Suchergebnisse

The following article discusses the importance of the province of Fars/Persis as an important province and the Persian Gulf as an important entrep�t. The essay seeks to demonstrate that because of the Perso-Byzantine rivalry the amount of trade on the silk roads was reduced and consequently the amount of sea trade via the Persian Gulf was increased by the fifth and sixth centuries C.E. The campaign for controlling trade in silk and spices was taken to the seas, and Persian colonies were established as far away as Sri Lanka. Administrative seals and Sasanian silver coins also indicated a lively exchange of commodities and the presence of Persians in East Asia.

Abstract
In Renaissance Italy, the political power of authorities found one of its expressions in material symbols of sovereignty. The placing of inscriptions, sculptures and columns and the commissioning of frescoes in streets, piazzas and public spaces, for example, were essential ways of communicating political or spiritual authority to the populace. Sometimes perceived as representations of a top-down form of communication, in the urban context these same material emblems of power became political objects through which to express dissent, as in the case of public loggias, speaking statues or graffiti on walls and civic palaces. Presenting case-studies from various cities in northern Italy, this article investigates the dialectics between the people and the authorities in the urban fabric, especially in everyday life. Combining a spatial and a material approach to politics, this article reveals the dynamic and relational nature of political public spaces.

Fan fiction in antiquity suffers from a lack of certainty regarding what is canon: is what is now considered fan fiction really fan fiction, or is it another contemporary version of the canon? The concept of fan fiction thus ought to be combined with the idea of transmedia storytelling, building on snowball-effect stories. This approach is used in an analysis of how the saints in late antiquity became a characteristic of Christianity. This era used fan fiction–like texts describing saints' life stories; shrines and dedicated basilicas, which allowed distinct communities to gather and celebrate; pilgrimages, which combined adventure and biographical identification with the beloved saint; and pictures, relics, and pilgrim tokens. The Christian world in late antiquity has characteristics reminiscent of the universes created by transmedia storytelling, the aim of which is complete immersion in content.

AbstractThe Mediterranean economy was retracting from the mid-sixth century while the Sasanian economy was expanding. Six trends are identified during Late Antiquity that extended into the Islamic period: (1) the development and spread of large estates with tenant labor, (2) the monetization of the economy, (3) the development and spread of irrigated agriculture, (4) the revival of mining, (5) the emergence of merchant diasporas, and (6) the domination of Indian Ocean commerce by Persian shipping. It is argued that these trends were strongest in Sasanian territory where the economic system identified as "Islamic" originated. À partir du milieu du sixième siècle l'économie méditerranéenne connaissait une régression alors que celle de l'Empire sasanide était en plein essor. Durant l'époque de l'Antiquité tardive et au cours de la période islamique, six tendances peuvent être relevées: 1) le développement et la diffusion des grands domaines avec fermiers à bail; (2) la monétarisation de l'économie; (3) l'extension de l'agriculture irriguée; (4) la revivi fication du secteur minier; (5) l'émergence des diasporas commerciales; et (6) la domination commerciale de la marine perse dans l'Océan indien. Selon notre analyse, ces tendances étaient plus fortement ressenties en territoire sasanide où le système économique dit "islamique" connut le jour.