Byzantium: Church Society and Civilization Seen through Contemporary Eyes

Deno John Geanakoplos here offers a prodigious collection of source materials on the Byzantine church society and civilization (many translated for the first time into English) arranged chronologically and topically and knit together with an analytical historical commentary. His selections from Byzantine writers as well as from more obscure documents and chronicles in Latin Arabic Slavic Italian Armenian and French reflect all the diversity of Byzantine lifethe military tactics of the long-invincible cataphract cavalry and the warships armed with Greek fire the mysticism of Hesychast monks the duties of imperial officers the activities of daily life from the Hippodrome and Hagia Sophia to the marketplaces baths and brothels. Geanakoplos not only covers the traditional areas of political ecclesiastical socioeconomic administrative and military life but also provides a vivid picture of Byzantine cultureeducation philosophy literature theology medicine and science. Of particular interest are the insights into the empires relations with the Latin West the Slavs the Arabs the Turks and other neighboring peoples. Byzantium is much more than a sourcebook. The running commentary reflects the most recent scholarly research in Byzantine studies and places each translated source in its precise historical context. Through the use of both primary sources and commentary Geanakoplos has represented in all its richness and complexity one of the worlds great civilizations. There is no comparable book on Byzantine history and civilization in any language.