More Numerous Than the Grains of Sand: How Byzantium Supported the First Crusade
Tens of thousands of crusaders crossed Byzantine territory on their way to Jerusalem. Marek Meško reveals how Byzantine logistics and supply networks helped make the First Crusade possible.
The Book of Daniel, the Four Kingdoms, and Imperial Eschatology, with Chris Bonura
A conversation with Christopher Bonura about the apocalyptic tradition of identifying the Four Kingdoms prophesied in the Book of Daniel. Which one was the Roman empire? The fourth, scheduled to fall with the others, or something that came afterward (a tradition sometimes called imperial eschatology)? Among other topics we discuss Eusebios of Caesarea and the reign of Herakleios as possible turning points in this tradition.
Effeminate Greeks or Sophisticated Romans? The Western View of Byzantium
Western Europeans often portrayed the Byzantines as deceitful, weak, and overly luxurious, dismissing them as “Greeks” rather than true Romans. Michael Goodyear writes on how behind these stereotypes stood one of the Middle Ages’ most sophisticated and resilient empires — a civilization that preserved ancient knowledge, amassed immense wealth, and defended Europe for centuries.
New Medieval Books: The Philokalia
This collection of texts may date from the eighteenth century, but the works it contains are all medieval in origin. Together, they offer a diverse glimpse into the Eastern Orthodox tradition that shaped the religious life of the Byzantine world.
Teaching the Faith in Byzantine Christianity: The Catechetical Process
Explore how Byzantine Christians taught the faith through structured catechesis, liturgical instruction, and episcopal oversight, shaping the religious life and identity of the medieval Eastern Roman Empire.
Byzantine Strategy and Geopolitics in the Tenth Century
Surrounded by rivals on every frontier, the Byzantine Empire of the tenth century relied on far more than battlefield victories to survive and expand. George Theotokis explores how emperors and diplomats used strategy, alliances, bribery, fortifications, and warfare to navigate a dangerous geopolitical world stretching from the Balkans to the Middle East.
Icons, Riots, and Theology: Why Iconoclasm Nearly Tore the Byzantine Empire Apart
Byzantine iconoclasm sparked riots, persecutions, and political turmoil as emperors, monks, and ordinary believers fought over the role of sacred images in the medieval Roman Empire.
The Menologion of Basil II, with Charlie Kuper
A conversation with Charlie Kuper about the Menologion of Basil II, a lavishly illustrated manuscript pairing brief notices about the saints with images of them and their ordeals, arranged according to the liturgical calendar.
Byzantine vs. Viking: The Varangian Guard in Constantinople
How did Viking raiders become imperial bodyguards? Zoe Tsiami tells the story of the Varangian Guard in medieval Constantinople.
How Byzantines Saw Themselves: Romans, Not “Byzantines”
The Byzantines never called themselves Byzantines. Zoe Tsiami explores how they understood their Roman identity across the Middle Ages.
Byzantine Court Etiquette Was Basically Political Theatre
Zoe Tsiami on how Byzantine court etiquette turned imperial rule into political theatre, using ritual, symbolism, and spectacle to project power and reinforce hierarchy.
Three Heresiologists of the 12th-century: Zigabenos, Kamateros, and Choniates, with Alessandra Buccosi, Niccolò Zorzi, Marco Fanelli, and Ottavia Mazzon
A conversation on three twelfth-century heresiological texts, the challenges of publishing and studying them, and the ways their central concerns can be presented in a museum exhibition.
Early Medieval Mosaic with Playful Inscription Discovered in Turkey
A 1,500-year-old mosaic discovered in Syedra, Turkey, features a playful inscription warning the envious, offering insight into daily life in late antiquity.
Heresiology in the Twelfth Century, with Alessandra Bucossi
On Byzantium & Friends, a conversation with Alessandra Bucossi on the preoccupation with heresy in the twelfth century, which resulted in the production of a number of massive anti-heretical treatises.
Betrayal or Mistake? Rethinking the Defeat at Manzikert
Was the Byzantine defeat at Manzikert caused by betrayal or by poor decisions on the battlefield? George Theotokis re-examines the medieval chroniclers and the search for scapegoats after one of Byzantium’s most famous defeats.
East Roman Archaeology: Goals and Challenges, with Marica Cassis
A conversation with Marica Cassis about the archaeological study of the east Roman world and how it interfaces with traditional, text-based historiography. What can archaeology see and what not? What challenges has it faced to emerge as a field and what are the prospects that it faces today?
New Medieval Books: The Conqueror’s Gift
The Romans were deeply connected with peoples both within and beyond their empire. This book explores how those ties shifted between the first and seventh centuries AD—especially as Christianity spread—and how these changes reshaped the Empire.
The Byzantine Poor: Poverty, Charity, and Social Order
Zoe Tsiami writes about how poverty shaped everyday life in the Byzantine Empire, and how the state and Church responded through law, charity, and social institutions.
Why were pseudo-Arabic inscriptions placed on churches in Greece?, with Alicia Walker
A conversation with Alicia Walker on the pseudo-Arabic inscriptions that appear on a number of tenth- and eleventh-century churches in Greece, most notably at the monastery of Hosios Loukas. What did the Arabic script signify in Orthodox culture at the time if not tension with Islam?
Why the Great Schism of 1054 is a Medieval Myth
Why the Great Schism of 1054 is often misunderstood. Explore how the split between the Catholic and Orthodox churches began centuries earlier, how the filioque controversy and Charlemagne’s imperial ambitions reshaped Christian authority, and why 1054 was not the true beginning of the schism.
Reading in Byzantium: Literacy, Books, and a World of Texts
In Byzantium, reading wasn’t just private study—it was performed aloud in churches and monasteries, woven into government, and preserved in precious manuscripts. Zoe Tsiami explores who could read, what they read, and how texts shaped everyday life.
Urban and Rural Life in the Byzantine Empire
Explore how life in the Byzantine Empire differed between cities like Constantinople and the countryside, from social hierarchies and work to festivals, religion, and economic interdependence.
Hidden Beneath Plaster, Medieval Frescoes Re-emerge in an Albanian Church
Medieval frescoes long hidden beneath plaster and limewash are re-emerging inside the Byzantine monastery church of Agios Nikolaos (Saint Nicholas) in Mesopotamos, Albania. Conservators have uncovered previously unknown paintings near the ceiling, revealing figures and faces.
Daily Life in Constantinople: Inside the Heart of the Byzantine World
Explore daily life in medieval Constantinople, from neighbourhoods and housing to markets, guilds, religion, chariot races, and the dangers of fire, plague, and shortages in the Byzantine capital.