A conversation with Anna Sitz (Universität Heidelberg) on how Byzantines read ancient inscriptions - or modified, re-used, and defaced them. Ancient cities were full of inscribed texts, many on temple walls or referring to the gods in prominent ways. How did Christians cope with these monuments when they took over the cities of Greece and Asia Minor? We talk about a number of cases, including the massive inscription of Augustus' Res Gestae in Ankara. The conversation is based on Anna's book Pagan Inscriptions, Christian Viewers: The Afterlives of Temples and Their Texts in the Late Antique Eastern Mediterranean (Oxford University Press 2023).
41. Ravenna, capital of empire between east and west, with Judith Herrin
40. Byzantine tales of horror and the macabre
39. The monastic experience, with Alice-Mary Talbot
38. Manuscripts, databases, and the joys of Byzantine literature, with Dave Jenkins
37. The study of Byzantine skeletons, with Chryssa Bourbou
36. Slavery in late antiquity and Byzantium, with Noel Lenski
35. Theophano: A Byzantine Tale, with Spyros Theocharis and Chrysa Sakel
34. An antidote to toxic medievalism, with Amy Kaufman and Paul Sturtevant
33. The study of ethnic identities in Byzantium and beyond (Listener Questions II), with Brian Swain
32. Anastasius the Librarian, the greatest enemy of Byzantium you probably haven't heard of, with Réka Forrai
31. Ethnicity and empire in China and Byzantium, with Shao-yun Yang and Ying Zhang
30. Byzantium in modern Greek life (Listener Questions I), with Dimitris Krallis
29. The many identities of Hagia Sophia, past and present, with Bob Ousterhout
28. How we choose our research topics, with Tia Kolbaba
27. The hidden treasures of sigillography, with Jonathan Shea
26. Homer in Byzantium, with Baukje van den Berg
25. Disability in Byzantium, with Christian Laes
24. Social class in Byzantium, with Efi Ragia
23. Digital humanities and Byzantium, with Kuba Kabala
22. Social distancing in early Byzantium, with Ellen Muehlberger and David Brakke
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