The coins of Theodosius, son of Maurice, are some of the scarcer issues in the Byzantine series. Silver coins of the young ruler are available from time to time, while only three gold solidi of Theodosius are known to exist. The feature coin of this article (pictured above), a sole portrait Theodosius solidus of Carthage, was sold by Heritage Auctions in January of 2021 for nearly $100,000. Graded NGC NGC MS 5/5 – 5/5 Star, that coin is one of the most incredible ancients in existence, and could have sold for a quarter million in my opinion.

Theodosius was born in 583, a year after his father’s ascension to the throne. Through his mother Constantine, he was also the grandson of the Maurice’s predecessor Tiberius Constantine. In 590, at the age of seven, he was proclaimed co-emperor.

Above: Bronze follis (8 Pentanummia) of Theodosius from Cherson, Crimea – one of the rarest Byzantine mints. Like his silver coins of Carthage, Theodosius (on the reverse, next to the H) shares the coin with his parents. This example sold by Leu Numismatik, July 2022, 340 CHF.

But fate did not allow Theodosius to succeed his father and grandfather on the Byzantine throne. Though an excellent commander, Maurice was notoriously stingy with both soldiers’ pay and urban welfare distribution, two terrible omens for a Byzantine emperor. One of his subordinates in the Balkan army, Phocas, rose up against him in the autumn of 602. Phocas quickly found support among soldiers resentful of their perceived low compensation and tough standards of discipline, and also among the people of Constantinople. Maurice fled the capital, sending his son, now 19 years of age, to the Persian court to seek assistance in defeating the rebellion. However, Theodosius was captured by Phocas’ men and executed just days after the rest of his family met the same fate.

A rare silver half-siliqua of Theodosius minted at Carthage ca. 597-602, shortly before his murder. For late 6th-century Byzantine coinage, where the style is usually quite primitive, Theodosius’ youthful bust on the reverse is quite impressive.

But as occurs several times throughout Byzantine history, rumors spread that the prince had not actually been captured and that Phocas’ men had executed the wrong man. Persian king Khusrau II launched a war against Byzantium with the pretext of avenging his friend Maurice, even presenting a young man who claimed to be Theodosius. This pseudo-Theodosius was taken quite seriously by many, even receiving a formal coronation by the Nestorian Patriarch of Ctesiphon. Accompanying the Persian army on its invasion of Byzantine Syria, pseudo-Theodosius proved convincing enough to convince the Byzantine garrison at Theodosiopolis to surrender. His whereabouts after 610 are unknown.