[1] In the Chronicon Venetum by John the Deacon, it is mentioned that Maria was the daughter of a noble patrician, called Argyropoulos, who was a descendant of the imperial family.
This made her the second cousin of the emperors Basil II and Constantine VIII, likewise great-grandchildren of Romanos I, through another of his daughters, Helene.
[3] Maria brought to her husband great dowry, including a palace in the imperial capital, where they lived after the wedding.
Before they left Constantinople, Maria Argyra was already pregnant and begged the emperor for pieces of the holy relics of Saint Barbara, which were brought to Venice by her.
Half a century after her death, she was criticised by Peter Damian for her use of a fork for eating (forks being unfamiliar in Western Europe at the time), perfumes, and dew for bathing, although these criticisms were later mistakenly believed to be aimed at another Byzantine princess, the dogaressa Theodora Doukaina.