This unique imperial lead bulla depicts Michael VIII Palaiologos in the most formal imperial attire on the front. Above his head he holds an icon of the Virgin Mary. The back of the bulla is occupied by a nine-verse inscription. The lead bulla dates from after the recapture of Constantinople in 1261 and the reorganization of the state by Michael VIII Palaiologos, as it refers to the reopening of the Secret, the royal supreme court, which had ceased its operation due to the Latin occupation, 1204-1261. The iconography of the lead bulla is unique and original. The depiction of the emperor, holding the icon of the Virgin Mary above his head, is a clear reference to Michael’s triumphal entry into Constantinople on 15 August 1261.
Michael VIII Palaiologos (1259-1261)
Michael VIII Palaiologos usurped the throne of the Laskarids of the Empire of Nicaea and was crowned co-emperor with the legitimate minor heir John IV in 1259. In July 1261, his general Alexios Stratigopoulos recaptured Constantinople from the Latins, who had occupied the Byzantine capital since 1204. On August 15, 1261, Michael made a triumphal entry into Constantinople, leading his procession with the palladium of the Reigning Virgin, the icon of the Theotokos of the Monastery of the Guides. Immediately after his second coronation in Constantinople, Michael strengthened the decimated population of the capital with various measures and undertook the costly task of repairing and restoring the public and ecclesiastical buildings and walls, which had suffered great damage. To meet the high cost of this work, he devalued the gold coin, the hyperpyrus.