Anonymous Follis c. 976 - 1035

Curator: This, believe it or not, is an "Anonymous Follis", currently residing at the Harvard Art Museums. It's a Byzantine coin. The anonymous part gets me, though. Imagine making something and not signing it. Editor: It feels weighty, doesn't it? The patina is beautiful, a story etched in its surface. One side shows a haloed figure, worn but discernible. It exudes solemnity, like a fragment of a forgotten empire. Curator: Right? The halo. It's not just decoration. It's a signifier, a visual language asserting authority and divinity, speaking to a deeply religious society. Editor: And the reverse, covered in text... It's a grid, a network, a matrix. Each letter contained, organized, hinting at layers of meaning waiting to be decoded. What secrets does it hold? Curator: It's a symbol of power in the hands of the anonymous. It's quite extraordinary. To think how many hands it passed through is overwhelming. Editor: Makes you wonder about the artist's intention, doesn't it? Did they crave recognition? Or was it a deliberate act of humility, the art speaking louder than a name ever could? It makes you consider the artist's intention when they created the work.