Mills in Byzantium: State of Research and Prospects

The purpose of this contribution is to present the current work of the project "Mills in Byzantium and Their Economic and Social Impact" (2025-2029) funded by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF). It will study the relationship between humans and nature, and the entanglement of technology in this process by exploring how milling was integrated into the activities of the Byzantines and in what ways it shaped, and was shaped, by various social groups and institutions in the core regions of Byzantium. The research will investigate the functions of mills in peasant, urban, and monastic economies.