Byzantine heraldy, banners and standards

[Grey Wolf]

My understanding is that the eagle that we all think of as "the Byzantine eagle" was actually a development of the Paleologus family crest.

Before this, what was used? Did the Komneni have their own emblems, for example?

And was there a long-lasting symbology from the ancient Roman world - imperial eagles etc?

I am looking to put my story "Dreams of Empire" together as one of the Little Books published under my Scimitar Edge imprint, but it seems I never address this question of Byzantine imagery in it.

Best Regards
Grey Wolf

 

[Grey Wolf]

As far as I can see

Byzantine flags and insignia - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

this page basically tells you what was NOT used in between the 7th and 12th centuries, rather than what actually was???

It says the attribution of a double headed eagle to the Komneni is spurious, and that it should most likely be Paleologus, but does not say what they thought the Komemni appeared on the field of battle with?

 

[CHKeeley]

I’ve looked into this and have had a very difficult time attesting any really consistent motifs for imperial heraldry until the Palaiologos and the 14th century. The idea of families or dynasties having official insignia was not really introduced until the Late Medieval Period, and so there was no standard image for the imperial families. This article by Dr. George Theotokis on Medievalists.com discusses it at length. The double-headed eagle motif came into use around the mid 12th to early 13th centuries and was used increasingly after that, but there’s really no evidence of it being an official flag/symbol/motif until the Palaiologai adopted it as heraldry in the western fashion.

Before that, symbols were largely personal. A labarum standard was apparently not rare. Christian imagery including the cross or the Virgin Mary would not be uncommon. Apparently a single-headed eagle style was in use up through the 11th century and beyond, but I’m having a hard time finding pictures. Military units in the Madrid Skylitzes are depicted with banners like this one below

At first, I assumed these to be simple unit standards with no real imperial significance but..

The color scheme seems to be in use immediately around the Emperor Theophilos both as a standard and on the imperial throne. Perhaps there is more to that.

The coinage of the middle Byzantine period has many crosses and some depictions of angels or Jesus along with the reigning emperor(s), but nothing of the eagles or the Chi-Rho people traditionally show as Byzantine insignia.

It’s very hard to draw flags and imagery for them as we would like to because half the time we don’t know and the other half of the time we are just projecting understandings of western insignia onto the empire. You may find something if you check out Constantine Porphyrogennitos’ Book of Ceremonies. It just occurred to me to email a specialist on this and see what they can say, so I’ll try and do that today and post responses.

 

[Grey Wolf]

I’ve looked into this and have had a very difficult time attesting any really consistent motifs for imperial heraldry until the Palaiologos and the 14th century. The idea of families or dynasties having official insignia was not really introduced until the Late Medieval Period, and so there was no standard image for the imperial families. This article by Dr. George Theotokis on Medievalists.com discusses it at length. The double-headed eagle motif came into use around the mid 12th to early 13th centuries and was used increasingly after that, but there’s really no evidence of it being an official flag/symbol/motif until the Palaiologai adopted it as heraldry in the western fashion.

Before that, symbols were largely personal. A labarum standard was apparently not rare. Christian imagery including the cross or the Virgin Mary would not be uncommon. Apparently a single-headed eagle style was in use up through the 11th century and beyond, but I’m having a hard time finding pictures. Military units in the Madrid Skylitzes are depicted with banners like this one below

View attachment 793689
View attachment 793690
At first, I assumed these to be simple unit standards with no real imperial significance but..
View attachment 793691
View attachment 793692
The color scheme seems to be in use immediately around the Emperor Theophilos both as a standard and on the imperial throne. Perhaps there is more to that.

The coinage of the middle Byzantine period has many crosses and some depictions of angels or Jesus along with the reigning emperor(s), but nothing of the eagles or the Chi-Rho people traditionally show as Byzantine insignia.

It’s very hard to draw flags and imagery for them as we would like to because half the time we don’t know and the other half of the time we are just projecting understandings of western insignia onto the empire. You may find something if you check out Constantine Porphyrogennitos’ Book of Ceremonies. It just occurred to me to email a specialist on this and see what they can say, so I’ll try and do that today and post responses.

For the book cover, I simply went with the idea that the airships would bear on their tails a stylised eagle from the traditional and ancient standard

 

[CHKeeley]

For the book cover, I simply went with the idea that the airships would bear on their tails a stylised eagle from the traditional and ancient standard

It is probably too late, but I also remembered this silk shroud belonging to Saint Germain from Auxerre which was likely produced in Constantinople around the year 1000 as a shroud for his new resting place (he lived much earlier, but his body was moved in the 11th century to a different burial spot). It depicts a single-headed eagle of the old Roman style, but definitely with a different artistic style than the classical Roman labarum.

Here's a good quality image of it from Wikipedia - could be useful if you haven't made the eagle already.

 

[Wendell]

I imagine the Byzantine flag developing overtime into a tricolor, like that of republican Spain, but with the Red and Purple switched.