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Hierarchies and fractals: Ecclesiastical revenues as indicator for the distribution of relative demographic and economic potential within the cities and regions of the Late Byzantine Empire in the early 14th century

Hierarchies and fractals: Ecclesiastical revenues as indicator for the distribution of relative demographic and economic potential within the cities and regions of the Late Byzantine Empire in the early 14th century

By Johannes Preiser-Kapeller and Ekaterini Mitsiou

BYZANTINA ΣΥΜΜΕΙΚΤΑ Vol. 20 (2010)

Abstract: Until now the source material has made it impossible to reconstruct the distribution of economic power and population within the Late Byzantine Empire on a larger scale. Our new analysis of a list of contributions from 33 bishoprics to the Patriarchate of Constantinople from 1324 connects these figures with the economic performance of the respective town and its hinterland; we also demonstrate that the distribution of contributions shows characteristics which are typical for settlement hierarchies and therefore can be used to create the first model for the distribution of demographic and economic potential in the Byzantine Empire at this time.

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