Semissis of Aelia Pulcheria

In the pictureThe reverse of a single gold coin lies on blue-gray cloth. A laurel wreath encircles a cross at the center, with a round ornament at the top of the wreath and a tied knot at the bottom. Below it are the letters CONOB, and a small star is stamped to the right. At the left edge a small hole has been pierced, showing black inside. The coin is not a perfect circle but slightly oblong, 14.2 × 15.4 mm, with an uneven edge.

BackgroundA semissis weighed half as much as the standard gold coin, the solidus. Aelia Pulcheria was the sister of the Eastern Roman emperor Theodosius II; she led the government on behalf of the young emperor and later became empress herself. The date the museum gives, 415–453, overlaps with the years she was active. CONOB is a mark meaning pure gold made in Constantinople. The hole on the left appears to be a trace of someone threading the coin on a cord to wear it, in which case it was once used as jewelry rather than money. It is the earliest of the four Byzantine gold coins on this site, and the obverse is not shown in the photograph.

Puzzle tipThere are only two colors, gold and blue-gray, so 24 pieces is a good fit. Place the cross and CONOB pieces first, in the center and at the bottom, then join the laurel leaf pieces around them following their curve. The black hole on the left, the round ornament at the top and the small star at the lower right are reference points for left and right, top and bottom. The side where the letters CONOB run straight across is the bottom. Fill in the evenly woven cloth pieces last.