1st Edition
Famine and Pestilence in the Late Roman and Early Byzantine Empire A Systematic Survey of Subsistence Crises and Epidemics
By Dionysios Ch. Stathakopoulos
Copyright 2004
432 Pages
by
Routledge
432 Pages
by
Routledge
Also available as eBook on:
Famine and Pestilence in the Late Roman and Early Byzantine Empire presents the first analytical account in English of the history of subsistence crises and epidemic diseases in Late Antiquity. Based on a catalogue of all such events in the East Roman/Byzantine empire between 284 and 750, it gives an authoritative analysis of the causes, effects and internal mechanisms of these crises and... Read more
Contents: Preface; Introduction: Negotiating with the dead; Typology of Crises: The late Roman and early Byzantine empire; A quantitative overview; Subsistence crises: causes, location, duration and range: Nature-induced crises; Human-induced crises; Duration, location and range; Social response: Market activity; Response of authorities; Popular reaction; Epidemic diseases: Introduction; Smallpox; Infections of the gastro-intestinal tract; Other infectious diseases; Mass poisonings; The Justinianic plague: The chronology of the plague; The epidemiology of the plague; Was the Justinianic plague a pandemic of 'true plague'?; Social response; Results: Mortality; Shortage of human resources; Conclusion: 'History that stands still?'; Catalogue of Epidemics and Famines from 284 to 750 AD: Catalogue; Appendices; Bibliography; Index.
Biography
Dionysios Ch. Stathakopoulos
'Dionysios Stathakopoulos's new book [...] is a feast and a blessing... unique, thorough, and extremely welcome analytical compendium of famine and disease crises in the ancient world.' Speculum
