The Story Behind the Strike
Isaac II Angelos overthrew Andronikos I in 1185 and inherited an empire under mounting internal and external pressure. His hyperpyron answers instability with sacred guardianship. The Virgin appears on the obverse; Isaac stands with an archangel on the reverse. The imagery is especially apt for an emperor whose family name, Angelos, resonated visually with the heavenly companion. Yet the coin should not be reduced to wordplay. It presents imperial office as protected by both the Mother of God and an armed celestial intercessor. Graffito and edge crimps preserve the physical life of this individual specimen.