753, Collection size: 8 million objects, Oldest object in the collection: Stone chopping tool (nearly 2 million years old).

Pair of Tapestry Woven Square Dress Ornaments. Egyptian (Coptic). Period: Early Byzantine, circa: 4th–7th century A.D. Materials: Linen and wool tapestry. Dimensions: Height x width (a): 8 7/16 x 8 1/4 in. (21.5 x 21 cm).

The MFA is open 7 days a week. Monday and Tuesday 10 am–5 pm, Wednesday–Friday 10 am–10 pm, Saturday and Sunday 10 am–5 pm.

Gold coin. Ruler: Nicephorus I, Period: Middle Byzantine, circa: 802-811. Minted in: Italy (southern), Weight: 4.173 grammes. British Museum is closed 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January, but is open every other day of the year. Fast facts about the British Museum: Founded: 1753, Collection size: 8 million objects, Oldest object in the collection: Stone chopping tool (nearly 2 million years old).

Ring with cross-shaped quatrefoil calyx bezel. Materials: gold. Period: Early Byzantine; circa:  6th-7th century.  The Benaki Museum of Greek Culture is housed in one of the most beautiful neoclassical-style buildings in Athens, near the National Garden and the Hellenic Parliament.

Necklace; Cross pendant; Period: Early Byzantine; 5thc.-6thc.; Materials: glass, amber, amethyst and carnelian beads. Found: Qaw el-Kebir, Egypt, Upper Egypt. British Museum is closed 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January, but is open every other day of the year.