Pantelis Charalampakis1
A Contribution to Byzantine
Prosopography: Constantine Chage
Abstract: The paper discusses the career of Constantine Chage, a
prominent Byzantine military official from the 11th century, as at-
tested in literary and sigillographic sources. It contributes to the
debate over the dating of the events in which Chage was involved,
and comments on the possible origin of his family name. Present-
ing two of the seals issued by the official, the author suggests a pos-
sible reading of the inscriptions. 
Key words: Byzantium, prosopography, sigillography, administra-
tion, Constantine Chage
UDK: 94:929Hage
Prispevek k bizantinski prozopografiji: Konstantin Hage
Izvleček: Avtor članka razčleni kariero Konstantina Hageja, ugled-
nega bizantinskega vojaškega uradnika iz 11. stoletja, kakor se izriše
v književnih in sigilografskih virih. Pridruži se razpravi o dataciji
dogodkov, v katere je bil vpleten Hage, in komentira možni izvor
219
Moni tor  ISH (2017), XIX/1, 219–234
Izvirni znanstveni članek
Original scientific article
1 Dr. Pantelis Charalampakis is a post-doctoral researcher (supported by the
State Scholarship Foundation - IKY) at the Research Centre for Byzantine
and Post-Byzantine Art, Academy of Athens. E-mail: pantelcha@gmail.com.
2 Special acknowledgements are due to Prof. Kay Ehling, director of the
Staatliche Münzsammlung München, and to Dr. Emanuel Viorel Petac,
curator at the Romanian Academy, for granting permission to publish or
re-publish the images of Constantine’s seals (the abovementioned insti-
tutions  reserve  the  rights  on  these  images).  Likewise  to  Prof.  J.-Cl.
Cheynet, who kindly offered information about the BnF specimen.
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 219
njegovega priimka. Reproducira tudi dva pečata, ki ju je izdal Hage,
in predlaga, kako bi bilo mogoče prebrati napisa. 
Key words: Bizanc, prozopografija, sigilografija, uprava, Konstantin
Hage
0     0     0
Over  the  last  years,  researchers  have  increasingly  focused  on
Byzantine prosopography and administration, these two topics
being crucial for the understanding of Byzantine history in gen-
eral and social history in particular. Three major prosopographical
dictionaries have been published recently, aiming to cover – to-
gether with the older Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire
(mid-3rd to late 7th centuries) – all periods of Byzantine history: the
Prosopographie der mittelbyzantinischen Zeit (641–1025), the on-
line Prosopography of the Byzantine World (officially it covers the
period of 1025–1150, but in fact from the very late 10th to the mid-
13th centuries), and the Prosopographisches Lexikon der Palaiolo-
genzeit (1261–1453). However,  it  has  become  clear  to  scholars
working on prosopography and administration that the traditional
study of literary texts is no longer sufficient. None of these topics
can be properly investigated separately from sigillography – that
is, the study of Byzantine seals made of gold, silver or, as in most
cases, lead. Sigillography is very important to prosopographical
studies, as each seal provides information about its owner that
would otherwise remain unknown to us. It is thus inevitable that,
together with prosopography, sigillography should attract schol-
arly attention. 
Below we will attempt to present the career of Constantine (Kon-
stantinos) Chage, an 11th century Byzantine official, whose service
Pantelis Charalampakis
220
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 220
is documented not only through literary sources, but also through
the seals issued by Chage himself. 
Constantine Chage is clearly mentioned in only two instances by
two Byzantine chroniclers: Skylitzes and Kedrenos (who actually
copied from Skylitzes). First, we learn that in the year 1035, when in
charge of the thematicByzantine fleet of the Kibyrraiotai (a maritime
theme in south-eastern Asia Minor), he defeated the Arabs raiding
the Asia Minor coasts and captured five hundred of them, whom he
sent as prisoners to Constantinople.3 The second occurrence in the
sources tells the following story: On April 20, 1042, Michael V died
and the throne of Constantinople was taken over by two sisters, Zoe
and Theodora. As soon as the news reached Theophilos Erotikos, the
Byzantine general (strategos) of Cyprus, he rebelled against the Em-
presses. Erotikos was supported by the population of Cyprus (who
had suffered from the high taxation imposed by state officials) and
part of the island’s military forces. It seems that the palace was unable
to react, but on June 11 of the same year, Constantine IX married Zoe
and immediately decided to crush the rebellion. For this purpose he
called the patrikios (a high-ranking title) Constantine Chage, strate-
gos (general) of the Kibyrraiotai. Chage managed to defeat the rebels
and to capture Erotikos, whom he sent to the Emperor.4
The dating of the abovementioned events requires some commen-
tary. The first episode (the battle with the Arabs) has been placed in
1034 (Svoronos), 1035 (Lounghis; Savvides; Svoronos; Wassiliou), 1036
(Lounghis; Savvides), and even in 1037 (Lounghis; Savvides).5 Based
221
A Contribution to Byzantine Prosopography: Constantine Chage
3 Skylitzes, 1973, 398–399; Kedrenos, 1839, 514.
4 Skylitzes,  1973,  429;  Kedrenos,  1839,  549–550;  Zonaras,  1897,  624;
Glykas,1836,  594–595. The latter two authors do not mention Chage’s in-
volvement in the episode of Cyprus. 
5 Svoronos, 1959, 73, note 1; Savvides, 1996, 36; Savvides, 1998, no. 63; Was-
siliou, 2004, 409; Lounghis, 2010, 68, notes 508, 163.
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 221
on the succession of the events, the correct date seems to be the sum-
mer of 1035. Regarding the second case and the end of Chage’s service
in the theme of the Kibyrraiotai, we agree with Le Beau and Cheynet
that the incident on Cyprus took place not in 1043 (see below) but in
the late spring or midsummer of 1042,6 immediately after the ascen-
sion of the two Empresses to the throne of Constantinople. This is
confirmed by the sources which clearly state that Erotikos rebelled
when he learned of the Emperor’s death. One can hardly assume that
he would have waited for a whole year before acting against the central
government. Moreover, we know that in mid-1043, another person,
Constantine Kaballourios, served as general in the Kibyrraiotai theme
(and was eventually killed by the Rus’ while defending Constantino-
ple).7 By contrast, several scholars date the Cyprus incident to 1041
(Svoronos) or 1043 (Guilland, early; Gregory; Lounghis; Wassiliou).
Savvides chose not to participate in the discussion, by placing the
event in 1042–1043 and quoting all scholarly opinions up to that day
(in one of his previous studies, however, he had accepted early 1043).8
It should be noted that Savvides was wrong to write that I. Thurn (the
editor of Skylitzes’ chronicle) accepted the year 1043. Actually, Thurn
noted down the year 1043 for the next paragraph in the text, where an-
other episode is mentioned. Thus it is very likely that Chage was pro-
moted (see below) after his victory on Cyprus, but this could not have
happened immediately after the Cyprus events. It is therefore difficult
to accept that Chage left the Kibyrraiotai in June or July 1043. This
must have certainly occurred after mid-1042 but also before mid-1043. 
Pantelis Charalampakis
222
6 Le Beau, 1775, 28–29 (however, Le Beau erroneously calls Chage an ad-
miral of the imperial fleet, while he was actually the general of a thematic,
i.e. provincial fleet); Cheynet, 1990, 56, no. 59.
7 Skylitzes, 1973, 432–433; Kedrenos, 1839, 554.
8 Svoronos, 1959, 73, note 1; Guilland, 1971, 5; Gregory, 1991, 567; Wassiliou,
2004, 409; Lounghis, 2010, 51, 135, 163; Savvides, 1996, 35–36.
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 222
Chage’s career in the theme of the Kibyrraiotai is known to us
not  only  from  the  abovementioned  literary  sources,  but  also
through sigillographic evidence. One of his lead seals survives and
is kept today at the Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris (BnF
Zacos 90). This unpublished specimen9 previously belonged to the
private collection of George Zacos (1911–1983) and was donated
after its owner’s death to the BnF by his widow, Janet Zacos. Ac-
cording to the inscription, Constantine Chage was patrikios and
strategos of the Kibyrraiotai.
Thanks to the combined evidence from sigillographic and liter-
ary sources, we know who preceded and who succeeded Chage as
general of the Kibyrraiotai. George, a protospatharios (a middle-to-
high ranking title in State hierarchy at that time), whose seal is
dated within the first third of the 11th century, was most likely serv-
ing in the Kibyrraiotai theme before Chage.10 In 1043 Chage was
succeeded by Constantine Kaballourios, but the latter was killed in
battle soon afterwards.11
It seems that the story of Constantine Chage does not end here.
As we have already mentioned, he crushed the rebels on Cyprus in
the summer of 1042, but in the following summer (of 1043) another
person was appointed to serve as general of the Kibyrraiotai. What
happened to Constantine Chage? It is almost certain that after his
victorious mission on Cyprus he was promoted to general of the
223
A Contribution to Byzantine Prosopography: Constantine Chage
9 It will soon be published (with photos) by Prof. Cheynet, together with
other as yet unknown specimens from the BnF – Zacos collection.
10 This specimen appeared in the auction market: Münz Zentrum 75 (14–
16 April 1993), no. 1591 (= repetition of Müller (Solingen) 72 (23 Oct. 1992),
no. 696 = repetition of Künker 21 (16–18 March 1992), no. 1161). See also
SBS 1999, 144, 149; SBS, 1993, 191.
11 Skylitzes, 1973, 432–433; Kedrenos, 1839, 554. See also: Lounghis, 2010,
62, 164; Wassiliou, 2004, 409; Savvides, 1998, no. 64; Gfrörer, 1877, 281–282.
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 223
Straits (στρατηγὸς τοῦ Στενοῦ). The Straits, or the Stenon, was the
Thracian Bosporus, that is, the waters around Constantinople.12
This is evidenced by an unpublished lead seal kept at the State Nu-
mismatic  Collection  in  Munich  (Staatliche  Münzsammlung
München 750: diameter (total): 28x25 mm; diameter (field): 23 mm;
weight: 13.45 g; struck off centre).
Obverse: image of Theotokos in ‘Minimalorantengestus’; sigla; bor-
der of dots:
 ̅- ΘΥ̅
Μή(τη)ρ – Θ(εο)ῦ
Reverse: inscription in seven lines; border of dots:
Θ.̣|̅πΑ|̣ΑΘΥπΑ̣|̣ΕςτΗΑΙ|ςτρΑτΗΓ|τςτΕ.|ΧΑΓΕ
Θ(εοτό)κ(ε) β(οή)[θ(ει)] / Κων(σταντίνῳ) πα(τρικίῳ) / ἀνθυπά(τῳ) or
ἀνθυπά[τ(ῳ)] / βέστῃ καὶ / στρατηγ(ῷ) / τοῦ Στεν(οῦ) [τ(ῷ)] / Χαγέ
Θεοτόκε βοήθει Κωνσταντίνῳ, πατρικίῳ, ἀνθυπάτῳ, βέστῃ καὶ στρατηγῷ
τοῦ Στενοῦ τῷ Χαγέ
Pantelis Charalampakis
224
12 Ahrweiler, 1966, 122; Nesbitt, Oikonomides, 1996, 129.
© SMM (photo P. Charalampakis)
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 224
Mother  of  God,  aid  Constantine  Chage,  patrikios,  anthypatos,
vestes and strategos of the Straits.
It is obvious from his honorific titles that Constantine was a
high-ranking official around the mid-11th c. When exactly he was ap-
pointed as strategos (general) of the Stenon is impossible to say.
Unless we are missing a stage in his career, he must have been ap-
pointed as strategos of the Stenon immediately after his service
with the Kibyrraiotai. At some point during his service at the Stenon
he was promoted to the even higher title of vestarches, as attested
by a lead seal today kept at the Orghidan collection of the Roman-
ian Academy of Sciences in Bucharest (Orghidan 234: diameter
(total):  25  mm;  diameter  (field):  23  mm;  struck  off  centre;  cor-
roded).13 This specimen was part of the private collection of Con-
stantin Orghidan (1874–1944), who generously donated it in his will
to the Romanian Academy. 
Obverse: image of Theotokos (indeterminate type, but probably the
so-called ‘Minimalorantengestus’).
225
A Contribution to Byzantine Prosopography: Constantine Chage
13 Published in Laurent, 1952, no. 234.
© Romanian Academy (photo E. V. Petac)
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 225
Reverse: inscription in six lines; border of dots: 
Κ̣ςτΑ.̣|.Ι..|τΑρΧΗΚ̣.̣.|ςτρΑτΗ̣.|τςτ..|ΧΑΓΕ̣
Κωνστα[ν]/[τ]ίνῳ β[εσ]/τάρχῃ κα[ὶ] / στρατη[γ(ῷ)] / τοῦ Στ[ε]ν(οῦ)
[τ(ῷ)] / Χαγέ.
Κωνσταντίνῳ, βεστάρχῃ καὶ στρατηγῷ τοῦ Στενοῦ τῷ Χαγέ.
[Mother of God, aid] Constantine Chage, vestarches and strategos
of the Straits.
The first editor of the seal, V. Laurent, suggested a different read-
ing: Κωνστ(αν)/[τ]ίνῳ β[εσ]/τάρχῃ κα[ὶ] / στρα[τ]η[γῷ] / τοῦ Στ[ε]ν[οῦ]
/ [τῷ] Χαψέ.
Laurent  did  not  recognise  the  family  name  Chage  but  read
Chapse (Χαψέ) instead, a name which he took to be of Georgian ori-
gin. A closer examination of the inscription reveals the letters to form
the name ΧΑΓΕ, although Γ is half-destroyed and not entirely visible.
Moreover, at that time (mid-11th century) the title of vestarches was
superior to that of patrikios, and this supports the idea of promotion. 
Provided that the identification of the person is more than cer-
tain, as W. Seibt has also suggested,14 we may attribute to the same
individual the two seals struck from the same boulloterion and kept
today in the Dumbarton Oaks collection: they mention ‘Constantine
(without family name), vestarches, krites of the Velon, and strategos
of the Stenon’.
a. DO 47.2.255 (diameter (total): 22 mm; weight: 7.4 g; blank is
smaller than die; chipped; corroded).15
Pantelis Charalampakis
226
14 See W. Seibt’s reviews on Jordanov, Preslav (1993), in: Byzantinische
Zeitschrift 89 (1996), 137, and Laurent, Orghidan (1952), in: Jahrbuch der
Österreichischen Byzantinistik 53 (2003), 199.
15 Published in Nesbitt, Oikonomides, 1996, no. 73.1(a).
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 226
Obverse:  inscription  in  five  lines  (four  surviving):  [+ Κ(ύρι)ε
β(οή)θ(ει)] / [τ]ῷ σῷ δ[ού(λῳ)] / [Κ]ων(σταντίνῳ) βεσ/[τ]άρχ(ῃ) κ[ρ(ι)]/τ(ῇ) 
Reverse: inscription in four lines: [τ]ο[ῦ βή]/[λ]ου (καὶ) στρ[α]/
[τ]ηγῷ τ[οῦ] / [Σ]τενοῦ.
b. DO 58.106.3014 (diameter (total): 32 mm; weight: 26.68 g; cor-
roded).16
Obverse:  inscription in five lines: + Κ(ύρι)ε β(οή)θ(ει) / τῷ σῷ
δ[ού(λῳ)] / Κων(σταντίνῳ) βε[σ]/τάρχ(ῃ) κ[ρ(ι)]/τ(ῇ)
Reverse: inscription in four lines with decoration; border of dots:
[τ]οῦ βή/[λου] (καὶ) στρα/[τη]γῷ τοῦ / [Σ]τενοῦ.
Κύριε, βοήθει τῷ σῷ δούλῳ Κωνσταντίνῳ, βεστάρχῃ, κριτῇ τοῦ βήλου
καὶ στρατηγῷ τοῦ Στενοῦ.
Lord,  aid your  servant Constantine, vestarches,  judge of  the
Velon and general of the Straits. 
These  two seals mention Constantine’s  judicial office as  the
judge of the Velon (a civil office) together with a military office –
that of general; this unusual combination can be explained, accord-
ing to Nesbitt and Oikonomides, by the fact that ‘the strategos of
the Stenon had also the exclusive right to judge all affairs of the
Jews of Constantinople up until the very late XIIth century. But
other  trials were also held at  the Stenon. This explains why the
owner of the following seal, although a strategos, was also a judge
attached to the supreme tribunal of Constantinople.’17 To this we
may add that the title of vestarches was often (but certainly not ex-
clusively) awarded to judicial officials. A Byzantine legal document
provides further evidence on the judicial tasks of the strategos of
227
A Contribution to Byzantine Prosopography: Constantine Chage
16 Published in Nesbitt, Oikonomides, 1996, no. 73.1(b). 
17 Nesbitt, Oikonomides, 1996, 129.
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 227
the Stenon: ‘συνηθείας οὔσης τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις δικάζεσθαι παρὰ μόνῳ τῷ
στρατηγῷ τοῦ στενοῦ’ (‘it is customary for the Jews to be judged by
the general of the Straits exclusively’).18 In this context it is very
likely that Chage exercised judicial tasks from the very beginning
of his appointment as strategos of the Stenon, but he chose not to
mention this on the seal from the Orghidan collection (that would
have been difficult in any case, since the obverse was already occu-
pied by a Holy Person and there was not much space left on the re-
verse; by contrast, the other two specimens that may be attributed
to him bear inscriptions on both sides). It is difficult to say, though,
which boulloterion (the one of the Orghidan specimen or the one
of the DO specimens) was earlier.
The  early  12th century  Latin  chronicle  known  as Chronicon
Anonymi Barensis contains a reference to a person called Chagea
(*Χαγέα ?), sent in the autumn of 1045 to Southern Italy in order to
accompany there the newly appointed katepano (governor) and
then return to the capital with the retired one: ‘Mill. XLV. Ind. XIII.
Et venit Chagea, & Catapanus Palatino in Bari. Et Argiro ibit cum
Chagea Constantinopolim cum suis, & ipse Catapanus remansit
Bari.’19 This Chagea must have been a confidant to the Emperor,
and our Constantine Chage, a very experienced and skilled official
promoted to service in the capital, could well be the one who un-
dertook this important mission. Unfortunately, no other chronicle
related  to  this  text  (the Annales Barenses and  the  chronicle  of
Lupus Protospatharius) includes this piece of information.
For a better grasp of this short study on Constantine Chage,
family names should be considered as well. It is true that Laurent
Pantelis Charalampakis
228
18 Rhalles, Potles, 1852, 41. Cf. Peira, in Zepos, Zepos, 1931, 214 (51.10).
19Chronicon Barensis, 150–151. On the events accompanying the change of
the katepano, see also Cheynet, 2007, 155–157; Von Falkenhausen, 1978, 98.
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 228
should have read ΧΑΓΕ instead of ΧΑΨΕ, as Seibt pointed out, but
the family name Chapsas (and not Chapse, as Laurent read) really
did exist. It is documented on seals issued from a single boullote-
rion and found in the area of Preslav, Bulgaria. All four specimens
were published by I. Jordanov20 and there is no doubt about the
reading of the Ψ, while the name may be construed21 as ΧΑΨ(Ι),
ΧΑΨ(Ε), and ΧΑΨ(Α), the last form being, in our view, the best op-
tion. Indeed, the family name Chapsas is registered in the PLP (nos.
30739–30748) and documented from the second half of the 13th cen-
tury to the 15th century in Trabzon (Trebizond). Interestingly, Tre-
bizond  yields  a  couple  of  similar  names  as  well  (Chapsaba,
Chapsonomitas) (PLP, nos. 30738 and 30749 respectively).
Most likely, the name Chage (attested as Χαχέ / Chache in one
of Skylitzes’ manuscripts) is not of Greek origin, but no explanation
has been suggested so far. It may be of Arabic, Persian, or other Asi-
atic origin. This is – perhaps – reinforced by the case of Chase (a
misspelled form of Chage?) in the mid-10th c., a protospatharios of
Saracen (i.e. Arabic) origin documented by Constantine VII Por-
phyrogennetos, the Continuator of Theophanes, and other literary
sources.22 Moreover, it remains unclear whether there is any relation
between the family names Chage (Χαγέ) and Chageres (Χαγερῆς),
the latter registered in the Athonite documents of the 14th c., but we
believe that these two names are of different origins.
In fact, apart from the case of our Constantine, there is little evidence
of this mysterious family name. The earliest reference comes from the
229
A Contribution to Byzantine Prosopography: Constantine Chage
20 Jordanov, 2009, nos. 2077–2080. 
21 As W. Seibt suggested in his review of Jordanov, Corpus 2 (2006), in:
Byzantinische Zeitschrift 101 (2008), 823, the Ψ is not followed by an I
(iota) but by an abbreviation mark.
22 Porphyrogennetos, 242 (chapter 50); Theophanes Continuatus, 388. See
also PmbZ, no. 21238 and the comments in Jenkins, 1962, 193.
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 229
mid-11th century register of the area of Thebes in central Greece: ‘Διὰ
Βασιλ(είου) υἱοῦ Χαγὲ ἀπὸ χω(ρίου) Ἀνύσου’  and  ‘Διὰ Πολητ(ιανῆς)
χ(ήρας) θυγατρ(ὸς) Βασιλ(είου) υἱοῦ Χαγὲ ἀπὸ χω(ρίου) Ἀνύσου’.23 There
is no indication in the text that this Basil (Basileios) Chage was a
prominent landlord. The next reference comes from very far away:
late medieval Cyprus. Nine  individuals bearing  the  family name
Chage are registered in an obituary published by Darrouzès more
than half a century ago. The earliest is a certain Basileios Chage, a
landowner who passed away on June 1, 1348. He originated from, or
resided in, the village of Loimon on Western Cyprus, close to Paphos.
He bequeathed to the Monastery of the Priests (μονὴ τῶν Ἱερέων) a
nearby vineyard as well as some domestic animals.24 The next persons
on the list by chronological order are the nun Theodoule and her fa-
ther, whose first name was not registered. According to the document,
Theodoule  passed  away  on  July  16,  1382, while  residing  at  the
monastery of  Saint Georgios Koudounas.25 Despite  our  efforts,  it
was not possible to locate and/or identify any monastery with this
name on Cyprus. It is very likely, though, that Chage, her father, re-
mained on Cyprus while she resided at the monastery of Saint Geor-
gios Koudounas, situated on the island of Prinkipos (Prince’s Island,
modern-day Büyükada),  the only monastery of  this name. Only  a
few years  later, on December 31,  1387,  a  certain monk Gerasimos,
son of Chage, passed away. As was the case with Basileios, his place
of origin was the village of Loimon on Western Cyprus.26 Another
Basileios Chage,  together with his wife Elene, donated on May 3,
1397, an ox to the Monastery of the Priests.27 The latest reference to
Pantelis Charalampakis
230
23 Svoronos, 1959, 14, 17–18. 
24 Darrouzès, 1951, 48, f. 232; PLP, no. 30341.
25 Darrouzès, 1951, 53, f. 261; PLP, no. 30339.
26 Darrouzès, 1951, 34, f. 107; PLP, no. 30342.
27 Darrouzès, 1951, 43, f. 208; PLP, no. 30340.
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 230
the Chage  family dates  from 1407, when (on March 29)  the monk
Theodoretos, son of a certain Chage, passed away.28 There is no clear
indication of his place of origin, but a reference to the village of Loi-
mon in the preceding passage might be strong evidence. Besides,
more members bearing the name of Chage are linked to this village. 
There is no doubt that the abovementioned manuscript pro-
vides valuable information about the Chage family. But some ques-
tions still remain unanswered: what was the connection between
the family from Western Cyprus and the individual from Thebes?
Was Constantine Chage related to the Theban or to the Cypriot
branch? What was the origin of the name Chage and of the family
itself? For the time being there is no answer to these issues. Yet the
Paris manuscript might be useful again: a certain Tzerar Chantze
(followed by another name, perhaps a nickname, which is now miss-
ing) was married in the monastery of Saint Eutychios on Cyprus in
the mid-14th c.29 His first name is of Western European origin (Ger-
ard?),30 while his family name resembles that of Chage. It is impor-
tant to note here that a similar name, Chantzales (see PLP, no. 30587,
early 15th c.), was very likely of Turkish origin. Would this mean that
Chage is a Hellenised form of Chantze? Moreover, is there any re-
lation between  the names Chage and Chantze and  the Turkish
words ‘hoca’ or ‘hacı’? If so, then we should look for either Turkish
or Arabic origins. Even more useful is the information provided by
Ibn Bibi. According to his work, one Pervane, of Iranian origin, was
vizier in the court of the Seljuks of Rum in Asia Minor in the mid-
13th c. This Pervane was somehow allied to ‘the son of Hāğā’, the lat-
ter name pronounced as Χaγa and definitely related to the name
231
A Contribution to Byzantine Prosopography: Constantine Chage
28 Darrouzès, 1951, 40, f. 186; PLP, no. 30343.
29 Darrouzès, 1951, 48, f. 234; PLP, no. 30590.
30 Perhaps a remnant of the Lusignan era of Cyprus?
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 231
Chage (Χαγε). This person is clearly stated in the text to have been
of Turkish ancestry.31
The  absence  of  information  about  the  Chage  family  from
Byzantine literature and other sources (seals, inscriptions) sug-
gests that the family may not have been among the key players in
either military or civil aristocracy of 11th century Byzantium and/or
later,  although  this assumption might be changed by new evi-
dence. Apparently Constantine Chage was a skilful person who
successfully fulfilled his duties in every position he held and thus
ascended the hierarchy as a self-made man. Hopefully, more seals
issued by this remarkable personage or other members of the fam-
ily will be discovered, to shed more light upon his impressive ca-
reer and his family.
Bibliography
AHRWEILER, H. (1966): Byzance et la Mer, Paris.
CHEYNET, J.-CL. (1990): Pouvoir et contestations à Byzance (963–
1210), Paris.
CHEYNET, J.-CL. (2007): La place des catépans d’Italie dans la hié-
rarchie militaire et sociale de Byzance’, Νέα Ρώμη/Nea Rhōmē. 4,
143–161.
CHRONICON BARENSIS: Muratori, L. A.  (ed.  1724), Chronicon
ignoti civis Barensis sive Lupis Protospatae, cum notis Camilli Pe-
regrini, in: Rerum Italicarum Scriptores. Vol. 5, Milan.
DARROUZÈS, J. (1951): “Un obituaire chypriote: le Parisinus Grae-
cus 1588”, Κυπριακαί Σπουδαί. 15, 25–62.
JENKINS, R. (ed. 1962): Constantine Porphyrogenitus, De Admini-
strando Imperio. Vol. 2 (Commentary), London.
Pantelis Charalampakis
232
31 Ibn Bibi, 288–289.
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 232
GFRÖRER, A. FR. (1877): Byzantinische Geschichten. Vol. 3, Graz.
GLYKAS: Bekker, I. (ed. 1836), Michaelis Glycae Annales, Bonn.
GREGORY, T. E. (1991): “Cyprus”, in: The Oxford Dictionary of By-
zantium. Vol. 1, New York, Oxford.
GUILLAND, R. (1971): “Contribution à la prosopographie de l’Empire
Byzantin. Les patrices sous le règne de Constantin IX Monomaque
(1042–1054)”, Zbornik Radova Vizantološkog Instituta. 13, 1–25.
IBN BIBI: Duda, H. W. (transl. 1959), Die Seltshukengeschichte des
Ibn Bībī, Kopenhagen.
JORDANOV, I. (2009): Corpus of Byzantine seals from Bulgaria.
Vol. 3, Sofia.
KEDRENOS: Bekker, I. (ed. 1839), Georgius Cedrenus. Vol. 2, Bonn.
LAURENT, V. (1952): La collection C. Orghidan, Paris.
LE BEAU, CH. (1775): Histoire du Bas-Empire. Vol. 17, Paris.
LOUNGHIS, T. (2010): Byzantium in the Eastern Mediterranean:
Safeguarding East Roman Identity (407–1204), Nicosia.
NESBITT, J., OIKONOMIDES, N. (1996): Catalogue of Byzantine
seals at Dumbarton Oaks and in the Fogg Museum of Art. Vol. 3,
Dumbarton Oaks, Washington D.C.
PLP: Trapp, E., et al. (ed. 1976–1995), Prosopographisches Lexikon
der Palaiologenzeit (Vols. 1–14; Appendices 1–2), Vienna.
PMBZ: Winkelmann, F., et al. (ed. 1998–2013), Prosopographie der
mittelbyzantinischen Zeit, Abteilung I: 641–867 (Vols. 1–6); Abteilung
II: 867–1025 (Vols. 1–8), Berlin, New York.
PORPHYROGENNETOS: Moravcsik, G., Jenkins, R. (ed. 1967), Con-
stantine Porphyrogenitus, De Administrando Imperio, Dumbarton
Oaks, Washington D. C.
RHALLES, G., POTLES, M. (1852): Σύνταγμα των θείων και ιερών κα-
νόνων. Vol. 1, Athens.
233
A Contribution to Byzantine Prosopography: Constantine Chage
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 233
SAVVIDES, A. (1996): “Ο Κωνσταντίνος Χαγέ και το “έθνος των Κυ-
πρίων” του Σκυλίτζη. Προσωπογραφικό σημείωμα”, Επετηρίς Κέντρου Με-
λετών Ιεράς Μονής Κύκκου. 3, 35–38.
SAVVIDES, A. (1998): “The secular prosopography of the Byzantine
maritime theme of the Carabisians/Cibyrraeots”, ByzantinoSlavica.
59/1, 24–45.
SBS (1993, 1999): Studies in Byzantine Sigillography. Vols. 3, 6.
SKYLITZES: Thurn, I. (ed. 1973), Ioannis Scylitzae Synopsis Histo-
riarum, Berlin, New York.
SVORONOS, N. (1959): ‘Recherches sur le cadastre byzantin et la
fiscalité aux XIe et XIIe siècles: le cadastre de Thèbes’, Bulletin de
Correspondance Hellénique. 83, 1–145.
THEOPHANES CONTINUATUS: Bekker, I. (ed. 1838), Chronograp-
hia, Bonn.
VON  FALKENHAUSEN,  V.  (1978):  La dominazione bizantina
nell’Italia meridionale dal IX all’XI secolo, Bari.
WASSILIOU, A.-K. (2004): ‘Beamte des Themas der Kibyrraioten’,
in: Tabula Imperii Byzantini 8 (Lykien und Pamphylien).  Vol.  1,
Wien, 407–413.
ZEPOS, I., ZEPOS, P. (1931): Jus Graecoromanum. Vol. 4, Athens.
ZONARAS: Büttner-Wobst, Th. (ed. 1897), Ioannis Zonarae Epito-
mae Historiarum, Libri XIII–XVIII, Bonn.
Pantelis Charalampakis
234
09 - PantelisCharalampakis  26. 09. 2017  15:49  Page 234