Late Antiquity Research Articles

Some style tendencies of Hellenism which formed the basis for the pictorial canon of Eastern church rite

The article systematically presents and substantiates the stylistic concept of some unique artistic tendencies of Hellenism, which share a common sacred nature with the pictorial canon of eastern churches. It also proposes updated retrospective artistic principles to reassess the role of these tendencies. This finding allows us to reveal additional roots of the pictorial canon and review the cause-and-effect relationship between the narrative-symbolic-decorative attributes of ancient funeral rituals and the spiritual-philosophical foundations of early Christian art. It suggests filling the gaps in art history and cultural studies within the framework of relevant themes by introducing modeled and unified conceptual-categorical constructions into scientific circulation. The purpose of the research. The main purpose of the article is to rethink and systematize some artistic and stylistic tendencies of the Hellenistic’s era in late antiquity, from which all Eastern church pictorial traditions drew their conceptual and stylistic foundations during their formation period. The methodology. A combination of specialized methods was applied: historical-comparative method for identifying key artistic tendencies; cultural-deductive method for formulating artistic categories; abstraction method for delineating key stylistic features of sacred attributes, as well as for identifying differences and similarities; expert artistic assessment method for theoretical characterization, substantiation, and expansion of conceptual-categorical components; stylistic correlation method for unifying newly discovered stylistic connections of Hellenistic artistic products and the Christian tradition. The combination of the listed methods allows us to reveal the concept of the stylistic basis for the pictorial tradition in the church paraphernalia of the Eastern rite and to systematize the existing authoritative evidence base regarding to origins of the pictorial canon of the Egyptian and Greco-Roman periods. Conclusions. Our analysis shows that in the broad context of the formation of the pictorial canon, peculiar to the churches of the Eastern rite, some artistic trends of the first centuries of the new era turned out to be an unchanging and stable conceptual basis for the pictorial canon in a complex artistic and philosophical coordinate system. Thus, the artistic canon of the Eastern churches, formed between the VI and IX centuries, is nothing more than a borrowed status-functional category for the multi-level gradation of Christian value aspects with specific techniques and means of Hellenistic fine art of the times of ancient Egyptian and Greco-Roman syncretism. Their intermedial nature and appellative character in relation to the Theogony of the ancient world limit the traditional interpretation of the Christian symbolism of the vast majority of canonical images in the artistic plane. The scientific novelty. For the first time our research analyzed the cause-and-effect relationship between canonical Christian stylistic attributes and Greco-Roman and Egyptian features as the ideological basis of the latter for the formative role of the former. It reassessed and re-evaluated some Hellenistic artistic tendencies in terms of their significance and complexity. A number of expanded cultural and art historical concepts and categories of the ancient world are proposed and substantiated.

Building Resilience through Territorial Planning: Water Management Infrastructure and Settlement Design in the Coastal Wetlands of Northern Apulia (Salpia vetus-Salapia) from the Hellenistic Period to Late Antiquity

This Gulf of Manfredonia has, for millennia, been the primary water feature of the coastal wetland of Northern Apulia, Italy, although modern reclamation works make writing its long-term history challenging. Our recent paleoenvironmental research has reconstructed the evolution of the southern half of this lagoon since the Neolithic period. Here, we write a history of water management and environmental change in this landscape from the perspective of two key urban sites: pre-Roman Salpia vetus and Roman Salapia. The Roman architectural historian Vitruvius recounts the abandonment of Salpia vetus and the refoundation of Salapia. We employ his narrative as a frame for a more complex environmental history, starting from a historiography of this landscape’s study and a summary of our interdisciplinary research agenda, which unifies environmental, topographical, remote sensing, and archaeological approaches. Resilience in this changeable wetland environment was only possible through an integrated and intentional management of water among rivers, the lagoon, and the Adriatic Sea. While Salpia vetus exploited this wetland and thrived for centuries, the settlement eventually collapsed due to human and environmentally impelled factors. Roman Salapia subsequently emerged with a different approach, new infrastructure, and a new location. This blueprint would sustain urban life in this wetland for six centuries and lay the groundwork for the Medieval town.

The Sacred Scripture and the Symbolic Representations in the Early Christian Figurative Mosaics from the Balkans

It is a well-known fact that the figurative images in the Early Christian art are generally in conformity with the basic Sacraments, specific texts in the Old and the New Testament and the liturgy and rituals, which were performed in the churches. In the recent 40 years many new publications have been devoted to the pavement mosaics from the Balkans but they deal mainly with limited number of monuments from a separate contemporary state. As in Late Antiquity the borders between the provinces and both empires (Western and Eastern) were quite different from the contemporary ones, therefore the picture shown when tracing this aspect of research is not adequate and not complete if the we do not concern the ancient boundaries of the provinces, and do not consider the Balkans as one artistic area, but with many different traditions and influences. For this purpose, the mosaics not only from the well-known artistic centres of Greece have been gathered together, but also from Albania, Bulgaria, Macedonia and the European parts of Turkey. This provides new opportunities for a multifaceted study of the topic of the Early Byzantine liturgical practice from a formal, symbolic and theological point of view and emphasizes the importance of the figurative mosaic images and the inscriptions associated with them, which directly or symbolically reflects the Holy Scripture as well as it reveals the mysterious nature and the specific features of the rituals of the Early Christianity.

The History of Polyarchion (πολυάρχιον), John Chrysostom’s Illness, and Access to Medicinal Treatments at the End of Late Antiquity

John Chrysostom’s (c. 347‑407) works are valuable for medical historians because they provide us with a first-hand insight into his health problems and the therapies he was treated with. John’s correspondence gives us a unique opportunity to assess the popularity of certain drugs and the availability of healthcare, enabling us to verify the extant medical data. In the present study we will discuss the information on Chrysostom’s illness including his mention of a medicament named polyarchion (πολυάρχιον) which had been sent to the archbishop by Carteria. On the basis of the recipes preserved in medical treatises by Galen as well as other medical data, we will introduce the main properties of the medicine and treatments in which it was administered. Having outlined the scope of its action, and having analysed the symptoms of Chrysostom’s condition described in his correspondence to Olympias, we will establish the nature of the ecclesiastic’s main ailments fully. Finally, we will also conclude on the drug’s availability in the Byzantine world and on the inclusion of drug formulas in early Byzantine medical works.

THE IDENTIFICATION OF THE PELOPONNESIAN APIS WITH THE EGYPTIAN SERAPIS IN ARNOBIUS, ADVERSVS NATIONES 1.36.6

Abstract This article examines a brief mention of the Egyptian gods Apis and Serapis in the Aduersus nationes by Arnobius of Sicca. This reference is situated within the context of several traditions dealing with the origin and connections of both of these mythical figures transmitted with some variations until Late Antiquity. It is proposed that the Peloponnesian Apis is identified with the Egyptian Serapis through a tradition already attested in Classical Greek authors, though without it being possible to determine which author is the specific reference for the Arnobian text.

Stronghold of Letters: Late Medieval Durham as a Symbol of the Epistolarity.

In this article, we will explore how the consumption of ancient letter collections and the development of letter-writing practices, known as dictaminal culture, reflect the grandeur of Durham Cathedral Priory. Located near the Scottish border and in a place with a historical influx of Scandinavians, Durham Cathedral Priory was a distant Benedictine community which stood as one of the most significant examples against the idea of cultural and educational periphery. It had one of the most comprehensive and multidisciplinary libraries in Western Europe, of which a significant part is still available and heavily invested in primary and secondary education. In that context, Durham Cathedral Library was a beacon of erudition, social and political connectiveness and humane growth. Linked to all those advancements, we can find both the consumption of ancient letter collections, which we will present as a product of various techniques and genres and the development of letter-writing techniques, which were inherited from late Antiquity but were transformed into something utterly new in medieval Europe. Therefore, we intend to demonstrate how Durham Cathedral Priory was an epistolary stronghold in all senses, which allowed it to grow further than any other distant and small community in England.

The Byzantine Insular Countryside in the Early Middle Ages (ca. 600-ca.900): The Cases of Sicily, Cyprus, and Crete in (partial) Light of Environmental Archaeology

ABSTRACT This paper provides an overview of rural surveys and environmental archaeology studies on Sicily, Cyprus and Crete during the Byzantine Empire. It re-evaluates traditional interpretations of agricultural settlement patterns, ecosystems and populations from Late Antiquity to the early Middle Ages (late sixth to late ninth century). The prevailing narrative that these islands were devastated by Arab incursions, leading to widespread depopulation, economic collapse and abandonment of rural sites in favour of fortified hilltop settlements, is questioned. Instead, the study employs a comparative and interdisciplinary approach, combining environmental and climatic data with historical and archaeological evidence. This method offers a more nuanced understanding of how insular rural societies adapted to changing environmental and human conditions during the Byzantine Empire's transition from an economically unified region to a fragmented Medieval Mediterranean. The findings highlight the resilient nature of land use and rural settlement patterns amidst the transformation of the empire's political, military and administrative structures.

Eusebius the Evangelist: Rewriting the Fourfold Gospel in Late Antiquity by Jeremiah Coogan (review)

Eusebius the Evangelist: Rewriting the Fourfold Gospel in Late Antiquity by Jeremiah Coogan (review)

Bound by Binders: Multicraft Organisation and Industrial Interdependence of Lime Production for Mortar in the Eastern Mediterranean during Late Antiquity

In the late antique period (fourth-seventh centuries AD), lime was produced and consumed in great quantities for use in building, medicine, tanning, fulling, mortuary practices, and as an agricultural fertiliser. As a result, lime kilns (and associated slaking pits) are common features of late antique contexts – both in urban and rural environments and involving public institutions and private enterprise. In this paper we consider the archaeological remains of lime production and use in the eastern Mediterranean, a region in which dozens of lime production sites have been recorded. Focusing on the example of lime mortar production specifically, and following evidence for the associated chaîne opératoire, we demonstrate the versatility of the lime production process and how it frequently involved and even relied upon multiple industries.

Late Antique Glass Carving as Cross-Craft

Focusing on the related engraving techniques of openwork and opus sectile carving as evidence, this paper demonstrates that glass production in the Eastern Mediterranean in late Antiquity was an example of cross-craft, involving aspects of specialised collaboration among glass producers. As such, it represents the interdependence required of inter-industry relations in terms not only of resources but fundamentally of skills. Beyond just glass, cold-worked carving in various media suggests relatively large-scale late Roman urban production was more likely defined by a transferrable skill set (in this case carving) as opposed to a material.

Knowledge, Magic and Horse Medicine in Late Antiquity

Horses played an important social, cultural and economic role in ancient society, and they were treated with a great deal of care and attention when they fell ill. The Hippiatrica brings together prescriptions for treating different ailments, now Dr Elisabet Göransson is working to bring them to a wider audience.

An Introduction to Late Antique Cross-Craft Studies

The study of crafts and trades in the ancient Mediterranean world has garnered increased attention over the last decade, including through the investigation of cross-craft or inter-industry relations among craft producers. This body of literature represents a range of distinct approaches – including co-production, cross-craft interaction, skeuomorphism, and multicraft – each derived from different disciplinary perspectives, yet collectively these inter-industry approaches are offering new and important perspectives on social and professional networks of artisans, technological developments, and economic organisation of ancient industries. In this introductory chapter, we outline the current trajectories in cross-craft studies and their too often overlooked significance for the study of Late Antiquity.

François de Foix de Candalle: Euclidean authorship in the sixteenth century

This article discusses the work of François de Foix de Candalle and its importance for the early modern Euclidean tradition. It provides an outline of Foix's life, education and career, and it describes in particular his editions of the Elements published in 1566 and 1578. Those editions made substantial additions to the text, increasing the number of ‘books' from fifteen to eighteen: by far the largest addition to the Euclidean text since late antiquity. The article goes on to discuss Foix's intentions and his practices as an editor, and the reception of Foix's Elements. His book XVI remained in print in various languages well into the eighteenth century, making Foix an important and influential contributor to the early modern tradition of the Elements, whose work helps to illustrate the fluidity of that tradition as well as the character of early modern mathematical editorship more generally.

Analysis and comparison of tooth wear in late antiquity and early middle age in populations that lived in continental and coastal Croatia using digitized VistaMetrix method.

Tooth wear is a non-pathological loss of hard tissues on the incisal and occlusal tooth surface. In archaeology, the loss of dental tissue through attrition is associated with living opportunities and habits, availability, characteristics and methods of food preparation. In forensics, tooth wear is used to estimate the dental age on cadavers. For this study, we used an archaeological sample from two sample collections. In this study, tooth wear was compared in archaeological samples of well-preserved maxilla and mandible specimens (n=392) from Croatian coastal and continental populations from Late Antiquity (LA) and the Early Middle Ages (EMA). The computer system VistaMetrix 1.38 was used to analyse the abrasion and attrition of hard dental tissues. The Shapiro-Wilk and chi-square tests were performed for categorical data to test the difference between two historical periods and two geographical locations, while the Kruskal-Wallis test was performed for continuous data. There was a statistically significant difference in the proportion of tooth wear in total teeth area (P < 0.001) when comparing continental and coastal Croatia in LA and coastal Croatia between LA and EMA (P = 0.006 and P < 0.001, respectively). Samples from coastal Croatia from the LA period had the lowest percentage of tooth wear with a median of 8.35%, while samples from coastal Croatia from the EMA had the highest percentage of tooth wear with a median of 18.26%. Our results generally show greater tooth wear in the EMA period in male subjects. The results of the tooth wear research obtained with the Vista Metrix software can contribute to the study of life circumstances and changes that the analysed population has experienced in its historical development.

Angelika Neurwirth And Qur'anic Textual Originality (Epistemological Analysis Of Emmanuel Kant's Perspective)

This paper reviews Neuwirth's thoughts regarding the originality of the Qur'anic text. According to Neuwirth, the texts of the Qur'an have been considered unoriginal because they have been influenced by Jewish and Christian traditions because the sources and methodologies used still have flaws. In reviewing Neuwirth's thoughts, this research focuses on the epistemology of Angelika Neuwirth's thoughts related to the originality of the Qur'anic text. Departing from the theory used, this paper discusses three questions. First, the sources used by Neuwirth, the methodology used, and how the validity of truth related to the originality of the Qur'anic text according to Neuwirth. This research uses a qualitative method by using library research data collection techniques. The data sources used are primary and secondary. Primary sources of the author get from Neuwirth's writings related to the Qur'an and secondary sources obtained from studies with the same object of study such as journals and books. The data that has been collected will be reduced as needed and analyzed using Emmanuel Kant's epistemology. As for the results of this study, first, Neuwirth uses text sources in the context of late antiquity. Second, Neuwirth uses an intertextuality-based pre-canonization method with a literary and historical approach. This research still has shortcomings, meaning that further research can be carried out related to the epistemology of Neuwirth's angelic thought such as the implications of Neuwirth's thinking for the study of the Qur'an in the West, especially in the scope of scholarship in Indonesia.

Bioarchaeological Perspectives on Late Antiquity in Dalmatia: Paleogenetic, Dietary, and Population Studies of the Hvar—Radošević burial site

Late Antiquity Dalmatia was a time and place of political unrest in the Roman Empire that influenced the lives of those in that region. The Late Antique burial site of Hvar – Radošević, spanning the 3rd to 5th centuries CE, is located on the Croatian Dalmatian island of Hvar. Given the time frame and location on a busy marine trade route, the study of this burial site offers us a glimpse into the lives of the Late Antique population living on this island. It comprises 33 individuals, with 17 buried within a confined grave tomb and the remaining individuals buried in separate locations in the tomb's proximity. The study aims to provide a new perspective on the lives of people on the island during those times by studying ancestry, population structure, possible differences within the buried population, dietary habits, and general health. The genetic analysis of the ancestral origins of the individuals buried at Hvar – Radošević revealed a diverse population reflective of the era's genetic variability. The identification of genetic outliers suggests a range of ancestries from distinct regions of the Roman Empire, possibly linked to trade routes associated with the Late Antique port in ancient Hvar. Stable isotope ratio analysis (δ13C and δ15N) indicated a diet mainly consisting of C3 plants, with minimal consumption of marine foods. High childhood mortality rates, physiological stress markers, and dental diseases suggest a low quality of life in the population. Assessment of kinship and dietary patterns revealed no discernible distinctions between individuals buried within the tomb and those buried outside, indicative of an absence of differential burial practices based on social status and familial ties among this specific buried population.

Ancient Pasts, Digital Futures — Being Present with Prof. Caroline T. Schroeder

In The Interview, we sit down with movers and shakers in the field to learn about the journey that brought them to where they are today. Usually, we bring you a modified version of our interview transcript so that you can read our guests’ remarks in their own words. This issue, we decided to try something a little different. Editorial Assistant Sophia Honerkamp sat with Dr. Caroline T. Schroeder, Professor of Women’s and Gender Studies at the University of Oklahoma and a core Professor in the Arts &amp; Sciences Data Scholarship Program. Honerkamp explores how Schroeder came to work at the intersection of late antiquity, the digital humanities, and Women’s and Gender Studies.

The city of Orik in the Writings of Ancient Authors and Archaeological Records

The ancient Illyrian port city of Orik, located in what is now Albania, was an important maritime and Cultural Centre in the Adriatic region. This study provides a comprehensive analysis of all available ancient textual evidence of Orik, tracing its evolution from the 5th century BCE to late antiquity. The examination of these written sources is crucial for reconstructing the history and topography of Orik, which cannot be fully identified only by archaeological data. The main purpose of the study is to systematically identify, collect, and analyse every mention of Orik in ancient studies, including the studies of Herodotus, Pseudo-Skilax, Strabo, Titus Livius. To obtain precise and objective conclusions, a rigorous methodology was applied, which includes source criticism, comparative analysis, and correlation with archaeological data. The study provides valuable information about the evolution of Orik’s functions and status over time, its fortifications, economic activities, religious objects, and more. It allows for tracing how the knowledge of ancient geographers about this border town developed and how Greco-Roman authors portrayed it in their narratives. The most innovative contribution of the study is the first comprehensive investigation of the entire body of textual evidence about Orik. This holistic synthesis enables a deeper reconstruction of this influential Adriatic settlement. The results enhance understanding of ancient Illyria and the complex dynamics of its Hellenization. They are beneficial for related research and education. Overall, by systematically collecting and critically analysing all available ancient sources, this study offers a multi-layered portrait of Orik as a strategic Greek colony, Illyrian stronghold, maritime trade hub, and crossroads of cultural fusion in the Adriatic.

From Scroll to Codex

In this paper, I shall examine the available codicological evidence regarding the earliest transmissionsof Aristotle’s Organon, a compilation of logical works crafted during late antiquity. This in-depthexamination of the earliest extant manuscripts indicates that the Organon circulated in a two-volumeedition. Each volume contained almost the same amount of text: the first comprised Porphyry’sIntroduction, Aristotle’s Categories, On Interpretation, and the two Analytics, while the secondcontained Aristotle’s Topics and Sophistical Refutations.

Maritime hinterlands and interregional interaction at Late Antique Kekova Adası, Türkiye

How do resource-poor island communities develop networks to ensure their supply of foodstuffs and basic commodities? The growth of the Late Antique (5th-7th century CE) town at Kekova Adası on the southern Turkish coast of Lycia offers an instructive case study. Underwater survey along the town’s harbor front yielded large quantities of amphoras, utilitarian and fine pottery, and ceramic building materials that testify to local consumption and transshipment activities on the island. The origins of these materials serve as proxy for the networks of exchange that underpinned life on Kekova Adası. Yet because many of the most common amphora and other pottery types were produced over wide areas of many hundreds of kilometers of coast in Late Antiquity, ceramic petrography is necessary to determine or more precisely define the origins of these materials and, in turn, the shape of the networks through which they moved. The results reveal that the inhabitants of Kekova Adası developed a hinterland for supply by sea that encompassed the coastal plain around Limyra some 40 km to the east as well as, seemingly, across the open sea to the southwest corner of Cyprus. While most of the bulk processed agricultural goods (particularly wine and oil) carried in these amphoras, and the ceramic building materials and other imported wares, derived from these two regions, this hinterland also intersected with larger networks of exchange that brought amphoras as well as fine and cooking wares from across the Levant, Cilicia, the east Aegean, and the northeast Peloponnese. This pattern articulates the integration and mutual interdependence of Kekova Adası’s local network with the particularly busy interregional route that supplied major urban centers and the state during this period. In the process, the case study highlights the necessity of ceramic petrography as a means of precisely reconstructing such networks.