Synônê: re-considering a problematic term of middle Byzantine fiscal administration

Abstract

The history of Byzantine fiscal administration, as is well-known, is still an area in which many problems remain to be resolved. In 1880 the Russian Byzantinist V. G. Vassilievsky, one of the first historians to address them seriously, described Byzantine fiscal structures as labyrinthine; other scholars have not disagreed. But as a result of the work of successive generations, we are in a much better position today to understand the fundamental lines of development of late Roman and Byzantine fiscal arrangements, and in particular to follow the evolution of middle and later Byzantine fiscal administrative structures out of the situation that prevailed in the later Roman period, especially from the fifth and sixth centuries. Many problems remain, of course, and in the present contribution I would like to re-examine the term synônê, which has a technical significance in late Roman and Byzantine texts. The exact meaning of the word remains disputed and this has led to conflicting opinions among those who have attempted to interpret its application in the sources. The resolution of some of these questions has important consequences for our understanding of how the state's fiscal structures operated over the period in question.     

Undercover Acolytes: Honganji,the Japanese Army,and Intelligence‐Gathering Operations

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, as the Japanese Army sought intelligence on the countries neighbouring Japan, the military made use of the Buddhist priesthood as a cover for intelligence gathering. In addition, elements of the Buddhist priesthood, in particular the Kyoto‐based Honganji sect, were happy to cooperate with the military in its intelligence gathering operations, either by allowing military officers to disguise themselves as monks or by having Buddhist monks gather military intelligence for the Japanese Army. This article examines the relationship between the Japanese Army and the Honganji sect following the 1868 Meiji Restoration, the activities of military officers who disguised themselves as Buddhist monks and the intelligence gathering activities of Buddhist monks, hoping to shed more light on the part that Japanese Buddhism played in Japan's imperial adventures.     

Nunc autem a Gothis subversa: the province of Alicante and the Spanish Mediterranean towns between the Byzantine and Visigothic periods

The transition between the sixth and the seventh centuries in the towns of Iberia has been a matter of much discussion, leading to the development of the ‘urban renewal’ model, by which the Visigothic process of state formation generated a new urban munificence. A similar process can be seen in the towns of the Byzantine area, and our aim is to discuss the evolution of the urban settlements of the modern province of Alicante, reassessing the available evidence and comparing it with the models proposed for the Byzantine and Visigothic areas.     

Multilingual literacy at the Lusignan court: the Cypriot royal chancery and its Byzantine heritage

Abstract

An important aspect of the social and administrative transformations resulting from the establishment of Western feudal lordships and colonial regimes in Byzantium and the Eastern Mediterranean was the emergence of a multilingual literacy in the contact zones between foreign elites and the native population. This article examines these phenomena with respect to the royal chancery of the Lusignan kingdom of Cyprus from the late twelfth until the beginning of the fourteenth century. It is argued that the Frankish ruling class of the island opted for a parallel use of Latin and Byzantine chancery practices without fusing them into hybrid mixtures. The Lusignan lords adopted Byzantine titles, symbols of authority and modes of expression for legal transactions with Greek subjects and the local tax system. Another area in which the heritage of the imperial chancery helped express new forms of hegemonial self-representation was the kingdom's diplomatic relations with non-Frankish rulers.     

Houses,streets and shops in Byzantine Constantinople from the fifth to the twelfth centuries

This paper presents an analysis and reinterpretation of current evidence for houses, streets and shops in fifth- to twelfth-century Byzantine Constantinople, focussing on archaeological evidence. Previously unidentified townhouses and residential blocks are located. These show greater similarities to Roman-period domestic architecture than might be expected. Changes in the architectural style may be related to social change in the seventh century. Berger’s reconstruction of the early Byzantine street plan is shown to be archaeologically untenable. This has implications for the identification of formal planning and the boundaries of urban districts in the Byzantine capital. The limited archaeological evidence for streets and shops is also discussed.     

After Gundovald,before Pseudo‐Isidore: episcopal jurisdiction,clerical privilege and the uses of Roman law in the Frankish kingdoms

The article focuses on the mobilization and reconfiguration of Roman law in the Merovingian kingdoms. It pays particular attention to a collection of legal texts first compiled in the late sixth century, in preparation for the Second synod of Mâcon in 585. Drawing heavily on an extraordinary collection of late Roman imperial laws, the so‐called Sirmondian Constitutions, the bishops sought to declare themselves untouchably sacrosanct. A close analysis of the synodal canons shows that the bishops adapted these imperial rulings to legitimate their position in ways that had no basis in the original laws themselves. The study closes by linking the synod of Mâcon with a debate over episcopal privilege as reflected in the writings of Gregory of Tours, and with a brief look at the further history of the debate in the Carolingian period.     

Mistranslations of Josephus and the expansion of public charity in late antiquity

Three Latin mistranslations of Josephus' Jewish War I.61 between the fourth and the seventh centuries ce reflect the expansion of a series of charitable institutions, called xenodocheia and nosokomeia, around the Mediterranean in late antiquity and the early medieval period. In the late fourth century, authors known as pseudo‐Rufinus and pseudo‐Hegesippus independently mistranslated Josephus' report that the Hasmonean ruler John Hyrcanus hired mercenary troops at the conclusion of a Seleucid siege of Jerusalem. In their confusion, these authors both interpreted this as a charitable action and pseudo‐Hegesippus anachronistically imported the xenodocheion into the Hellenistic period. In the early seventh century Isidore of Seville expanded upon pseudo‐Hegesippus' mistake to transform the hiring of mercenaries into the genesis of both the xenodocheion and the nosokomeion. Isidore's inclusion of these institutions in his Etymologiae indicated their ubiquity and popularity by the seventh century, while for later writers his work canonized the mistaken origin.     

A geochemical study of Roman to early Byzantine Glass from Sagalassos,South-west Turkey

The finding of glass chunks together with fuel ash slag and kiln fragments related to glass processing strongly suggests local secondary production (working) of glass at Sagalassos (SW Turkey) from imperial to early Byzantine times. Chemical evidence shows that different silica raw materials were used in imperial and early Byzantine times for blue and green glass found locally. Colourless glass shows no clear difference in chemical composition and hence in silica raw materials between late Roman and early Byzantine times. Locally found early Byzantine yellow-green glass and chunks correspond to the previously defined Byzantine HIMT glass type. The chemical composition of the glass chunks found, identical to that of the contemporary glass of the same colour, strongly indicates that these chunks were used for the manufacture of early Byzantine green, colourless and yellow-green glass at Sagalassos.The homogenous lead isotopic composition of the chronological groups of blue glass, suggests the use of two distinct but homogenous silica raw materials for the manufacture of this glass. In view of this homogeneity, it is likely that contemporary blue glass was produced at a single location. The linear trend of the heterogeneous lead isotopic composition of the green and colourless glass is a strong indication of recycling effects in the glass composition. The end members of this trend are formed by the isotopic composition of the blue glass on the one hand, and of the yellow-green (HIMT) glass on the other hand. The heterogeneous lead isotopic composition of the yellow-green glass at Sagalassos is probably the result of recycling of this glass, reflecting mixtures of the original lead isotopic signatures of the broken glass and the original HIMT glass chunks.It should be noted that the two main raw materials for primary glass production (silica and soda) were available on the territory of Sagalassos. Moreover, the lead isotopic composition of quartz pebbles sampled from the artisanal quarter of Sagalassos, is similar to that of the local blue glass.     

Chemical characterisation and manufacturing technology of late Roman to early Byzantine glass from Beit Ras/Capitolias,Northern Jordan

The finding of considerable collections of glass artefacts, together with considerable lumps of glass chunks, fuel ash slag and kiln fragments related to glass processing strongly suggests a local secondary production (working) of glass at the Beit Ras/Capitolias archaeological site in northern Jordan from the late Roman to the early Byzantine period. The chemical analysis of ancient glasses can provide important information regarding the manufacturing technology of the glass made during a specific period. The aim of this study is to characterise the chemical and technological aspects of late Roman to early Byzantine glasses excavated from this main archaeological site. Furthermore, the present paper aims to provide incontrovertible evidence that this site must be considered as a major centre for the secondary production of glass during a period between the 3rd and the 6th centuries. For this purpose, a considerable group of raw glass chunks and vessel fragments of different colours and typologies were collected. The results of chemical analyses indicated that the glass did not show a clear difference in chemical composition between late Roman and early Byzantine times. All the glasses (artefacts and chunks) are of the soda-lime-silica type and correspond to the previously defined Levantine I glass group. The chemical composition of the glass chunks, identical to that of contemporary glass of the same colour, strongly suggests that these chunks were used for the manufacture of late Roman to early Byzantine glass at Beit Ras. The observation of technological features indicates that glass chunks were produced in massive tank furnaces in other primary production centres elsewhere, and were meant for local reworking. According to the microscopic examination, it can also be observed that mould-blowing was the main technique used for forming glass.     

Capacity and regulations against overloading of commercial ships in Byzantine and Islamic maritime practices

The article deals with the methods employed in the Byzantine and Islamic worlds during the seventh to early eleventh centuries to compute the ship capacity at a time when a uniform system did not exist in the Mediterranean world. It describes the responsibility of central and provincial authorities for inspection, construction, and registration of mercantile ships, sheds light on the arrangement of loading, and provides legal solutions to two fundamental questions: How did judicial authorities handle cases of overloading of ships when they were brought to court? Or, what did they advise the contracting parties to do when overloading was discernible while the ship was still berthed or underway?     

Missionary,Reformer, and Old Believer in Revolutionary Russia: Bishop Andrei (Ukhtomskii) (1872–1937)

This article examines the life and thought of Andrei (Ukhtomskii), a prominent Orthodox churchman in late imperial and early Soviet Russia. A proponent of ecclesiastical reform, Andrei believed that the Church was unable to instil piety because of an overly close relationship with the state. Basing his opinions on Slavophile philosophy, Andrei campaigned for the restoration of the Russian patriarchate and parish reform that would grant the laity increased autonomy. As a missionary among non‐Russian populations, he rejected linguistic Russification. After 1905, these beliefs led him to clash with the right and Rasputin. After the February Revolution of 1917, the Provisional Government appointed Andrei to a leading position in the Holy Synod. However, during the collapse of the Church's hierarchy in the 1920s, he grew weary of the prevalent inertia and in 1925 attempted to single‐handedly resolve the centuries‐old Old Believer schism. This was rejected by the Moscow Patriarchate, leading Andrei to create his own catacomb church. This article concludes that Andrei should be seen as a church politician undone by the contradictions inherent both in his own position and that of the Church.     

Social Welfare Provision at the Imperial Edge: Single Mothers and Abandoned Children in the Late Russian Empire

This article looks to the societal and imperial margins to examine attitudes towards social welfare provision in the final decades of the Russian Empire. Drawing on archival material from the Empire's Estliand province (now northern Estonia), the article focuses on the self-representation of single mothers and official discussions of abandoned children. Society was in flux in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, as rapid industrialisation, urbanisation and rural-to-urban migration served to undermine traditional social structures, mentalities and identities. These changes were accompanied by the disruption of the traditional patriarchal gender order, as well shifting ideas about who ought to be responsible for taking care of vulnerable groups. In rural Estliand, Estonian-speaking unmarried women sought engagement with Russian imperial judicial structures to secure child maintenance. In the early 1900s, anxieties about the social impacts of rapid urbanisation and industrialisation and the development of new currents in philanthropy, meant that care for foundlings and abandoned children became a burning issue in the minds of Estliand's provincial officials. Examining single mothers and child abandonment in Estliand illuminates tensions between empire-wide and local mechanisms for dealing with social issues, as well as shifting attitudes to gender, the family and charity in light of urbanisation and modernisation.     

Memoirs,confessions and apologies: the last chapter of Byzantine autobiography

Abstract

Two issues are addressed here: the status of Byzantine autobiography and the state of Byzantine literary culture in its last years. Autobiographical information was mostly a device used at all levels of Byzantine literature for immediacy, emphasis and to suggest personal involvement. It continued to function in this way in the last years of Byzantium, but there was also a degree of experimentation, as it extended its range into satire and comedy and, in the hands of Theodore Agallianos evolved from the rhetoric of apologia into fully-fledged autobiography.     

The early Byzantine economy in context: aristocratic property and economic growth reconsidered

This article responds to recent primitivist claims with respect to the late antique economy of the early Byzantine period. It examines the archaeological and documentary evidence for economic sophistication in early Byzantine Egypt, and addresses the issue of economic growth in late antiquity as a whole by placing the evidence for early Byzantine economic expansion in a broader medieval context. In particular, the epiphenomena of economic growth in late antiquity are compared to the epiphenomena of statistically demonstrable economic growth in Anglo‐Norman England.     

In enemy hands: the Byzantine experience of captivity between the seventh and tenth centuries

The present paper deals with forced migration experienced by subjects of the Byzantine Empire captured by foreign enemies in the context of warfare between the seventh and the tenth centuries. The focus of the first part is on the scenarios faced by individuals and groups when an enemy had taken control of a settlement or a larger territory. The second part discusses aspects of the role social status and gender played in the process of being taken over and then (possibly but not necessarily) held in captivity. Although one can trace similarities in the way captors treated their captives on different occasions, an overgeneralizing approach can prove misleading, distracting us from the dynamics of the consequences that war and abduction had on both the agency of the victor and the fate of the loser in the early Middle Ages.     

The cult of St Minias and the struggle for power in the diocese of Florence, 1011–1018

Foundation of churches and monasteries in the tenth and eleventh centuries often have more to do with economic and political concerns than they have to do with religious motivation. Though historians have long recognized the importance of the basilica of San Miniato al Monte in Florence for the history of the Tuscan romanesque, they have largely failed to see that its foundation stemmed from conflicts over competing interests between rival families in the northern Tuscan elite. The tenth and early eleventh centuries saw the formation of several powerful family lineages (consorterie) in northern Tuscany, which organized their regional patrimonies into proprietary monasteries. Two of those lineages — the Guidi and the Cadolingi — derived much of their wealth from the seizure of properties formerly held by the bishops of Florence. Endowing its two proprietary monasteries at Fucecchio and Settimo at the end of the tenth and beginning of the eleventh centuries with a patrimony which may have included lands claimed by the bishop, the Cadolingi patronized a faction within the Florentine clergy that challenged the moral qualifications of Bishop Hildebrand to be bishop.In order to defend episcopal properties from usurpation by the Caldolingi and Guidi and to provide a cover for his own family's appropriation of ecclesiastical property, Bishop Hildebrand consciously orchestrated after 1014 the revival of the cult of the first martyr of Florence, St Minias. The core of that program was the construction of the basilica and monastery of San Miniato. Endowing the basilica with the episcopal properties he sought to protect, the bishop appointed a loyal abbot who agreed to write a new Passio of the saint. Bishop Hildebrand managed to hold on to his office in spite of the challenges to his prelacy, but shortly after his death his sons lost control of the church property bequeathed to them by their father.     

Minting in Vandal North Africa: coins of the Vandal period in the Coin Cabinet of Vienna's Kunsthistorisches Museum

This paper offers a re‐examination of some problems regarding the coinage of Vandal North Africa. The coinage of this barbarian successor state is one of the first non‐imperial coinages in the Mediterranean world of the fifth and sixth centuries. Based on the fine collection in the Coin Cabinet of Vienna's Kunsthistorisches Museum, this article questions the chronology of the various issues and monetary relations between the denominations under the Vandal kings, especially after the reign of Gunthamund (484–96). The Vandals needed and created a solid financial system. In terms of political, administrative and economic structures they tried to integrate their realm into the changing world of late antiquity and the early Middle Ages.     

Arnulf of Lisieux and the crisis at Grestain 1164–6: brother bishops,inherited policies and failed leadership

ABSTRACT

This article examines the failed reform of the abbey of Grestain by Arnulf, bishop of Lisieux (r. 1141–81). Faced with a disobedient abbot, in whose absence the monks had resorted to violence and murder, Arnulf saw an opportunity to stamp his authority on his diocese by turning the monastery into a house of canons regular. Arnulf’s policies were shaped by the example of his older brother John, bishop of Sées (r. 1124–44), and his uncle and predecessor in his own bishopric John of Lisieux (r. 1107–41), as well as his mentor Geoffrey of Lèves, bishop of Chartres (r. 1116–49). A close reading of Arnulf’s letters demonstrates that Arnulf's conception of religious leadership and his representation of the crisis at Grestain were formed not only by familial networks, but also by the wider social and educational ideals of the eleventh and twelfth centuries filtered through the Victorines.     

Roman-Period and Byzantine Landscapes Between Sepphoris and Nazareth

Abstract

A reinterpretation of the Roman-period (late first century BC to fourth century AD) and Byzantine-period (early fifth to early seventh century AD) landscapes between Sepphoris and Nazareth, in the Lower Galilee, Israel, is presented. This derives from a multi-period archaeological survey, in September 2004 and September 2005, of a 5 km×3 km transect — Israel grid 1760–2340, 1790–2390. Some of the relevant results from the 2004–2005 seasons are outlined, rather than providing a full report on this survey, which will form part of a forthcoming PEF monograph. For this reason, survey data are described in summary form and — as it is the Roman-period and Byzantine evidence that is the focus of attention — both earlier and later material are mentioned here only in relation to those periods.