Historical geography analyses the interplay between man and landscape. To this end, the discipline uses various types of sources to analyse and reconstruct various settlement areas, communication systems and habitats of the past. In addition to the evaluation of written, archaeological and geographical sources, computer studies are becoming increasingly important; digital terrain models, GIS and Historical GIS, just to mention the Least Cost Paths, have become essential factors in the reconstruction of landscapes of the past. The interaction with scientific disciplines such as palaeobotany or geomorphology allows additional insights which go far beyond the information that could be obtained by the use of only traditional sources and techniques. The intended thematic session will present exemplary contributions on selected landscapes of the late antique and medieval eastern Mediterranean—partly on the mainland and partly in island locations—presenting research results that were achieved by using both traditional and novel digital methods. New approaches in geosciences and environmental studies will be discussed and their usefulness for Byzantine Studies, in general, will be examined. The discussions on various projects and methodological approaches already initiated in Venice in 2022 will be continued.
When conceptualizing the role of Byzantium in the passage from a unified “Roman” Mediterranean to a fragmented Great Sea, Byzantine historiography has often conjured up a gravitational pole that left other regions (and, in particular, the coastal and insular spaces in the central and western Mediterranean) out in the cold, with the only partial exception…
This paper will present assessments based on observations made in recent years on the settlement geography of Germanikopolis and its surroundings, located between Lykaonia and Rough Cilicia in Isauria, one of the highest regions of the Taurus Mountains. The socio-cultural structure of the people living in the settlements located in the Isauria region during the…
The ceramics uncovered during rescue excavations in the area known as Vary, in the modern settlement of Chora, Tenos—from which the ancient city connected with its port – provide important insights into the region’s history. The study demonstrates that this area formed part of a broader network of communication and exchange across the Mediterranean, and…
This paper examines a key document preserved in the cartulary of the monastery of the Mother of God on Mount Lembos near Smyrna, the detailed boundary survey issued by the stratopedarches Michael Phokas in March 1235. After endowing the Lembos monastery with numerous land grants, Emperor John III Batatzes assigned this high-ranking official in the…
Recent international geo-bio-archaeological projects conducted in Ainos (Turkey) and at the Danube Delta (Romania)—particularly at Noviodunum-Vicina and Old Chilia—have provided new insights into the environmental transformations of the lower Hebros (Maritsa) and Istros (Danube) rivers, as well as the evolution of harbour infrastructures during the Byzantine period. Three key phases emerge from this evidence: (1)…
This paper’s aim is to present the history and current state of historical geography in Byzantine Studies, its main challenges in the 21st century and the urgent need to adapt the way we think about historical geography in Byzantine Studies in the wake of current challenges and the evolving discussions in Byzantine Studies itself, i.e….