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Religion, Dynasty, and Patronage in Early Christian Rome, 300–900

Julia Hillner editor Kate Cooper editor

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Cambridge University Press

Published:11th Feb '10

Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back

Religion, Dynasty, and Patronage in Early Christian Rome, 300–900 cover

Discusses the transformation of Rome in late antiquity and the early Middle Ages.

Traces the central role played by aristocratic patronage in the transformation of the city of Rome at the end of antiquity. It moves away from privileging the administrative and institutional developments related to the rise of papal authority as the paramount theme in the city's post-classical history. Instead the focus shifts to the networks of reciprocity between patrons and their dependents. Using material culture and social theory to challenge traditional readings of the textual sources, the volume undermines the teleological picture of ecclesiastical sources such as the Liber Pontificalis, and presents the lay, clerical, and ascetic populations of the city of Rome at the end of antiquity as interacting in a fluid environment of alliance-building and status negotiation. By focusing on the city whose aristocracy is the best documented of any ancient population, the volume makes an important contribution to understanding the role played by elites across the end of antiquity.

"This volume contains scholarly and often innovative essays designed for scholars and late antiquity and the early Middle Ages." --H-Net
"This book is a major contribution to be consulted by anyone looking at Rome and its influence in the early Middle Ages." --Early Medieval Europe

ISBN: 9780521131278

Dimensions: 229mm x 152mm x 20mm

Weight: 510g

344 pages