Byzantium & Friends
Byzantium & Friends
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158. The Book of Daniel, the Four Kingdoms, and imperial eschatology, with Chris Bonura
A conversation with Christopher Bonura (Mount St. Mary's University) about the apocalyptic tradition of identifying the Four Kingdoms prophesied in the Book of Daniel. Which one was the Roman empire?…
157. Julian Augustus and the dream of a Platonic Roman empire, with Jeremy Swist
A conversation with Jeremy Swist (Michigan State University) on the emperor Julian (361-363 AD) and how he tried to combine his love of philosophy with ruling the Roman empire. We talk about why…
156. The Menologion of Basil II, with Charlie Kuper
A conversation with Charlie Kuper (University of Tennessee, Knoxville) about the Menologion of Basil II, a lavishly illustrated manuscript pairing brief notices about the saints with images of them…
155. The Dumbarton Oaks Medieval Library, with Nicole Eddy
A conversation with Nicole Eddy (Dumbarton Oaks) about the Dumbarton Oaks Medieval Library, one of the most important publishing ventures of recent times when it comes to medieval texts and…
154. How and why we teach Roman history, with Beth Digeser
A conversation with Beth Digeser (University of California, Santa Barbara) about pedagogy, specifically about what we are hoping to accomplish by teaching Roman history. We talk about the limits of…
153. Three heresiologists of the twelfth century: Zigabenos, Kamateros, and Choniates, with Alessandra Buccosi, Niccolò Zorzi, Marco Fanelli, and Ottavia Mazzon
A conversation with Alessandra Bucossi (Ca' Foscari University of Venice) and Niccolò Zorzi (University of Padua) on three heresiological texts of the twelfth century, the challenges of publishing…
152. Heresiology in the twelfth century, with Alessandra Bucossi
A conversation with Alessandra Bucossi (Ca' Foscari University) on the preoccupation with heresy in the twelfth century, which resulted in the production of a number of massive anti-heretical…
151. East Roman archaeology: goals and challenges, with Marica Cassis
A conversation with Marica Cassis (University of Calgary) about the archaeological study of the east Roman world and how it interfaces with traditional, text-based historiography. What can…
150. Why were pseudo-Arabic inscriptions placed on churches in Greece?, with Alicia Walker
A conversation with Alicia Walker (Bryn Mawr College) on the pseudo-Arabic inscriptions (or pseudo-kufic) that appear on a number of tenth- and eleventh-century churches in Greece, most notably at…
149. The Classical Near East, with Kevin van Bladel
A conversation with Kevin van Bladel (Yale University) on his proposal regarding "The Classical Near East," a constellation of fields defined by the classical literary traditions of medieval Near…
148. The survival of esoteric academic fields, with Jana Matuszak and Petra Goedegebuure
A conversation with Jana Matuszak, a Sumerologist, and Petra Goedegebuure, a Hittitologist (both University of Chicago) about the prospects for the survival of smaller academic disciplines that…
147. How the ninety percent experienced the Roman economy, with Kim Bowes
A conversation with Kim Bowes (University of Pennsylvania) about her recent book, Surviving Rome: The Economic Lives of the Ninety Percent (Princeton University Press 2025), which presents a…
146. Ezana of Aksum, the first Christian king in Africa, with Aaron Butts
A conversation with Aaron Butts (University of Hamburg) on the conversion to Christianity of Ezana, the fourth-century king of Aksum (in modern Ethiopia and Eritrea). "Conversion" is a conventional…
145. Seeing into the minds of others, with Ellen Muehlberger
A conversation with Ellen Muehlberger (University of Michigan) about how some people in late antiquity tried to model, confirm, or interpret what they thought was going on in the minds of others. We…
144. The two millennia of Roman history, with Ed Watts
A conversation with Ed Watts (University of California, San Diego) about his recent book, The Romans: A 2,000 Year History (Basic Books 2025), which covers two millennia of Roman history, down to…
143. Coping with earthquakes in the churches of Constantinople, with Mark Roosien
A conversation with Mark Roosien (Yale University) about the earthquakes that struck Constantinople in late antiquity and about how emperors and the people of the City reacted to them in the moment.…
142. The decline of animal sacrifice in the late Roman world, with James Rives
A conversation with James Rives (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) on the history of ancient animal sacrifice in the Roman world. We focus on its decline and eventual demise in the third…
141. The Renaissance and Byzantium are characters in the same play, with Ada Palmer
A conversation with Ada Palmer (University of Chicago) about the invention of the idea of the Italian Renaissance and the functions that it serves in the western historical imagination. "Byzantium"…
140. A newly identified portrait of Konstantinos XI Palaiologos (1448-1453), with Anastasia Koumousi
A conversation with Anastasia Koumousi (Director of the Ephorate of Antiquities of Achaea, Greek Ministry of Culture) about the recently identified portrait of the last emperor of the Romans in…
139. Captivity and enslavement in the late medieval Aegean, with Alasdair Grant
A conversation with Alasdair Grant (University of Hamburg) about the captivity and enslavement that many Greeks (Romaioi) experienced in the late medieval period, a period of state collapse during…
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Byzantium & Friends has published 158 episodes since September 2019, covering topics in Christianity, Courses.
Byzantium & Friends is currently highly active with new episodes every 2 weeks. Average episode length is 1h 3m.
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