Collections byzantines du MAH - Genève
Texts by Matteo Campagnolo and Klaus Weber
Bronze weights dating from late antiquity and the early Byzantine period are among the prized possessions of the numismatic department of the Museum of Art and History in Geneva. This catalogue raisonné includes over 500 square and round weights from the 4th to the 7th century, as well as four “Roman” scales and weights. These weights make up two distinct series, those used in trade, marked in pounds and ounces, and those marked in nomismata, which were used to check the weight of gold solidi (individiually or in groups, from 2 to 72).
This book highlights a feature that has been largely neglected in previous publications: the type of edging on the weights. Seemingly unimportant, this aspect actually makes it possible to identify where each weight was manufactured, something that has received little attention precisely because of the lack of evidence. Moreover, it incorporates certain important strides made in the study of iconography.
There is no question that this book will become a standard reference work on the subject as well as being the catalogue of Byzantine weights in the Museum of Art and History in Geneva.
Matteo Campagnolo is a curator in the numismatic department of the Museum of Art and History in Geneva and a lecturer at the University of Geneva (Department of the Sciences of Antiquity).
Klaus Weber is an expert in Byzantine metallurgy and numismatics.