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Papers by Mark Whittow

Research paper thumbnail of How Much Trade was Local, Regional and Inter-Regional? A Comparative Perspective on the Late Antique Economy

Late Antique Archaeology, 2013

One question lies at the heart of a fundamental debate in the study of the Roman world in Late An... more One question lies at the heart of a fundamental debate in the study of the Roman world in Late Antiquity, namely whether the economy was essentially driven by state demand or the workings of the market. Although the growing volume of archaeological data has allowed a richer and more complex picture of the late antique economy, the fact that it can be harnessed by one side as well as the other, means that the debate itself has moved little further forward. For that we need the new models and new questions which can come from comparative approaches. Evidence from Late Medieval England is discussed here, with the suggestion that this rich material, long the focus of a sophisticated literature, has implications those who study Late Antiquity should not ignore.1 mark whittow case, published in 1937, that the Middle ages only began when the islamic conquests of the 7th c. split the then still vibrant economic unity of the roman Mediterranean.2 concentrating, however, on the decades since 1970, the debate can be summed up quite briefly. these were years that saw a transformation in our knowledge of late antiquity, associated now perhaps above all with the name of peter Brown. the very term 'late antique', which Brown popularised at the expense of 'late roman', 'early christian' or 'Byzantine', carried a newly positive message. a Gibbonian vision of decline and fall-of centuries when the qualities that had made rome great were diluted by a tide of christian superstition, leaving the romans of a lesser age impotent in the face of alien barbarian violence-gave way to enthusiastic appreciation.3 Barbarians continue to receive mixed press. Not everyone subscribes to W. Goffart's view that the 'barbarians' were as much roman as the romans they appear to have conquered, but christianity is now almost universally regarded as the most creative and successful of roman achievements.4 if european civilisation is built on that of rome, it now appears obvious that the rome involved was not that of augustus, cicero, the Institutes of Gaius, and classical urbanism, but that of constantine, augustine, the Justinianic code, and the church.5 ceramics and the late antique economy Key to the re-evaluation, or perhaps more accurately, key to its acceptance by more prosaic scholars than Brown, not easily moved to appreciate the scintillating merits of augustine and Jerome (and otherwise tempted to think that decline was a fair term for much that passed for art, literature and philosophy in this age of stylite saints and barbarian generalissimos), was the contemporary revolution in our knowledge of the economy. in the early 1970s, a. h. M. Jones' judgement appeared authoritative that, from the late 3rd c. onwards, the roman economy was progressively stagnating under the weight of exorbitant taxation and too many "idle mouths": soldiers, bureaucrats, and, most useless of all, growing hordes of monks . 5 Bowersock, Brown, Grabar (1999) vii-xiii.

Research paper thumbnail of Decline and Fall? Studying Long-Term Change in the East

Late Antique Archaeology, 2003

... recovery'as the 7th c. empire threw off its imperial burdens, Clive Foss&amp... more ... recovery'as the 7th c. empire threw off its imperial burdens, Clive Foss' seminal publications of the later 1970s introduced us to a'Byzantine economic collapse': a world where coinage almost disappears from the Byzantine countryside, where Roman pottery traditions come to an ...

Research paper thumbnail of The Middle Byzantine Economy (600–1204)

The Cambridge History of the Byzantine Empire c.500–1492, 2009

Research paper thumbnail of The late Roman/early Byzantine Near East

The New Cambridge History of Islam, 2010

Research paper thumbnail of Ruling the Late Roman and Early Byzantine City: A Continuous History

Past and Present, 1990

... RULING THE LATE ROMAN AND EARLY BYZANTINE CITY 15 The small city of Anemourion ... period, th... more ... RULING THE LATE ROMAN AND EARLY BYZANTINE CITY 15 The small city of Anemourion ... period, the evidence from recent Canadian excavations has shown that the city remained prosperous ... Over the Near East in general, other periods, classical and biblical, have usually ...

Research paper thumbnail of The Maeander valley in the Long Ancient World: or, Why bother with archaeology?. PETER THONEMANN, THE MAEANDER VALLEY. A HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY FROM ANTIQUITY TO BYZANTIUM (Greek Culture in the Roman World; Cambridge University Press 2011). Pp. xxv + 386, figs. 111, maps 13. ISBN 978-1-107-00688-1....

Journal of Roman Archaeology, 2013

Research paper thumbnail of Early Medieval Byzantium and the End of the Ancient World

Journal of Agrarian Change, 2009

Research paper thumbnail of Everything you always wanted to know about the history of Byzantium, 641–867 (but were afraid to ask) …

Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies, 2003

Prosopographie der mittelbyzantinischen Zeit, Erste Abteilung (641-867), ed. R.-J. Lilie, C. Ludw... more Prosopographie der mittelbyzantinischen Zeit, Erste Abteilung (641-867), ed. R.-J. Lilie, C. Ludwig, T. Pratsch, I. Rochow, B. Zielke, based on preparatory work by F. Winkelmann. Berlin: De Gruyter, 1998-2002. Prolegomena. Pp. xx, 333. Bd. I. Pp. xi, 674. Bd. II. Pp. 685. ...

Research paper thumbnail of The Oxford University/British Institute of Archaeology at Ankara Survey of Medieval Castles of Anatolia (1992) Mastaura Kalesi: A Preliminary Report

Anatolian Studies, 1993

... The team members were Dr. Mark Whittow (Director), Hugh Barnes (Surveyor), Katrina Batchelor,... more ... The team members were Dr. Mark Whittow (Director), Hugh Barnes (Surveyor), Katrina Batchelor, Kevin Chesters, Michael Harrington and Penelope Tunbridge. ... However the work of Bazzana, Cressier and Guichard has now conclusively disproved this view. ...

Research paper thumbnail of Rome and the Jafnids: Writing the History of a Sixth-Century Tribal Dynasty

Research paper thumbnail of “Rural Fortifications in Western Europe and Byzantium, 10th-12th century”, in Bosporos - Court, City and Country in Byzantium, ed. S. Eftymiades, C. Rapp, D. Tsougarakis (1995)

In 1992-warmly encouraged by Cyril Mango-Hugh Barnes and I, plus a team of Oxford undergraduates,... more In 1992-warmly encouraged by Cyril Mango-Hugh Barnes and I, plus a team of Oxford undergraduates, began what is planned in the first instance to be a five-year survey of five Byzantine castles in the Menderes region of western Turkey) One basic goal of the project is to assemble material for a corpus of Byzantine castles that will contribute towards a more reliable chronology and typology of these sites, but the end of the exercise is not a study of Byzantine military architecture as such. Rather we see fortifications as a reflection of other aspects of the society which produced them.

Reviews by Mark Whittow

Research paper thumbnail of Count Marcellinus and his chronicle. By Brian Croke. Pp. xvi+300 incl. 2 maps. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001. £45. 0 19 815001 6

The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2003

Research paper thumbnail of Ralph-Johannes Lilie, Byzanz: Das zweite Rom. Berlin: Siedler, 2003. Pp. 576 plus color maps on endpapers; black-and-white figures and maps

Research paper thumbnail of Die Städte Kleinasiens im 7. und 8. Jahrhundertby W. Brandes

Research paper thumbnail of The Huns, Rome and the Birth of Europe. By Hyun Jin Kim. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2013. pp. viii + 338. £60(hardback). ISBN 978 1 107 00906 6

Early Medieval Europe, 2014

Research paper thumbnail of Monks and laymen in Byzantium, 843–1118. By Rosemary Morris, Pp. xxii + 330 incl. 6 maps and 6 tables. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995. £40. 0521 26557 4

The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 1997

REVIEWS straightforward acceptance of Alan Harvey's views on economic trends in the tenth an... more REVIEWS straightforward acceptance of Alan Harvey's views on economic trends in the tenth and eleventh century, on the grounds that the conclusions are too dependent on the Athos materials, and then quite consciously bases her own analysis on much the same ...

Research paper thumbnail of Empereur et prêtre. Étude sur le ‘césaropapisme’ byzantin. By Gilbert Dagron. (Bibliothèque des histoires.) Pp. 435 incl. 6 figs. Paris: Éditions Gallimard, 1996. Fr. 180 2 07 074204 0

The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 1998

Research paper thumbnail of Christian dualist heresies in the Byzantine world c. 650–c. 1450. Translated and annotated by Janet Hamilton and Bernard Hamilton, with Yuri Stoyanov. (Manchester Medieval Sources.) Pp. xvii+327 incl. 2 maps. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1998. £45 (cloth), £16.99 (paper). 0 7190 4764 ...

The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 1999

Research paper thumbnail of A. J. Wharton, Refiguring the Post Classical City: Dura Europos, Jerash, Jerusalem and Ravenna. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995. Pp. xviii + 237, 50 illus., 1 map. ISBN 0-521-48185-6. £45.00

Journal of Roman Studies, 1998

Research paper thumbnail of J. Rich (ed.), The City in Late Antiquity (Leicester-Nottingham studies in ancient society III). London and New York: Routledge, 1992. Pp. X + 204, 3 maps, ISBN 0-415-06855-X. £35.00

Journal of Roman Studies, 1994

Research paper thumbnail of How Much Trade was Local, Regional and Inter-Regional? A Comparative Perspective on the Late Antique Economy

Late Antique Archaeology, 2013

One question lies at the heart of a fundamental debate in the study of the Roman world in Late An... more One question lies at the heart of a fundamental debate in the study of the Roman world in Late Antiquity, namely whether the economy was essentially driven by state demand or the workings of the market. Although the growing volume of archaeological data has allowed a richer and more complex picture of the late antique economy, the fact that it can be harnessed by one side as well as the other, means that the debate itself has moved little further forward. For that we need the new models and new questions which can come from comparative approaches. Evidence from Late Medieval England is discussed here, with the suggestion that this rich material, long the focus of a sophisticated literature, has implications those who study Late Antiquity should not ignore.1 mark whittow case, published in 1937, that the Middle ages only began when the islamic conquests of the 7th c. split the then still vibrant economic unity of the roman Mediterranean.2 concentrating, however, on the decades since 1970, the debate can be summed up quite briefly. these were years that saw a transformation in our knowledge of late antiquity, associated now perhaps above all with the name of peter Brown. the very term 'late antique', which Brown popularised at the expense of 'late roman', 'early christian' or 'Byzantine', carried a newly positive message. a Gibbonian vision of decline and fall-of centuries when the qualities that had made rome great were diluted by a tide of christian superstition, leaving the romans of a lesser age impotent in the face of alien barbarian violence-gave way to enthusiastic appreciation.3 Barbarians continue to receive mixed press. Not everyone subscribes to W. Goffart's view that the 'barbarians' were as much roman as the romans they appear to have conquered, but christianity is now almost universally regarded as the most creative and successful of roman achievements.4 if european civilisation is built on that of rome, it now appears obvious that the rome involved was not that of augustus, cicero, the Institutes of Gaius, and classical urbanism, but that of constantine, augustine, the Justinianic code, and the church.5 ceramics and the late antique economy Key to the re-evaluation, or perhaps more accurately, key to its acceptance by more prosaic scholars than Brown, not easily moved to appreciate the scintillating merits of augustine and Jerome (and otherwise tempted to think that decline was a fair term for much that passed for art, literature and philosophy in this age of stylite saints and barbarian generalissimos), was the contemporary revolution in our knowledge of the economy. in the early 1970s, a. h. M. Jones' judgement appeared authoritative that, from the late 3rd c. onwards, the roman economy was progressively stagnating under the weight of exorbitant taxation and too many "idle mouths": soldiers, bureaucrats, and, most useless of all, growing hordes of monks . 5 Bowersock, Brown, Grabar (1999) vii-xiii.

Research paper thumbnail of Decline and Fall? Studying Long-Term Change in the East

Late Antique Archaeology, 2003

... recovery'as the 7th c. empire threw off its imperial burdens, Clive Foss&amp... more ... recovery'as the 7th c. empire threw off its imperial burdens, Clive Foss' seminal publications of the later 1970s introduced us to a'Byzantine economic collapse': a world where coinage almost disappears from the Byzantine countryside, where Roman pottery traditions come to an ...

Research paper thumbnail of The Middle Byzantine Economy (600–1204)

The Cambridge History of the Byzantine Empire c.500–1492, 2009

Research paper thumbnail of The late Roman/early Byzantine Near East

The New Cambridge History of Islam, 2010

Research paper thumbnail of Ruling the Late Roman and Early Byzantine City: A Continuous History

Past and Present, 1990

... RULING THE LATE ROMAN AND EARLY BYZANTINE CITY 15 The small city of Anemourion ... period, th... more ... RULING THE LATE ROMAN AND EARLY BYZANTINE CITY 15 The small city of Anemourion ... period, the evidence from recent Canadian excavations has shown that the city remained prosperous ... Over the Near East in general, other periods, classical and biblical, have usually ...

Research paper thumbnail of The Maeander valley in the Long Ancient World: or, Why bother with archaeology?. PETER THONEMANN, THE MAEANDER VALLEY. A HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY FROM ANTIQUITY TO BYZANTIUM (Greek Culture in the Roman World; Cambridge University Press 2011). Pp. xxv + 386, figs. 111, maps 13. ISBN 978-1-107-00688-1....

Journal of Roman Archaeology, 2013

Research paper thumbnail of Early Medieval Byzantium and the End of the Ancient World

Journal of Agrarian Change, 2009

Research paper thumbnail of Everything you always wanted to know about the history of Byzantium, 641–867 (but were afraid to ask) …

Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies, 2003

Prosopographie der mittelbyzantinischen Zeit, Erste Abteilung (641-867), ed. R.-J. Lilie, C. Ludw... more Prosopographie der mittelbyzantinischen Zeit, Erste Abteilung (641-867), ed. R.-J. Lilie, C. Ludwig, T. Pratsch, I. Rochow, B. Zielke, based on preparatory work by F. Winkelmann. Berlin: De Gruyter, 1998-2002. Prolegomena. Pp. xx, 333. Bd. I. Pp. xi, 674. Bd. II. Pp. 685. ...

Research paper thumbnail of The Oxford University/British Institute of Archaeology at Ankara Survey of Medieval Castles of Anatolia (1992) Mastaura Kalesi: A Preliminary Report

Anatolian Studies, 1993

... The team members were Dr. Mark Whittow (Director), Hugh Barnes (Surveyor), Katrina Batchelor,... more ... The team members were Dr. Mark Whittow (Director), Hugh Barnes (Surveyor), Katrina Batchelor, Kevin Chesters, Michael Harrington and Penelope Tunbridge. ... However the work of Bazzana, Cressier and Guichard has now conclusively disproved this view. ...

Research paper thumbnail of Rome and the Jafnids: Writing the History of a Sixth-Century Tribal Dynasty

Research paper thumbnail of “Rural Fortifications in Western Europe and Byzantium, 10th-12th century”, in Bosporos - Court, City and Country in Byzantium, ed. S. Eftymiades, C. Rapp, D. Tsougarakis (1995)

In 1992-warmly encouraged by Cyril Mango-Hugh Barnes and I, plus a team of Oxford undergraduates,... more In 1992-warmly encouraged by Cyril Mango-Hugh Barnes and I, plus a team of Oxford undergraduates, began what is planned in the first instance to be a five-year survey of five Byzantine castles in the Menderes region of western Turkey) One basic goal of the project is to assemble material for a corpus of Byzantine castles that will contribute towards a more reliable chronology and typology of these sites, but the end of the exercise is not a study of Byzantine military architecture as such. Rather we see fortifications as a reflection of other aspects of the society which produced them.

Research paper thumbnail of Count Marcellinus and his chronicle. By Brian Croke. Pp. xvi+300 incl. 2 maps. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001. £45. 0 19 815001 6

The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2003

Research paper thumbnail of Ralph-Johannes Lilie, Byzanz: Das zweite Rom. Berlin: Siedler, 2003. Pp. 576 plus color maps on endpapers; black-and-white figures and maps

Research paper thumbnail of Die Städte Kleinasiens im 7. und 8. Jahrhundertby W. Brandes

Research paper thumbnail of The Huns, Rome and the Birth of Europe. By Hyun Jin Kim. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2013. pp. viii + 338. £60(hardback). ISBN 978 1 107 00906 6

Early Medieval Europe, 2014

Research paper thumbnail of Monks and laymen in Byzantium, 843–1118. By Rosemary Morris, Pp. xxii + 330 incl. 6 maps and 6 tables. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995. £40. 0521 26557 4

The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 1997

REVIEWS straightforward acceptance of Alan Harvey's views on economic trends in the tenth an... more REVIEWS straightforward acceptance of Alan Harvey's views on economic trends in the tenth and eleventh century, on the grounds that the conclusions are too dependent on the Athos materials, and then quite consciously bases her own analysis on much the same ...

Research paper thumbnail of Empereur et prêtre. Étude sur le ‘césaropapisme’ byzantin. By Gilbert Dagron. (Bibliothèque des histoires.) Pp. 435 incl. 6 figs. Paris: Éditions Gallimard, 1996. Fr. 180 2 07 074204 0

The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 1998

Research paper thumbnail of Christian dualist heresies in the Byzantine world c. 650–c. 1450. Translated and annotated by Janet Hamilton and Bernard Hamilton, with Yuri Stoyanov. (Manchester Medieval Sources.) Pp. xvii+327 incl. 2 maps. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1998. £45 (cloth), £16.99 (paper). 0 7190 4764 ...

The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 1999

Research paper thumbnail of A. J. Wharton, Refiguring the Post Classical City: Dura Europos, Jerash, Jerusalem and Ravenna. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995. Pp. xviii + 237, 50 illus., 1 map. ISBN 0-521-48185-6. £45.00

Journal of Roman Studies, 1998

Research paper thumbnail of J. Rich (ed.), The City in Late Antiquity (Leicester-Nottingham studies in ancient society III). London and New York: Routledge, 1992. Pp. X + 204, 3 maps, ISBN 0-415-06855-X. £35.00

Journal of Roman Studies, 1994

Research paper thumbnail of W. Brandes, Die Städte Kleinasiens im 7. und 8. Jahrhundert. Amsterdam: Gieben, 1989. Pp 2 maps, ISBN 90-5063-012-X. £30.75

Journal of Roman Studies, 1992

Research paper thumbnail of Refiguring the Post Classical City: Dura Europos, Jerash, Jerusalem and Ravenna

The Journal of Roman Studies, 1998

Research paper thumbnail of Walter E. Kaegi, Heraclius, Emperor of Byzantium. Cambridge, Eng.: Cambridge University Press, 2003. Pp. xii, 359; 6 black-and-white figures and 10 maps. $70

Research paper thumbnail of Aristocratie et pouvoir: Le role du chateau dans la France medievale

The English Historical Review, 2002

The English Historical Review (EHR) deals not only with British history, but also with almost all... more The English Historical Review (EHR) deals not only with British history, but also with almost all aspects of European and world history since the classical era. The EHR includes major Articles, 'Notes and Documents', and Debates on medieval and modern themes, as well ...

Research paper thumbnail of Britain after Rome: The Fall and Rise, 400-1070, by Robin Fleming

The English Historical Review, 2012

Research paper thumbnail of Christian dualist heresies in the Byzantine world c. 650–c. 1450. Translated and annotated by Janet Hamilton and Bernard Hamilton, with Yuri Stoyanov. (Manchester Medieval Sources.) Pp. xvii+327 incl. 2 maps. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1998. £45 (cloth), £16.99 (paper). 0 7190 4764 ...

The Journal of Ecclesiastical History

Research paper thumbnail of Dimitris Krallis, Michael Attaleiates and the Politics of Imperial Decline in Eleventh-Century Byzantium. (Medieval and Renaissance Texts and Studies 422; Medieval Confluences Series 2.) Tempe: Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, 2012. Pp. xlii, 293; 2 black-and-white figures and...

Research paper thumbnail of Empereur et prêtre. Étude sur le ‘césaropapisme’ byzantin. By Gilbert Dagron. (Bibliothèque des histoires.) Pp. 435 incl. 6 figs. Paris: Éditions Gallimard, 1996. Fr. 180 2 07 074204 0

The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, Jul 1, 1998

Research paper thumbnail of Beyond the cultural turn: economic history revived? CHRIS WICKHAM, FRAMING THE EARLY MIDDLE AGES. EUROPE AND THE MEDITERRANEAN, 400-800, (Oxford University Press 2005; paperback edition 2006). Pp. xxviii + 990, 13 maps. ISBN 0-19-921296-1; 978-0-19-921296-5 (paperback). £25

Journal of Roman Archaeology, 2007

Research paper thumbnail of Social and political structures in the Maeander region of western Asia Minor on the eve of the Turkish invasion

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oxford, 1987. In 2 vols.

Research paper thumbnail of The Making of Orthodox Byzantium, 600-1025

The Journal of Roman Studies, 1998

Research paper thumbnail of The Making of Byzantium, 600-1025

Research paper thumbnail of TRAVAUX ET MÉMOIRES | Tome XXI/1 | Οὗ δῶρόν εἰμι τὰς γραφὰς βλέπων νόει / Mélanges Jean-Claude Cheynet | édités par Béatrice Caseau, Vivien Prigent et Alessio Sopracasa

by Association des Amis du Centre d’Histoire et Civilisation de Byzance ACHCByz, Luisa Andriollo, Marie-Hélène Blanchet, Olivier Delouis, vincent deroche, Maria Gerolymatou, Michel Kaplan, Paul Magdalino, Smilja P Marjanović-Dušanić, Sophie Métivier, Annick PETERS-CUSTOT, Alessio Sopracasa, Constantin Zuckerman, and Mark Whittow

Mélanges Jean-Claude Cheynet, 2017

Pour leur savoir et leur enseignement, nous louons toujours les maîtres ; mais qui dira ce que le... more Pour leur savoir et leur enseignement, nous louons toujours les maîtres ; mais qui dira ce que les maîtres doivent à leurs disciples ? Dois-je avouer que je suis fière parce que mon premier élève en Sorbonne (c’était en 1967) fut Jean-Claude Cheynet ? À propos des mouvements de sédition fomentés par des étrangers, je lui avais alors demandé de traduire et de commenter le terme « ethnikos » mentionné dans le Stratégikon de Kékaumenos. Qui aurait pu prévoir, quelques années plus tard, quand Jean-Claude Cheynet commençait sa thèse d’État sur « Milieux et foyers de perturbations dans l’Empire byzantin (963-1210) », qu’il deviendrait le spécialiste incontesté de l’histoire mouvementée de la société byzantine, ainsi que le meilleur connaisseur de l’administration complexe mais efficace de l’Empire de Byzance ? Il y a réussi en se penchant sur la source quasi unique qui permet de connaître et d’éclairer cette question : les sceaux byzantins. Jean-Claude Cheynet, qui a succédé au maître incomparable de cette discipline, Nicolas Oikonomidès, reste aujourd’hui l’un des très rares défricheurs des secrets de la sigillographie byzantine. Mais pourquoi parler seulement de l’apport de Jean-Claude Cheynet à la connaissance de la société byzantine et de son évolution, quand l’étendue de ses travaux (près de deux cents titres de livres et d’articles) montre l’éventail impressionnant de ses intérêts ? Ceux-ci concernent tous les aspects de la vie de Byzance et cela pendant toute la durée de cet empire millénaire.
Jean-Claude Cheynet fait ainsi partie d’une espèce rare, celle des « byzantinistes complets ». Il connaît Byzance comme l’on connaît une personne aimée que l’on a fréquentée longtemps sans jamais être déçu. Il sait les rouages de l’administration, les méthodes de la diplomatie, les attitudes des dirigeants comme celles des simples citoyens du menu peuple ; il déchiffre les enjeux et les dangers de la politique étrangère, les relations avec l’Église et avec son clergé supérieur ; bref, il connaît Byzance de l’intérieur comme s’il y avait vécu. L’Empire byzantin n’a pas de secrets pour cet érudit passionné et passionnant. Il n’y a donc rien d’étonnant à ce qu’il ait su transmettre cette passion aux nombreux élèves qu’il a eus pendant sa longue et fructueuse carrière de professeur à la Sorbonne. Il est aussi symptomatique que Jean-Claude Cheynet n’ait pas hésité à consacrer du temps et des efforts continus au service de la byzantinologie. Il assura la direction de laboratoires scientifiques dépendant du CNRS ; il supervisa des éditions de documents, des études relatives aux sources historiques et fut responsable de revue ; enfin, il dirigea les thèses de jeunes byzantinistes qui continuent aujourd’hui son œuvre. En un mot, c’est un collègue estimé, un maître aimé et un savant accompli. La place de Jean-Claude Cheynet dans la hiérarchie du petit monde des byzantinistes (Roberto S. Lopez nous estimait un millier dans le monde) se trouve au sommet et y restera longtemps.

Hélène Ahrweiler