Paschal did not give up hope, however: he promised John a hundred pounds of gold in exchange for the papacy.
Sergius protested, saying he had made no such agreement; when John did not give up his demands, he took the holy vessels of St. Peter's Basilica, claiming they were all he possessed.
The local populace, becoming increasingly angry at the exarch, rallied to the pope and paid the sum demanded.
[1] In 691 the Byzantine emperor Justinian II sent Pope Sergius a series of canons approved by the Quinisext Council for his signature.
[3] The entire affair was an embarrassment to Byzantine authority in Italy, and undermined John's power.