Hugh Elton
Trent University, Ancient History & Classics, Faculty Member
Regions and regionalism have been staples of historical analysis for the Greek world for a very long time. What is meant by a region, however, is not always obvious. The contributions in this volume seek to address the question of... more
Regions and regionalism have been staples of historical analysis for the Greek world for a very long time. What is meant by a region, however, is not always obvious. The contributions in this volume seek to address the question of defining regions and working out the implications of regionalism along different dimensions of analysis for Asia Minor in the Hellenistic and Roman periods. Looking at culture, coinage, political institutions, the papers explore different markers of regional identity, consider ways in which these identities may remain stable or change over time, review the character of the interaction between regional entities and hegemonic powers, and challenge the usefulness in some cases of regional analysis. Questions of ethnicity are also addressed. This volume will be of interest to historians working in Asia Minor and also to anyone concerned with the conceptual questions around regions and regionalism in the Mediterranean world
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Contents: Introduction, Geoffrey Greatrex. Part I Homiletics and Disputation: Medicine in transition: Christian adaptation in the later 4th-century East, Wendy Mayer Le De obitu Theodosii d'Ambroise (395): une refonte des genres... more
Contents: Introduction, Geoffrey Greatrex. Part I Homiletics and Disputation: Medicine in transition: Christian adaptation in the later 4th-century East, Wendy Mayer Le De obitu Theodosii d'Ambroise (395): une refonte des genres litteraires dans le creuset du sermon politique, Tiphaine Moreau Jerome's De viris illustribus and new genres for Christian disputation in late antiquity, Colin Whiting The transformation of heresiology in the Panarion of Epiphanius of Cyprus, Young Richard Kim. Part II Ecclesiastical Genres: Adapter le genre du breviaire plutot qu'ecrire une histoire ecclesiastique? Enquete sur le choix historiographique de Liberatus de Carthage, Philippe Blaudeau The emergence of papal decretals: the evidence of Zosimus of Rome, Geoffrey D. Dunn Collectio Avellana and the unspoken Ostrogoths: historical reconstruction in the 6th century, Dana Iuliana Viezure Elements apologetiques chez Victor de Vita: exemple d'un genre litteraire en transition, Eric Fournier Diabolical motivations: the devil in ecclesiastical histories from Eusebius to Evagrius, Sophie Lunn-Rockliffe. Part III Visual Genres: Producing distinction: aristocratic and imperial representation in the Constantinian Age, Mariana Bodnaruk Declaring victory, concealing defeat? Continuity and change in imperial coinage of the Roman West, c.383-c.408, Christopher Doyle The importance of being Stilicho: diptychs as a genre, Alice Christ. Part IV Procopius and Literature in the Sixth-Century Eastern Empire: Power, taste and the outsider: Procopius and the Buildings revisited, Federico Montinaro Belisarius' second occupation of Rome and Pericles' last speech, Charles Pazdernik Technical writing, genre and aesthetic in Procopius, Elodie Turquois A Justinianic debate across genres on the state of the Roman Republic, Marion Kruse. Part V Technical Genres: The genre and purpose of military manuals in late antiquity, Conor Whately Les contrats de travail dans l'Antiquite tardive: evolution du droit, evolution d'un genre?, Christel Freu Natio, gens, provincialis, and civis: geographical terminology and personal identity in late antiquity, Ralph W. Mathisen. Part VI Other Literary Genres: The rhetoric of Varietas and epistolary encyclopedism in the Variae of Cassiodorus, Shane Bjornlie Byzantine world chronicles: identities of genre, Sergei Mariev Himerius and the personalization of the monody, Edward Watts. Indexes.
Research Interests: Art and Late Antiquity
The third season of the Avkat Archaeological Project (AAP), in Mecitözü İlçesi, Çorum İli, began in mid-July 2009, with a team of 30 working for 4 weeks. The project focuses on the archaeology of the Late Roman, Byzantine, and ... Ottoman... more
The third season of the Avkat Archaeological Project (AAP), in Mecitözü İlçesi, Çorum İli, began in mid-July 2009, with a team of 30 working for 4 weeks. The project focuses on the archaeology of the Late Roman, Byzantine, and ... Ottoman eras around the village of Beyözü (earlier ...
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At Domuztepe in eastern Cilicia, about 12 km north of Castabala and 55 km inland, there is a late Roman country house. With no inscriptions recovered from the site, we know little about the owners. Although the house lay on the river... more
At Domuztepe in eastern Cilicia, about 12 km north of Castabala and 55 km inland, there is a late Roman country house. With no inscriptions recovered from the site, we know little about the owners. Although the house lay on the river Pyramus, it lay above the point where the river was navigable. Nonetheless, the house owners were able to buy pottery imported from other parts of the Mediterranean world. From western Anatolia they received Phocaean red slip tableware and LR 3 amphorae, while from North Africa they received more red slipped tableware.1 The imported ceramics thus show links between Cilicia (here broadly defined as the area between the river Melas in the west and the Amanus mountains in the east) and the Mediterranean economy as a whole during the fourth to seventh centuries AD. Domuztepe was not simply a residential site, but was also involved in the production of olive oil. It had a large oil press with a tank that seems too big for domestic needs (1.85 m in diameter, ...
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Research Interests: Christianity, History, Ancient History, Classics, Politics, and 5 moreLate Antiquity, Roman Empire, Empire, Frontier, and Emperor
Goksu Arkeoloji Projesi 2002-2006 yillari arasinda Mut’un kuzeyinde, Alahan’da gerceklestirilmistir. Bu projenin parcasi olarak Alahan modern yerlesimi detayli olarak incelenmistir. Bu calisma sonucunda burada bir kucuk yerlesim, belki de... more
Goksu Arkeoloji Projesi 2002-2006 yillari arasinda Mut’un kuzeyinde, Alahan’da gerceklestirilmistir. Bu projenin parcasi olarak Alahan modern yerlesimi detayli olarak incelenmistir. Bu calisma sonucunda burada bir kucuk yerlesim, belki de bir sehir oldugu anlasilmistir. Bu yerlesim kuleli bir sur tarafindan korunmaktaydi. Bu cevrili alanda uc, belki bir tane de nekropol’de olmak uzere dort kilise bulunmustur. Yerlesimden elde edilen seramik hellenistik donem ile Ortacag arasindaki tum donemlere isaret etmis ama agirlikli olarak Roma donemine ait olduklari tesbit edilmistir. Mimari ise agirlikli olarak M.S. 5. ve 6. yuzyillara isaret etmekle beraber M.S. erken 2 ve 3. yuzyillara ait yapilar da gorulmustu
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This paper develops a regional dataset of change at 381 settlements for Lycia-Pamphylia in southwest Anatolia (Turkey) from volume 8 of the Tabula Imperii Byzantini-a compilation of historical toponyms and archaeological evidence. This... more
This paper develops a regional dataset of change at 381 settlements for Lycia-Pamphylia in southwest Anatolia (Turkey) from volume 8 of the Tabula Imperii Byzantini-a compilation of historical toponyms and archaeological evidence. This region is rich in archaeological remains and high-quality paleo-climatic and-environmental archives. Our archaeological synthesis enables direct comparison of these datasets to discuss current hypotheses of climate impacts on historical societies. A Roman Climatic Optimum, characterized by warmer and wetter conditions, facilitating Roman expansion in the 1 st-2 nd centuries CE cannot be supported here, as Early Byzantine settlement did not benefit from enhanced precipitation in the 4 th-6 th centuries CE as often supposed. However, widespread settlement decline in a period with challenging archaeological chronologies (c. 550-650 CE) was likely caused by a "perfect storm" of environmental, climatic, seismic, pathogenic and socioeconomic factors, though a shift to drier conditions from c.
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Between the foundation of Constantinople as capital of the eastern half of the Roman Empire in 330 CE and its sack by the Fourth Crusade in 1204 CE, the Byzantine Empire underwent a full cycle from political-economic stability, through... more
Between the foundation of Constantinople as capital of the eastern half of the Roman Empire in 330 CE and its sack by the Fourth Crusade in 1204 CE, the Byzantine Empire underwent a full cycle from political-economic stability, through rural insecurity and agrarian decline, and back to renewed prosperity. These stages plausibly correspond to the phases of over-extension (K), subsequent release (Ω) and recovery (α) of the Adaptive Cycle in Socio-Ecological Systems. Here we track and partly quantify the consequences of those changes in different regions of Anatolia, firstly for rural settlement (via regional archaeological surveys) and secondly for land cover (via pollen analysis). We also examine the impact of climate changes on the agrarian system. While individual histories vary, the archaeological record shows a major demographic decline between ca .650 and ca. 900 CE in central and southwestern Anatolia, which was then a frontier zone between Byzantine and Arab armies. In these r...
Research Interests: Human Ecology, Environmental Science, Late Antique and Byzantine History, Environmental History, Anatolian Archaeology, and 14 moreLate Antique Archaeology, Byzantine History, Byzantine Archaeology, Black Sea region, Black Sea Studies, Ancient economy, Black Sea Region Archaeology, Black Sea ancient history and archaeology, Medieval Environmental History, Ancient Climate Change, Ancient Economy, Black Sea Ancient History and Archaeology, Roman Archaeology, and Roman and Byzantine Social and Economic History
Kyle Harper's The Fate of Rome, written for a popular audi
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This is the last of a three‐part review of Kyle Harper's The Fate of Rome. Here, we scrutinize Harper's treatment of the Justinianic Plague, demonstrating how he crafts a convincing narrative based on rhetorical flourishes but little... more
This is the last of a three‐part review of Kyle Harper's The Fate of Rome. Here, we scrutinize Harper's treatment of the Justinianic Plague, demonstrating how he crafts a convincing narrative based on rhetorical flourishes but little evidence. We call further attention to several internal contradictions within the chapter and misinterpretations of evidence. We conclude this series of articles with a reflection on Harper's deterministic approach to environmental history. While the environment appears everywhere, agency (people: society and culture) is mostly absent. We finish by emphasizing the need to develop more nuanced causal explanations for complex historical processes and suggest that future attempts to bring together such wide‐ranging material be done within interdisciplinary research teams.
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Access to full text at link provided above. Archaeological evidence, particularly that deriving from systematic regional surveys, offers great potential for understanding social and demographic change in Anatolia between 300 and 1200 CE.... more
Access to full text at link provided above.
Archaeological evidence, particularly that deriving from systematic regional surveys, offers great potential for understanding social and demographic change in Anatolia between 300 and 1200 CE. We first consider major factors inherent to regional archaeological data sets that complicate simple synthesis and generalization between projects. We then provide a synthesis focused on longue durée questions relevant to cross-disciplinary examination of the relationship between environmental and societal change and examine potential connections between major changes in settlement patterns observed in the seventh- and eighth- century archaeological data and larger questions of systemic collapse and resilience in the face of climate change. To conclude, we assess current archaeological evidence for the processes of agricultural adaptation at the transition associated with the end of the ancient economy.
Archaeological evidence, particularly that deriving from systematic regional surveys, offers great potential for understanding social and demographic change in Anatolia between 300 and 1200 CE. We first consider major factors inherent to regional archaeological data sets that complicate simple synthesis and generalization between projects. We then provide a synthesis focused on longue durée questions relevant to cross-disciplinary examination of the relationship between environmental and societal change and examine potential connections between major changes in settlement patterns observed in the seventh- and eighth- century archaeological data and larger questions of systemic collapse and resilience in the face of climate change. To conclude, we assess current archaeological evidence for the processes of agricultural adaptation at the transition associated with the end of the ancient economy.
Research Interests: Archaeology, Classical Archaeology, Near Eastern Archaeology, Landscape Archaeology, Anatolian Archaeology, and 24 moreEarly Medieval Archaeology, Survey (Archaeological Method & Theory), Byzantine Archaeology, Landscape archaeology (Anthropology), Hellenistic and Roman Asia Minor, Black Sea region, Anatolian Archaeology (Archaeology), Historical Ecology, Climate Change Impacts, Ancient economy, Ancient Anatolia, Archaeological survey, Late Roman and Early Byzantine Anatolia, Archaeological field survey, Black Sea Region Archaeology, Climate history, History and Archaeology of Asia Minor, Roman and Byzantine Asia Minor, Economics of Climate Change, Medieval Climate History, Byzantine economy, Byzantine monasteries, rural landscape, Ancient Climate Change, Roman Archaeology, and Climate of Ancient Near East
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Euchaita was famous in the late Roman and Byzantine periods as the center of the cult of St. Theodore Tiro (“the recruit”); between the seventh and eleventh centuries and as a result of the changed strategic geography of the region... more
Euchaita was famous in the late Roman and Byzantine periods as the center of the cult of St. Theodore Tiro (“the recruit”); between the seventh and eleventh centuries and as a result of the changed strategic geography of the region following upon the early Arab-Islamic conquests, it became a military base, but after the Turkish conquest of Anatolia in the later eleventh century fell into obscurity, although apparently remained continuously occupied until the present day. Never of great economic significance, it nevertheless represents a typical small urban settlement in the central Anatolian region. Archaeological survey work from 2007–2010 traced some important aspects of its evolution.
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The integration of high-resolution archaeological, textual, and environmental data with longer-term, low-resolution data affords greater precision in identifying some of the causal relationships underlying societal change. Regional and... more
The integration of high-resolution archaeological, textual, and environmental data with longer-term, low-resolution data affords greater precision in identifying some of the causal relationships underlying societal change. Regional and microregional case studies about the Byzantine world—in particular, Anatolia, which for several centuries was the heart of that world—reveal many of the difficulties that researchers face when attempting to assess the influence of environmental factors on human society. The Anatolian case challenges a number of assumptions about the impact of climatic factors on socio-political organization and medium-term historical evolution, highlighting the importance of further collaboration between historians, archaeologists, and climate scientists.
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An incident at the imperial court in Constantinople in 433 allows us to examine the complexity of imperial government in the mid-fifth century. The delegates to the Council of Ephesus in 431 had divided into pro-and anti-Nestorian groups,... more
An incident at the imperial court in Constantinople in 433 allows us to examine the complexity of imperial government in the mid-fifth century. The delegates to the Council of Ephesus in 431 had divided into pro-and anti-Nestorian groups, led by the patriarchs John of Antioch and Cyril of Alexandria respectively. The dispute was only resolved after Theodosius II negotiated an agreement between the two patriarchs via the Formula of Reunion in 433. However, some bishops remained recalcitrant, in particular those in the provinces of Cilicia. Theodosius now tried to use secular power to restore church unity by ordering the Cilician bishops to recognize John, or be exiled. This order was protested by the eastern praetorian prefect, Taurus, who warned that it would affect the flow of taxes from the region. Taurus' challenge to the emperor prompts questions about how Theodosius II made decisions, how government worked in Constantinople, and the interrelationship of civil, military, and religious leaders. All of this activity in Constantinople was driven by and had an impact on events in the provinces. Some of these themes have been examined recently by Millar in A Greek Roman Empire, a work focusing more on the machinery of government than on the practicalities of politics. Kelly's Ruling the Later Roman Empire offers other ways to consider many of these themes, though with a similar focus on machinery and bureaucracy. And there is the approach of Brown in Power and Persuasion in Late Antiquity, with a focus on personal connections. 1 My approach to this incident concentrates on the mechanics of decision-making at the court of Theodosius. Although some attention has been paid to the court, much remains to be said. 2
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Following Gough, the late Roman church complex at Alahan in Isauria is usually described as a monastic site built by the emperor Zeno (AD 474–491). Recent reinterpretation of the site by Mango and Hill has suggested that it was not a... more
Following Gough, the late Roman church complex at Alahan in Isauria is usually described as a monastic site built by the emperor Zeno (AD 474–491). Recent reinterpretation of the site by Mango and Hill has suggested that it was not a monastery but a pilgrimage site. This paper argues that none of the physical evidence at the site gives good reason to think of it as built by Zeno. The usual lavish scale of imperial patronage is missing. Alahan was a rural church complex built in the late fifth or early sixth century, whose most important feature is its state of preservation.
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... Frontiers of the Roman Empire. Post a Comment. CONTRIBUTORS: Author: Elton, Hugh. PUBLISHER: Indiana University Press (Bloomington). SERIES TITLE: YEAR: 1996. PUB TYPE: Book (ISBN 0253331110 ). VOLUME/EDITION: PAGES (INTRO/BODY): ix,... more
... Frontiers of the Roman Empire. Post a Comment. CONTRIBUTORS: Author: Elton, Hugh. PUBLISHER: Indiana University Press (Bloomington). SERIES TITLE: YEAR: 1996. PUB TYPE: Book (ISBN 0253331110 ). VOLUME/EDITION: PAGES (INTRO/BODY): ix, 150 p. ...
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... Warfare in Roman Europe, AD 350-425. Post a Comment. CONTRIBUTORS: ... VOLUME/EDITION: PAGES (INTRO/BODY): xv, 312 p. SUBJECT(S): Europe; Rome; History, Military; 30 BC-476 AD;Military art and science; History. DISCIPLINE: No... more
... Warfare in Roman Europe, AD 350-425. Post a Comment. CONTRIBUTORS: ... VOLUME/EDITION: PAGES (INTRO/BODY): xv, 312 p. SUBJECT(S): Europe; Rome; History, Military; 30 BC-476 AD;Military art and science; History. DISCIPLINE: No discipline assigned. ...
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Shifting Genres in Late Antiquity examines the transformations that took place in a wide range of genres, both literary and non-literary, in this dynamic period. The Christianisation of the Roman empire and the successor kingdoms had a... more
Shifting Genres in Late Antiquity examines the transformations that took place in a wide range of genres, both literary and non-literary, in this dynamic period. The Christianisation of the Roman empire and the successor kingdoms had a profound impact on the evolution of Greek and Roman literature, and many aspects of this are discussed in this volume - the composition of church history, the collection of papal letters, heresiology, homiletics and apologetic. Contributors discuss authors such as John Chrysostom, Ambrose of Milan, Cassiodorus, Jerome, Liberatus of Carthage, Victor of Vita, and Epiphanius of Salamis as well as the Collectio Avellana. Secular literature too, however, underwent important changes, notably in Constantinople in the sixth century. Several chapters accordingly reassess the work of Procopius of Caesarea and literature of this period; attention is also given to the evolution of the chronicle genre. Technical writing, such as military manuals and legal texts, are the focus of other chapters; further genres considered include monody, epigraphy and epistolography. Changes in visual representation are also considered in chapters devoted to diptychs, monuments and coins.
A common theme that emerges from the chapters is the flexibility and adaptability of genres in the period: late antique authors, whether orators or historians, were not slavish followers of their classical predecessors. They were capable of engaging with their models, adapting them to their own purposes, and producing work that deserves to be considered on its own merits. It is necessary to examine their texts and genres closely to grasp what they set out to do; on occasion, attention must also be paid to the transmission of these texts. The volume as a whole represents a significant contribution to the reassessment of late antique culture in general.
A common theme that emerges from the chapters is the flexibility and adaptability of genres in the period: late antique authors, whether orators or historians, were not slavish followers of their classical predecessors. They were capable of engaging with their models, adapting them to their own purposes, and producing work that deserves to be considered on its own merits. It is necessary to examine their texts and genres closely to grasp what they set out to do; on occasion, attention must also be paid to the transmission of these texts. The volume as a whole represents a significant contribution to the reassessment of late antique culture in general.
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F. Vallet and M. Kazanski (eds), L'Armée romaine et les barbares du IIIe au VIIe siècle (Mémoires de l'Association Française d'Archéologie Mérovingienne, V). Rouen: Association Française d'Archéologie Mérovingienne and Musée des Antiquités Nationales, 1993. Pp. 473, numerous illus. ISBN 2-9505595...more
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... This book is about what archaeology can tell us about the native side of interactions with the ... acteristics of this region as they pertain to the Roman conquests and to Rome's establishing of ... goods by water... more
... This book is about what archaeology can tell us about the native side of interactions with the ... acteristics of this region as they pertain to the Roman conquests and to Rome's establishing of ... goods by water was much more efficient than over land, and the Roman authorities made ...