Cosmas, John the Baptist and King David. Two leaden seals from Sigtuna, Sweden

Abstract

Two leaden seals were found in late 10th- early 12th century layers in Sigtuna, Sweden, in 1996. One carries the image and name of John the Baptist on the obverse and the Greek inscritption, "Lord, help thy servant Cosmas "on the reverse. It is of 11th Century Byzantine origin. The other seal carries the image of King David and also, probably, the name David on the obverse. The reverse
is unreadable. This seal very probably originate from one of the princes in Rus. The two seals, unique in Swedish archaeology, are interpreted as remnants of a looted or otherwise destroyed archive. They underline Sigtruna's central role in early Swedish history and the town's frequent contacts with Byzantium and Rus.