Synopses & Reviews
The era of late antiquity--from the middle of the third century to the end of the eighth--was marked by the rise of two world religions, unprecedented political upheavals that remade the map of the known world, and the creation of art of enduring glory. In these eleven in-depth essays, drawn from the award-winning reference work Late Antiquity: A Guide to the Postclassical World, an international cast of experts provides essential information and fresh perspectives on this period's culture and history.
Review
Instead of relegating the late antiquity to the Gibbonian category of "Decline and Fall," the authors contributing to the present volume successfully attempt to consider this period in its own terms and without preconceived notions or value judgments, that is, as a time of monumental change, destruction, and reconstruction...This collection of essays truly brings to life the world of late antiquity in multiple fashions. The authors look both at East and West, they compare and contrast the role of Christianity and the role of the pagan religions. Their investigations rely not only on historical data, but also draw from recent research in archeology, art history, anthropology, and theology...All authors demonstrate a solid familiarity with most recent, especially international research. Albrecht Classen
Synopsis
In these eleven in-depth essays, drawn from the award-winning reference work Late Antiquity: A Guide to the Postclassical World, an international cast of experts provides essential information and fresh perspectives on this period's culture and history.
About the Author
G. W. Bowersock is Professor Emeritus of Ancient History at the Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton.Peter Brown is Philip and Beulah Rollins Professor of History, Princeton University. Among his publications is The Rise of Western Christendom: Triumph and Diversity, 200-1000 A.D.Oleg Grabar was Professor Emeritus of Islamic Art and Architecture at the Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, New Jersey.Professor Dame Averil Cameron was formerly the Warden of Keble College, Oxford. She currently holds a Leverhulme Emeritus Fellowship in the Faculty of Theology and Religion, University of Oxford.
Christopher Kelly is University Lecturer in Classics and Fellow of Corpus Christi College, University of Cambridge.Henry Maguire is a former Director of Byzantine Studies at Dumbarton Oaks and Professor of Art History at Johns Hopkins University
Department of Classical Studies, University of Pennsylvania
Table of Contents
Introduction
Maps
Remaking the Past, by Averil Cameron
Sacred Landscapes, by Béatrice Caseau
Philosophical Tradition and the Self, by Henry Chadwick
Varieties of Religious Community, by Garth Fowden
Barbarians and Ethnicity, by Patrick J. Geary
War and Violence, by Brent D. Shaw
Empire Building, by Christopher Kelly
Christian Triumph and Controversy, by Richard Lim
Islam, by Hugh Kennedy
The Good Life, by Henry Maguire
Habitat, by Yizhar Hirschfeld
Abbreviations
Contributors
Index