Fravitta and Barbarian Career Opportunities in Constantinople

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica, 2024

This study explores the ethnic origins and identity of the Radagaisus’ army that invaded Italy in the early fifth century. Despite the fact that his people were referred to by the Romans as the Goths, their true identity remains unclear. Analysis of archaeological and historical sources suggests that Radagaisus and his men came from the northeastern part of the Great Danube Plain. Thus, they most probably were part of the Sarmatians and the Victohali tribe. The study also examines how tribal identities were shaped and redefined in the sources in the context of political and cultural changes. This case contributes to the broader discussion of barbarian tribal ethnicity and identity in Late Antiquity

Amsterdamer Beiträge zur älteren Germanistik, 2020

The present article deals with the literary image of a Gothic man who happened to be in Edessa in the 5th century AD as a part of Roman auxiliary troops. He is reported to marry there a local girl under pretext of being a celibatarian. Having left Syria for Gothia, it turned out that he was married and had children. The Syrian wife became a slave and suffered a lot before returning miraculously back to Edessa. From the comparative study of the sources it becomes clear that the Gothic auxiliary troops were summoned to Edessa in connection with the advance of the Huns. Notwithstanding the common equation of Goths and Getae, the Gothic soldier in question was Germanic and not Getan (Dacian). The last question is the character of the marriage gift he presented for his temporary marriage.

2018

The topic of this paper is complementary to Nicola di Cosmo's contribution on 'China-steppe relations in comparative perspective'; the theoretical framework he has presented is also useful to the study the Roman Empire. Similar to Nicola di Cosmo, I am going to argue that we should not take the basically useful shorthand dualism-'Romans/barbarians'-for granted. Unlike him, I cannot resort to the 'steppe' as a rather neutral common denominator for the populations beyond Rome's frontiers, because many of the European barbarians lived in different ecological zones. I will call all these 'others' 'barbarians' although this is problematic. I am aware that this term was coined in a derogatory sense, and can still be used in that way. However, for want of a better designation it has become a household term in research about European Late Antiquity, and is intended in a purely descriptive sense. Greek and Roman Antiquity coined both the words for 'empire' and for the 'barbarians' still used in most European languages, and created their juxtaposition, so it is hard to avoid using this scheme. The cultural significance of perceptions of alterity in Antiquity is still a matter of intense research and controversial debate. Benjamin Isaac has collected considerable material about prejudices against Jews and barbarians and interpreted it as "the invention of racism". 2 Erich S. Gruen, on the contrary, has tried to show "that ancient societies, while certainly acknowledging differences among peoples (indeed occasionally emphasizing them) could also visualize themselves as part of a broader cultural heritage, could discover or invent links with other societies, and could couch their own historical memories in terms of a borrowed or appropriated past." 3 These two influential studies taken together mark out a wide range of cultural practices, perceptions, conflicts, interactions, exchanges and xenophobic reactions. Rather than controversial debate (was it racism or not?), what we need is differentiation. Greek/Roman-barbarian relations need to be set in different contexts in which they mattered:

"In 540, after several years of warfare between the Emperor Justinian’s invading eastern Roman forces and those of the Ostrogoths defending Italy, the re-conquering commander, Belisarius, was offered the opportunity of an odd alliance during his siege of the Ostrogothic capital, Ravenna. The proposal was for the Ostrogothic king, Witigis, to surrender Ravenna and abdicate and for the enemy general, Belisarius, to accept the crown of the Ostrogoths. This paper will explore the origins of this proposed odd alliance between two enemy leaders of armies at war. It will discuss the reasons that lay behind the proposed alliance, the consequences of it and the extent of its significance. The methodological approach to explore this odd alliance will consist of an analysis of the primary and secondary textual sources."

Scandinavian Journal of Bzyantine and Modern Greek Studies, 2020

Review essay of Anthony Kaldellis, Romanland. Ethnicity and Empire in Byzantium. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press 2019. 373 pp. – ISBN: 978-0-674-98651-0, and Roland Betancourt, Byzantine Intersectionality. Sexuality, Gender, and Race in the Middle Ages. Princeton, New Jersey – London: Princeton University Press 2020. 288 pp., 58 illus. – ISBN: 978-0-691-17945-2

Marking the North: The Greek Tradition and Its Influence in the Roman Period, edited by Antti Lampinen, 2025

This chapter contextualises the appearance of torques, thick metal neck rings associated with and worn by barbarian (non-Roman) groups, in Theodosian imperial iconography. I argue that this iconographical novelty was introduced in the context of Theodosian propaganda about the 382 CE peace treaty between Romans and Goths, which ended the Gothic War (376–382). After 382, imperial bodyguards are customarily represented with torques, which function as an ethnic marker identifying their wearer as a barbarian. The introduction of the torque as an ethnic marker on the iconography of the imperial bodyguard should be understood, at least at its inception during the reign of Theodosius, as an attempt to broadcast the various ways in which barbarians could successfully contribute to the economy and safety of the Roman Empire.

2022

Greek Roman and Byzantine Studies, 2003