ἀνθρώποισι πᾶσι μέτεστι γινώσκειν ἑωυτοὺς καὶ σωφρονεῖν.
In this post we present selected parts of the very interesting paper titled “Greco-Roman and Byzantine views on obesity“, by Niki Papavramidou & Helen Christopoulou-Aletra. Continue reading “Graeco-Roman and ‘Byzantine’ views on obesity”
Egypt under Greek and Roman rule (from c. 332 BC) was a diverse place, its population including Egyptians, Greeks, Jews, Romans, Nubians, Arabs, and others. In this post we attempt a short presentation on how Graeco-Roman Egypt functioned as a diverse multiethnic, multilingual society and of the legal and political frameworks within which this diversity was organised and negotiated. Continue reading “Ethnic identities and women’s position in Graeco-Roman Egypt”
After centuries of denials and evasions, the debate over the nature of Roman identity in Byzantium is finally picking up. The Byzantines’ view of their own Roman identity was a national one, making Byzantium effectively a nation-state. Continue reading “Roman identity in ‘Byzantium’”
Byzantine tendencies toward urbanization and feudalization and the concomitant economic development in the provinces in the eleventh and twelfth centuries certainly affected contemporary culture, although different sectors of society reacted in distinct ways. Ιn Byzantium the peasantry and craft-working classes have left few traces. Continue reading “Popular and Aristocratic cultural trends in the Eastern Roman (‘Byzantine’) Empire”
After Constantine the Great established the imperial library, other types of libraries started to appear as well. Continue reading “The Libraries in the Eastern Roman (‘Byzantine’) Empire (330-1453 AD)”
The cultural and religious crisis through which the Roman Empire was passing in the fourth century is one of the most significant events in the history of the world. The old pagan culture came into collision with Christianity, which received official recognition during the reign of Constantine at the beginning of the fourth century and was declared the dominant State religion by Theodosius the Great at the end of that same century. Continue reading “Constantine the Great and the significance of his reign”
