Agents of Cohesion in the Governance of an Empire: the Anthropogeography of Byzantium, 7th to 12th centuriescore
Byz-GOVAG · Horizon Europe grant · 2026-05-01–2031-04-30
EC contribution
Total cost
Beneficiaries
About the data
Source: CORDIS (official EU open data), Horizon Europe. Framework HORIZON · call ERC-2024-ADG · scheme HORIZON-ERC · topic ERC-2024-ADG. CORDIS record →
Objective
Crucial to Byzantium’s survival against several post 6th-century external foes was the introduction of the theme-system (military-territorial units), which sealed its provincial administration for five centuries. The long debate on this institution, often biased by anachronistic evidence from literary sources, has gained new impetus through the study of seals, the tiny lead disks that the Byzantines used to secure and authenticate their correspondence. The plethora of irrefutable evidence that seals provide on the administrative nomenclature and the prosopography of high- and (the otherwise unattested) low-ranking officials, allow the in-depth analysis of a special group of individuals directly linked to the state, whose professional performance and unobstructed succession in office was a prerequisite for the Empire’s cohesion and well-being.An international team of researchers will apply a well-tested methodological model on the recording and analysis of seals to study relevant material in more than 100 collections worldwide (including hundreds of unpublished seals from Cyprus, Greece and Turkey) and offer in-depth prosopographic analysis of the officials who manned the themes and contributed to Byzantium’s long-lasting endurance. An innovative geo- and chrono-referenced database of seals with secure findspots will, for the first time, visualise the Byzantine correspondence network, and data on the iconography of the seals and the historical, archaeological and sigillographic profile of the thematic headquarters will further revolutionize our hitherto perception of the military, social and cultural history of Byzantium. Printed and online publications, three open access databases, an updated manual on dating criteria for seals, scientific meetings, exhibitions, and an educational programme (designed also for people with special needs) will disseminate the results of the project and guarantee their future use in the study of the European Middle Ages.
Beneficiaries (5)
| Organisation | Country | Role | EC contribution | SME |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ACADEMY OF ATHENS | EL | coordinator | €1,617,810 | |
| THE CYPRUS INSTITUTE | CY | participant | €377,000 | |
| BILKENT UNIVERSITESI VAKIF | TR | participant | €197,851 | |
| BENAKI MUSEUM | EL | participant | €160,160 | |
| YPOURGEIO POLITISMOU | EL | participant | €139,900 |
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