Over the past fifty years, the history and culture of the Byzantine
empire has ceased to be the preserve of a few scholars and is now taught
and debated in universities all over the world. This book provides an
introduction to the source material and to the very best recent writing
on the empire's political history (306-1453), its art, army, religion,
literature and economy. Recent developments in gender studies and
archaeology are also explored. The book will be of interest to
university students and anyone interested in understanding the ongoing
debates about this mysterious and perplexing yet fascinating society.