International congress of byzantine studies belgrade, 22 27 august 2016

Zeliha Demirel Gökalp
Anadolu University, Eskişehir, Turkey; 
[e-mail]
Byzantine AE Coin Finds from Phrygia
In this study, the Byzantine coins that are among the collections of Kütahya and Bolvadin 
Museums, located in the geography encompassing the Phrygia region in the Middle Ages, and the 
Byzantine coins which were acquired in the Amorium and Aizanoi excavations will be discussed. 
The aim of this notice is to determine the statistics of the Byzantine Coins in the Ancient Phrygia 
according to their periods and to evaluate the coins within the limits of the general economic 
history of their region. Also, these findings will be examined and compared to the other published 
museum collections, and excavation finds in Turkey. The periods that make Phrygia special will be 
tried to be determined in the light of the two museums in the area and the finds of the two ancient 
city excavations, of which excavations are in progress.
The Phrygian region in the Middle Ages is roughly the area surrounded by the provinces of 
Eskişehir, Kütahya, Afyon, Denizli and Uşak. Phrygia is considered to be one of the important 
points of the operation carried out against the Arabs in the 8
th
and 9
th
century. As from the second 
half of the 9
th
century, we see a complete Byzantine sovereignty in Anatolia and therefore also a 
period of peace and tranquility. And as of the second half of the 11
th
century, the region became an 
area of conflict between the Christian and Muslim military forces. The coin finds support this as 
well. The majority of the coins located in the area represent a group reflecting the different periods 
of the Byzantine Empire uninterruptedly. The Byzantine coins, discovered in the area bearing 
great historical, political and economic importance, consist of samples indicating the commercial 
connections in the area regarding numismatics. In addition, the fact that there are many samples, 
and they are definable makes them statistically usable data groups.
Firstly, the statistics of the Byzantine coins found in the museums and the excavations in the 
region were calculated according to periods and the data were graphed out. The obtained data were 
compared to the other areas, and it was observed that the Byzantine Empire was a common feature 
for most of the regions in Anatolia and that different parts portrayed local differences. As a result, 
in the notice, the circulation of the Byzantine bronze coins throughout Phrygia and Anatolia will 
be evaluated with a statistical approach. In the comparison, although the places of comparison were 
different and distant from one another, the results and discordant points that are widely similar 
throughout the Byzantine Empire will be discussed.

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