Books about Byzantium

Art historian, Cecily Hennessy, explores medieval Byzantine wall paintings in churches cut out of the beautiful landscape of central Turkey. Many of these were decorated by local artists, sometimes monks, or by the finest artists brought from other centres, such as Constantinople. This book is desig...

A provocative and contrarian religious history that charts the rise of Christianity from the point of view of traditional” religion from the religious scholar and critically acclaimed author of Augustine.Pagans explores the rise of Christianity from a surprising and unique viewpoint: that of the p...

Looks at art and architecture produced in the 3d through 13th centuries and discusses major artistic influences

A definitive guide to Viking art by a world expert on the subject This new survey covers all the intricate and beautiful art styles of the so-called “Viking Age.” It ranges in time from the first major Viking expeditions overseas around AD 800 to the establishment of Christianity in Scandinavia ...

A Roman historian chronicles Rome on the brink of collapseAmmianus Marcellinus was the last great Roman historian, and his writings rank alongside those of Livy and Tacitus. The Later Roman Empire chronicles a period of twenty-five years during Marcellinus' own lifetime, covering the reigns of Const...

The Fourth Crusade (1202-4) was one of the key events in medieval historyThe fall of Constantinople to the Venetians and the soldiers of the fourth crusade in April 1204 was its climax. It ensured that Byzantium’s days as a great power were over. It equally ensured that westerners would dominate t...

From ancient Egypt to the modern day, cats have been one of the most beloved pets. In fact, images of cats appear extensively in medieval manuscripts, where they are depicted as pets and mousers, appear in bestiaries and marginalia, and are even depicted in religious iconography. This delightful and...