This book accounts for the tumultuous period of the fifth to eleventh centuries from the Fall of Rome and the collapse of the Western Roman Empire through the breakup of the Eastern Roman Empire and loss of pan-Mediterranean rule, until the Turks arrived and seized Anatolia. The volume is divided into a dozen syntheses that each addresses an issue of intrigue for the archaeology of Anatolia, and two dozen case studies on single sites that exemplify its richness. Anatolia was the only major part of the Roman Empire that did not fall in late antiquity; it remained steadfast under Roman rule through the eleventh century. Its personal history stands to elucidate both the emphatic impact of Roman administration in the wake of pan-Mediterranean collapse. Thanks to Byzantine archaeology, we now know that urban decline did not set in before the fifth century, after Anatolia had already be thoroughly Christianized in the course of the fourth century; we know now that urban decline, as it occurred from the fifth century onwards, was paired with rural prosperity, and an increase in the number, size, and quality of rural settlements and in rural population; that this ruralization was halted during the seventh to ninth centuries, when Anatolia was invaded first by the Persians, and then by the Arabs---and the population appears to have sought shelter behind new urban fortifications and in large cathedrals. Further, it elucidates that once the Arab threat had ended in the ninth century, this ruralization set in once more, and most cities seem to have been abandoned or reduced to villages during the ensuing time of seeming tranquility, whilst the countryside experienced renewed prosperity; that this trend was reversed yet again, when the Seljuk Turks appeared on the scene in the eleventh century, devastated the countryside and led to a revival and refortification of the former cities. This dynamic historical thread, traced across its extremes through the lens of Byzantine archaeology, speaks not only to the torrid narrative of Byzantine Anatolia, but to the enigmatic medievalization.
The urban decline, when it occurred from the fifth century onwards, was paired with rural prosperity, an increase in the number, size, and quality of rural settlements and in rural population. This work examines this topic
Professor Foss has been a leading figure in pointing out to Byzantinists the necessity of taking archaeological evidence into account when making any historical reconstruction. These studies have as their...
'Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine coin finds, 1987–2006, in C. Katsari et al. eds., The Amorium mint and the coin finds (Amorium Reports 4. Berlin): 127–165 2003. Stone screw press weights, in C. S. Lightfoot, ed., Amorium reports II: ...
The essays cover a wide period, ranging from the third to the fifteenth century.
These essays deal with the history and archaeology of Byzantine Asia Minor from the 4th to the 14th century. They include regional surveys of the southwest (Lycia and Pamphylia) and...
These archaeological guides are written by well known archaeologists with the thought that they might evoke the spirit of these places for those who are interested in remains of Anatolian civilizations.
His current work considers the impact of urbanism on local economies and the natural environment. ... 2021); Agricultural Sustainability and Environmental Change at Ancient Gordion (University of Pennsylvania Museum Press, 2017).
In this book Greek, Roman, and Byzantine bronzes from Anatolia and neighbouring regions are studied. The research focuses on bronze and other metal finds from several ancient sites of Asia Minor and other regions in the Mediterranean.
1: The Foundations of Research and Regional Survey in the Tsaghkahovit Plain, Armenia, ed. Adam T. Smith, Ruben S. Badalyan, and Pavel Avetisyan. Oriental Institute Publications 134. Chicago: Oriental Institute. ——— . Forthcoming.
This book is a publication of the acts of a symposium held at the NINO in 2008 on the archaeology of the countryside in medieval Anatolia. The articles examine different...