The New Post Office Site in Istanbul and the North-Eastern Harbour of Byzantine Constantinople

An unpublished letter of 1906 describes a wall discovered at the New Post Office site in Istanbul. This may have been an Early Byzantine (5th–7th century) quay and, along with geological evidence, suggests that the north-east harbour of Early Byzantine Constantinople (probably the Neorion/Neorium harbour) was much larger than hitherto supposed. The harbour probably silted in the 7th century.
© 2004 The Nautical Archaeology Society     

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.     

The population of East Sicily during the second and first millennium BC: the problem of the Greek colonies

Knowledge of Sicilian biology during the past is very important in understanding the complex processes that characterized the population of the Mediterranean Basin. The problem of the first Greek settlement in Sicily is essential in understanding and reconstructing the indigenous biological tissue of an island that was and still is a fundamental crossroads for migratory strategies. In this research we studied ten Sicilian series chronologically attributed to the second and first millennium BC , using discrete cranial traits. The results show that the first biologically significant Greek presence in eastern Sicily could go back to the Bronze Age, while the cosmopolitan Hellenistic city of Syracuse showed the nature of the biological pattern during the first millennium BC . Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sword,Priest and Conversion: On Religion and Apostasy in South Slav Literature in the Period of National Revival

Abstract

This article examines the works of four writers of Croatian, Slovene, Serbian and Bosniak literature in the period of National Revival, in their literary, historical and discursive contexts: Pre?ern’s Krst pri Savici, Ma?urani?’s Smrt Smail-age ?engi?a, Njego?’s Gorski vijenac and Ba?agi?’s Abdullah Pa?a. Three of the four authors were also statesmen, and all four are considered canonical national writers. There is a striking similarity between their otherwise different works, resulting from speeches by priests who either demand and justify conversion, or vehemently oppose it and call for vengeance. In all four works, the enemy is not a foreign conqueror, but an apostate who sides with the conqueror by accepting his faith. Although in all four works the values of the epic and heroic world are pronounced dead, epic action — a ’sword’ — is still very much alive. Though the central act of conversion is accompanied by religious symbolism which gives rise to the impression of a clash of religions, in all four works conversion does not have a religious meaning, it is purely political.     

The manufacturing process of 3rd millennium BC bone based incrusted pottery decoration from the Middle Guadiana river basin (Badajoz,Spain)

The aim of this study is to present the manufacturing process developed on 3rd millennium BC white incrusted pottery from the middle Guadiana River basin (Badajoz, Spain), alongside the analytical procedure developed to determine the nature of these incrustations. The analytical procedure developed in this paper will assess the nature of these incrustations as burnt bone and in fewer cases as calcium carbonate, turning upside down the usual tendency for the Iberian Peninsula, where calcium carbonate has been the only kind of incrustation identified up until now. The analytical facilities used are: SEM-EDX, XRF microprobe, XRD and FTIR. The assessment of the nature of the incrustations as burnt bone has been a hazardous task and it has been necessary to develop a procedure using several analytical techniques and reference materials.     

东晋南北朝古道经研究简述及分析

东晋南北朝道经属于重要的“古道经”系统,对道教史研究具有重要意义。本文对近五十年来西方、日本及国内的东晋南北朝古道经研究作了一个简略的综述,重点探讨了此类研究所采取的方法及其指导意义,并在此基础上进行了简单的总结。     

Ottoman Merchants in Constantinople During the First Half of the Fifteenth Century

Abstract

Despite growing interest among both Byzantinists and Ottoman scholars in the respective long-distance commercial ventures of Byzantine Greek and Ottoman Muslim merchants, studies focusing on the trade relations between these two groups have not yet been undertaken. This article, which examines some sources that document the presence and economic activities of Ottoman Turks in Constantinople during the first half of the fifteenth century, is intended to serve as a contribution to this neglected field of study. Moreover, by means of an examination of commercial relations, the article aims to shed further light on the daily, informal contacts between the Byzantines and the Ottomans which remains a relatively unexplored aspect of Byzantine-Ottoman relations.     

Emergence,collapse and continuity of the first political system in the Guadalquivir Basin from the fourth to the second millennium BC: The long-term sequence of Úbeda (Spain)

Over the last decade, a long-running archaeological project in the Guadalquivir Basin (Spain) has identified the emergence (c. 3000 BC) and collapse (between c. 2500 and c. 2300 BC) of a regional inter-settlement hierarchical system centred on the south-western Pyrite Belt and the Lower Guadalquivir Basin.     

Ceramics and change: an overview of pottery production techniques in northern South Africa and eastern Zimbabwe during the first and second millennium AD

In southern African Iron Age studies, there are few attempts to systematically apply and include laboratory analyses when studying archaeological ceramic materials. As demonstrated in this paper, such analyses help to understand the technological aspects such as raw materials, manufacturing techniques and vessel function. Combined with vessel shape and decoration as well as ethnographic studies, the results provide new ways to understand local and regional distribution networks of the ceramics craft. Furthermore, laboratory analyses are most useful when studying continuity and changes in the ceramics handicraft over time, which has implications both on cultural and social change as seen in the shift in ceramic production techniques. We use examples from Zimbabwe and South Africa to illustrate these changes and discuss them in a broader social and technological context in Iron Age southern Africa.     

A dendrochronological investigation of stringed instruments from the collection of the Cherubini Conservatory in Florence,Italy

A total of forty-nine stringed instruments of the Conservatory Cherubini collection, at the Musical Instruments Department of the Accademia Gallery in Florence, were submitted to a dendrochronological investigation in order to date them, check the validity of their attribution and to find out more about their construction characteristics. Thirty-seven instruments were successfully dated, thereby determining the terminus post quem date of manufacture. The correlation values of the statistical cross-dating tests were generally very high. The dendrochronological analyses determined which instruments had been made from wood of the same provenance and, in some cases, from the same tree trunk. The mean chronology built from the musical instrument series, named “Accademia Master Chronology”, is 558 years long and dates from 1396 to 1953AD. The interval between the youngest ring dated dendrochronologically and the given date of manufacture increased constantly in the course of the centuries, from a mean value of just over eleven years for instruments built in the eighteenth century, to nearly 74 years in the twentieth century, when the use of old wood from other artefacts became more frequent. Furthermore, in the Cherubini Collection, the average tree rings on violins are smaller than those of other stringed instruments; in fact, they increase in proportion to instrument size and are widest in cello and double bass.     

Eight Byzantine Shipwrecks from the Theodosian Harbour Excavations at Yenikapı in Istanbul,Turkey: an introduction

Excavations at Yenikap? in Istanbul, Turkey, related to the Marmaray Project, have unearthed remains of Constantinople's Theodosian Harbour, including 37 Byzantine shipwrecks of 5th‐ to 11th‐century date. Eight of these shipwrecks, six round ships and two of the first long ships, or galleys, to be excavated from the Byzantine period, were studied by archaeologists from the Institute of Nautical Archaeology. These well‐preserved shipwrecks are an important new source of information on the maritime commerce of Constantinople and the gradual shift from shell‐based to skeleton‐based shipbuilding in the Mediterranean during the second half of the first millennium AD.     

The chalcolithic period in the Levant

The Levant of the fourth millennium B.C. was scattered with numerous small farming communities. The agricultural activities were based on growing barley, wheat, lentils, and fruit trees. This was accompanied by raising sheep-goats, pigs, and cattle and occasionally using marine resources. The architecture and the thick accumulation of debris loaded with pottery refuse indicate that the sites were sedentary and occupied for long periods. The social organization of these communities does not seem to have been very complex. The evidence argues against the existence of hierarchies and high-status social units that had the power to dominate and permanently regulate production and distribution. The evidence of religious activities also indicates that a priesthood, if it existed, was not dominant in the regulation of social and economic activities. The rapid cultural changes in the Levant during the late fourth and early third millennium were probably caused by the impact of the events in Egypt and Mesopotamia. The local modifications were readjustments to the large-scale changes in the Near East which influenced the rural and provincial Levantine Chalcolithic societies.     

Armenian women of Istanbul: notes on their role in the survival of the Armenian community

This article argues that the Armenian women living in Istanbul are confined to domestic and communal spaces, and that the roles of symbolizing collective territory and identity, and of cultural reproduction of the community, are mostly associated with women. The data and observations we explore here are based on a field survey of Turkey's Armenian community that was conducted in Istanbul between November 2004 and May 2005. Evaluation of this survey based on both quantitative and qualitative methods allows us to draw some conclusions about the roles of Armenian women in the reproduction of Armenian culture. Women's roles indirectly influence Armenian identity, creating the conditions for its survival.     

A 5th‐Century‐AD Sewn‐Plank River Barge at St Maria in Padovetere (Comacchio‐FE), Italy: an interim report

This article reports on the remains of a 5th‐century‐AD river barge excavated in 2014 and 2015. Most of the flat bottom and one side are preserved. The barge is at least 20 m in length and 2.9 m across the floor, and is constructed using sewn planks, iron nails and mortise‐and‐tenon fasteners. Both flush‐laid and lapstrake planks are recorded. Archaeological, historical, iconographic and ethnographic evidence is used to propose explanations for features, such as the use of lapstrakes, a possible steering system and platform, and the likely position of a pump, while setting the barge in the context of the North Adriatic shipbuilding tradition.     

Sapwood estimates in the interpretation of tree-ring dates

Many timber finds lack some or all of the outer, sapwood rings formed in the years just before felling. In order to estimate felling date once the outermost remaining ring has been dated, it is necessary to estimate the number of sapwood rings originally present. Methods doing this for oak are reviewed in the light of an intensive study of living trees at one site and an extensive study of 175 samples from living trees in North Wales and northwest England. Some methods reported in the literature are found to be invalid. A method reported by Hollstein (1965) is most reliable, with modifications for known variations in sapwood number with position in the tree. At present the best available estimate is that a value of 30 sapwood rings be used (95% confidence limits: 19–50).     

Heritage Visitor Attractions: managing revenue in the new millennium

Heritage visitor attractions represent an integral component of the tourism product in many countries. This is particularly so in Scotland, where visitor attractions of a heritage genre continue to attract more visitors than others. However, with varying types of ownership, funding and organisational objectives, many unrelated to tourism, the management of heritage visitor attractions is particularly challenging. Based on a recent primary research study conducted in Scotland, this paper focuses on one particular component of management, that of revenue, and examines the appropriateness, role and utilisation of the concept of revenue management to the operational and strategic management of heritage visitor attractions. The paper concludes that while the majority of heritage visitor attractions employ a number of well-tested revenue-management techniques, there is limited evidence to suggest that pricing and revenue-generation policies reflect the attractions' organisational objectives. In particular, incumbent policies do not appear to reflect the wider needs of revenue management, such as the need to address seasonal and spatial limitations of demand.     

阿富汗贝格拉姆宝藏的年代与性质

引论公元1～2世纪,罗马帝国涌现出一批优秀的地理学著作,如斯特拉波(Strabo)的《地理书》、梅拉(P.Mela)的《地方志》、马林(Marinus)的《地理学导论》和托勒密(C.Ptolemy)的《地理志》等等。书中对东方世界的描述令人瞩目[1]。最让人惊叹的是保存至今的托勒密世界地图,上面不仅标出许多印     

Social and political trust in Istanbul and Moscow: a comparative analysis of individual and neighbourhood effects

Aiming to bring local context into studies of social capital, our study uses samples of 4006 individuals in Istanbul and 3476 in Moscow using a comparable questionnaire. The stratification of each city's neighbourhoods on the basis of socio-economic characteristics provided the basis for the sampling. Using a multilevel modelling procedure, we show both that locality matters (neighbourhood effect proved significant) and that social capital may indeed be constituted in very particular ways in illiberal democracies such as Russia and Turkey. Social and political trust are frequently thought to contribute to social capital – that is, to provide social resources upon which individuals or groups may draw for their political efficacy. Trust in fellow citizens in Istanbul exhibits a positive relationship to associational activities (joining clubs etc.), while in Moscow social trust can be explained predominantly in terms of (lower) socio-economic status. At the same time, important similarities emerged between the two cases. For social trust, in both cities the 'cosmopolitanization thesis', which holds that those who associate more widely are also more trusting of fellow citizens, generally applied. Further, in both cities, residents with lower socio-economic status (though in Moscow this is complicated by education) and lower likelihoods of engagement in direct political action were more trustful of parliament . While this is the opposite of what we have been led to expect based on Western democratic polities, it is a reasonable outcome of illiberal democratic governance operating in these two cities.     

Advances in Polychrome Ceramics in the Islamic World of the 12th Century AD

As part of a multidisciplinary programme of research on Islamic glazed pottery, the development of polychrome decoration during the 12th century AD has been investigated by examining polished sections through glazed pottery in an analytical scanning electron microscope. The two main decorative techniques used were underglaze and overglaze painting. The results suggest that true underglaze decoration, involving the application of pigment without any associated slip, was first developed in Syria, from where it spread to Iran, on to China and ultimately across wide areas of the world. In contrast, the overglaze technique used on mina'i ware was both very short‐lived and confined to Iran. The analytical results suggest that the probable explanation for this was the technical problems associated with maturing the overglaze paint and the consequent risk of unsatisfactory products.     

Truth,plausibility, and the virtues of narrative at the millennium

While it is widely understood that medieval historiographers employed the techniques of rhetorical invention in their work, less attention has been paid to the way in which the standard of plausibility, upon which rhetorical invention was premised, could be reconciled with the historian's traditional obligation to tell the truth. This paper examines the ways in which the rhetorical doctrine of narratio probabilis was understood and put into practice by three authors active around the turn of the millennium: Richer of Saint-Rémi, Dudo of Saint-Quentin, and Adalbero of Laon. All three had been trained in the schools of northern Francia in the late tenth century and all reveal a sophisticated understanding of the doctrines of Ciceronian rhetoric, according to which plausible inventions were not seen to be incompatible with historical truth.