Description
The Roman Empire traditionally presented itself as the centre of the world, a view sustained by ancient education and conveyed in imperial literature. Historiography in particular tended to be written from an empire-centred perspective. In Late Antiquity, however, that attitude was challenged by the fragmentation of the empire. This book explores how a post-imperial representation of space emerges in the historiography of that period. Minds adapted slowly, long ignoring Constantinople as the new capital and still finding counter-worlds at the edges of the world. Even in Christian literature, often thought of as introducing a new conception of space, the empire continued to influence geographies. Political changes and theological ideas, however, helped to imagine a transferral of empire away from Rome and to substitute ecclesiastical for imperial space. By the end of Late Antiquity, Rome was just one of many centres of the world.
The later Roman Empire was shrinking on the map, but still shaped the way historians represented the space around them.
About the Author
Peter Van Nuffelen is Professor of Ancient History at Universiteit Gent, Belgium, where he leads an ERC-funded team on late ancient historiography. His recent publications include Rethinking the Gods: Philosophical Readings of Religion in the Post-Hellenistic Period (Cambridge, 2011), Orosius and the Rhetoric of History (2012), and Penser la tolerance durant l'Antiquite tardive (2018).
Reviews
'... the contributions are first-rate essays, sure to benefit any student who reads them ... Overall, this is a worthwhile collection.' J. A. S. Evans, Choice
'Without a doubt, each study in this volume presents a piece of fine scholarship in itself, even though some certainly carry more weight or offer more food for thought than the others. In that regard, this is a welcome collection.' Hrvoje Gracanin, Bryn Mawr Classical Review
'... these individual yet (loosely) related studies offer us different approaches and methodologies to explore a rich and diverse number of texts and authors, some familiar and some less well-known, and to raise questions and to illuminate another aspect of the late antique world.' Fiona K. Haarer, Histos
Book Information
ISBN 9781108481281
Author Peter Van Nuffelen
Format Hardback
Page Count 226
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 480g
Dimensions(mm) 235mm * 159mm * 15mm
The later Roman Empire was shrinking on the map, but still shaped the way historians represented the space around them.
About the Author
Peter Van Nuffelen is Professor of Ancient History at Universiteit Gent, Belgium, where he leads an ERC-funded team on late ancient historiography. His recent publications include Rethinking the Gods: Philosophical Readings of Religion in the Post-Hellenistic Period (Cambridge, 2011), Orosius and the Rhetoric of History (2012), and Penser la tolerance durant l'Antiquite tardive (2018).
Reviews
'... the contributions are first-rate essays, sure to benefit any student who reads them ... Overall, this is a worthwhile collection.' J. A. S. Evans, Choice
'Without a doubt, each study in this volume presents a piece of fine scholarship in itself, even though some certainly carry more weight or offer more food for thought than the others. In that regard, this is a welcome collection.' Hrvoje Gracanin, Bryn Mawr Classical Review
'... these individual yet (loosely) related studies offer us different approaches and methodologies to explore a rich and diverse number of texts and authors, some familiar and some less well-known, and to raise questions and to illuminate another aspect of the late antique world.' Fiona K. Haarer, Histos
Book Information
ISBN 9781108481281
Author Peter Van Nuffelen
Format Hardback
Page Count 226
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 480g
Dimensions(mm) 235mm * 159mm * 15mm
