Sale: CNG 61, Lot: 2263. Estimate $750.  Closing Date: Wednesday, 25 September 2002.  Sold For $880. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

LEO III, the Isaurian, with CONSTANTINE V. 720-741 AD. AV Solidus (4.44 gm). Struck circa 737-741 AD. Constantinople mint. d NO LEO-N PA MUL, crowned facing bust of Leo, holding globus cruciger and akakia / d N CONST-ANTINUM, crowned facing bust of Constantine, holding globus cruciger and akakia. DOC III 3f; BN 2-5; SB 1504. Superb EF, tiny rim nick on reverse. Fine style. ($750)

Leo III promoted the iconoclasts, a group which believed that adoration of icons and other physical representations of religious subjects was wrong. To enforce their beliefs, the iconoclasts destroyed many works of art during their tenure.