13-47

The eco-geographical organization of the provincia Europa in the early byzantine period

Συνεργασίες

• Δρακούλης, Δημήτρης

The aim of the paper is to contribute to the study of the Provincia Europa in the early Byzantine period (4th-6th century AD) from a historical geographical viewpoint. Three historical cross sections have been attempted in order to clarify the administrative transformations of the province: a) in the 4 th century (source: Laterculus Veronensis), b) in the 5th century (source: Notitia Dignitatum) and c) in the 6 th century (source: the Synekdemos of Hierocles). A digital cartographic representation of the historical topography was created in order to describe and clarify the regional context. An accompanying database was also constructed in order to classify the provincial settlements according to historical -cultural and geographical- spatial criteria. The first set of criteria is related to parameters and variables such as the date of foundation, continuous presence in five historical periods (Archaic -Classical-Hellenistic-Roman - Early Byzantine), ancient and modern place names. The second set of criteria is related to the location of the settlement and uses parameters and variables such as geomorphology, water elements, communication networks and presence of a nodal point or port. The final object of the paper is a structured synthesis of knowledge regarding the distinctive features of the settlement network of Europa and the correlation of this information with the dynamic parts of the system, i.e. communication networks and cultural exchanges. It is argued that the spatial organization of the Provincia Europa is analyzed better through the methodological «deconstruction» in smaller units, which constitute the intra-provincial eco-geographical and cultural landscapes. The study of the early Byzantine administrative and spatial structures has to take into account the internal geographical landscapes. This approach should not be based on a general description of settlements, as in the case of the last Tabula Imperii Byzantini 12, but in a concrete and extensive analysis of particular landscapes that constitute the Province and allow the emergence of particular features in distinguishable historical sections.

• History and Archaeology

• Ιστορική γεωγραφία
• Πολιτισμός, Βυζαντινός

Περιέχει χάρτες, πίνακες και σημειώσεις, Το κείμενο αυτό συμπληρώνει την προηγηθείσα «Συμβολή στη μελέτη της Επαρχίας Βιθυνίας κατά την Πρώιμη Βυζαντινή Περίοδο» που δημοσιεύτηκε στο Θ. Κορρές, Π. Κατσώνη, I. Λεοντιάδης και Α. Γκουτζιουκώστας (επιμ.), Φιλοτιμία. Τιμητικός Τόμος για την Ομότιμη Καθηγήτρια Αλκμήνη Σταυρίδου - Ζαφράκα, Θεσσαλονίκη 2011, 147-72 και ολοκληρώνει την μελέτη της ασιατικής και ευρωπαϊκής ενδοχώρας της Κωνσταντινούπολης. Για μια συνολική περιφερειακή σύνθεση, βλ. D. P. Drakoulis, «European and Asiatic Settlements of the Bosporus Hinterland in the Early Byzantine Period» στο G. Tsetskhladze (επιμ.), The Bosporus: Gateway between the Ancient West and East (1st Millennium BC - 5th Century AD), British Archaeological Reports, Archaeopress, Oxford (υπό έκδοση).