The Aletheia publishing house has published new items in the series “New Byzantine Library. Research. Free electronic library. Download books for free! Byzantine library series

14.02.2024

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In 2017, the Aletheia publishing house (St. Petersburg), specializing in publishing books on the main sections of the humanities, continues to publish the series of books “New Byzantine Library. Research".

Since the beginning of the year, several new products in this series have been published.

History of the Byzantine Empire
Vasiliev Alexander Alexandrovich

“History of the Byzantine Empire” by A.A. Vasilyeva is one of the unique phenomena in the history of historical thought. There are very few general histories of Byzantium written by one researcher. “History of the Byzantine Empire” is an excellent example of a general work, which briefly, clearly, with a large number of references to the main sources and research, characterizes all periods of the history of Byzantium. Foreign policy history is presented by A.A. Vasiliev completely. The problems of internal history are treated unevenly, although the main problems of the internal life of each period are touched upon or mentioned.
The first volume examines the history of the Byzantine Empire from the time of Constantine the Great to the beginning of the era of the Crusades.
The second volume examines the history of the Byzantine Empire from the beginning of the Crusades to the fall of Constantinople.

Christian antiquities
Leonid Andreevich Belyaev

The book consists of essays on the history of the study of antiquities of Christian civilization from its origins in late antiquity to the late medieval period in Europe, Asia and North Africa. At the same time, special excursions are being introduced that examine in detail the most controversial issues, as well as monuments, types of structures or artifacts. The study is designed as informative; Foreign research literature (before 1998) and historiographical works with similar themes are widely used. There is no complete analogy to the book either in Russia or abroad.
The reference apparatus includes indexes, including terminological ones. Designed for students of a wide range of humanities disciplines: cultural history, art history (especially architecture, applied art, iconography), history of religion, archeology, as well as world and domestic history (late antiquity and Byzantium, Western European Middle Ages, Ancient Rus').

Legal culture of the Byzantine Empire
Medvedev Igor Pavlovich

The book was published to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the “Byzantine Library” series, within the framework of which the Aletheia publishing house is reissuing the rarest books in the series in a memorial edition.
The Byzantine Empire was a state that created a brilliant, advanced culture throughout the Middle Ages, the most important component of which was legal culture. The book by I.P. Medvedev develops the concept of Byzantinism as a cultural system based on the principles of law, moreover, civilized, written law, which presupposed a high level of legal thinking and general education. The controversial issues of the legal foundations of Byzantine statehood, individual stages in the development of Byzantine legislation and jurisprudence, the system of legal education, the history of Byzantine legal proceedings, notaries, etc. are considered. The basis of the book consists of materials previously published by the author in various publications, appropriately supplemented, revised and combined into a single system.
The publication is intended for a wide range of readers interested in the history of law.

Essays on the history of Byzantium and the South Slavs
Litavrin Gennady Grigorievich, Kazhdan Alexander Petrovich

“Essays on the History of Byzantium and the Southern Slavs” was written by order of the State Educational and Pedagogical Publishing House of the Ministry of Education of the RSFSR in 1958 as a textbook on the medieval history of the Balkan Peninsula and Asia Minor. Until the departure of A.P. Kazhdan to the USA in 1978, the book was on the list of educational literature at the Faculty of History of Moscow State University.
"Essays" do not contain a systematic and comprehensive presentation of historical material. The authors sought to provide lively and fascinating information: it is for this purpose that the book provides a description of the geographical environment, a description of the life of the village and city, and a detailed account of such significant events as the popular uprising in Thessaloniki and the fall of Constantinople.

Byzantium, Bulgaria, Ancient Rus'. IX-early XII century.

In the book of the outstanding Russian Byzantinist G.G. Litavrin talks about the formation of Ancient Rus' as a powerful cultural power and the influence of Byzantium and Bulgaria on this process.
As the author himself writes, “the main goal of this book is not to trace the very process and circumstances of the baptism of Rus', but to show how, despite all the vicissitudes and difficulties in relations with the Byzantine Empire, Russia’s adoption of Christianity from it became inevitable... The entire course of formation and development of the Ancient Russian state and its very geopolitical position determined the historical pattern that made Byzantium the “godmother” of Ancient Rus'...”
The monograph includes revised and expanded articles by G.G. Litavrin, published in 1970-90. for the widest range of readers.

Military organization of the Byzantine Empire
Kuchma Vladimir Vasilievich

The book is the first thematic collection of articles in Russian historiography devoted to the problems of the military organization of the Byzantine Empire. The main sources of the study are monuments of Byzantine military scientific literature, based on centuries-old ancient tradition.
The principles of military theory are considered in inextricable connection with combat practice, against the general background of the socio-economic, political and state-legal development of the Empire.
For specialist historians and a wide range of readers interested in the history of wars and military art.

Byzantium and the Slavs
Litavrin Gennady Grigorievich

In the collection of the outstanding Byzantine scholar, academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences G.G. Litavrin four sections. The first contains articles on the most controversial problems of the socio-economic history of Byzantium (about small and large land ownership and the rights of its inheritance, about the tax system of the empire, the conditions of craft and trade activity in the Byzantine city and about its relations with Latins and Ottomans). The second section is devoted to the history of the First and Second Bulgarian Kingdoms. Social problems also prevail here, but special attention is also paid to the issues of relations between the Slavs and the Proto-Bulgarians and Byzantium. The third section includes articles on Russian-Byzantine relations in the 9th–12th centuries. and, finally, the fourth reveals a number of controversial or little-known episodes from the history of relations between the ancient Slavs and the Avars and the Byzantine Empire in the 7th–9th centuries.
The book will be of interest not only to specialists, but also to a wide range of readers.

Byzantine essays

Since 1961, Byzantine essays have traditionally been published by Russian scholars for the International Congresses of Byzantine Studies. This issue was prepared for the XXIII International Congress in Belgrade. It includes articles reflecting the results of the latest research by Russian scientists into the problems of social, political, ethnic and cultural history of Byzantium, as well as problems of source study and historiography.
In accordance with the principle adopted in this series, most of the articles are profiled taking into account the main theme of the upcoming congress and are devoted to the history of Byzantine civilization as a living organism, appearing united in its development.

Alfeev I. Life and teaching of St. Gregory the Theologian. (fb2)
Bezobrazov P., Lyubarsky Y. Two books about Mikhail Psellus - 2001. (djvu)
Bibikov M. Byzantine sources on the history of ancient Rus' and the Caucasus - 2001. (djvu)
Bibikov M. Historical literature of Byzantium - 1998. (djvu)
Budanova V. Gorsky A. Ermolova I. Great Migration of Peoples. (fb2)
Budanova V. Goths in the era of the Great Migration - 2001. (djvu)
Vasiliev A. History of the Byzantine Empire in 2 volumes. T. 1. (rtf)
Vasiliev A. History of the Byzantine Empire in 2 volumes. T. 2. (rtf)
Byzantine historians about the fall of Constantinople in 1453. - 2006. (djvu)
Byzantine essays. Works of Russian scientists for the XXI International Congress of Byzantinists - 2006. (djvu)
Dionysius the Areopagite. Maxim the Confessor. Essays. Interpretations - 2002. (djvu)
Zanemonets A. John Eugenicus and Orthodox resistance to the Florentine Union - 2008. (pdf)
Hegumen Hilarion (Alfeev). Venerable Simeon the New Theologian and Orthodox Tradition - 2001. (doc)
Kazhdan A. Byzantine culture X-XII centuries - 2006. (djvu)
Kazhdan A. Two days in the life of Constantinople. (fb2)
Kazhdan A. History of Byzantine literature (850-1000) - 2012. (djvu)
Karpov S. History of the Trebizond Empire - 2007. (djvu)
Karpov S. Latin Romania - 200. (djvu)
Kekavmen - Tips and stories. 2nd ed. - 2003. (djvu)
Klimanov L. Byzantine reflections in sphragistics. (pdf)
Komnena A. Alexiad - 1996. (djvu)
Krivushin I. Early Byzantine church historiography - 1998. (djvu)
Kulakovsky Yu. History of Byzantium, vol. 1. - 2003. (djvu)
Kulakovsky Yu. History of Byzantium, vol. 2. - 1996. (djvu)
Kulakovsky Yu. History of Byzantium, vol. 3 - 1996. (djvu)
Kuchma V. Military organization of the Byzantine Empire - 2001. (pdf)
Lebedev A. Historical sketches of the state of the Byzantine-Eastern Church - 1998. (djvu)
Lebedev A. History of the Councils of Constantinople of the 9th century. (fb2)
Medvedev I. Byzantine humanism XIV-XV centuries - 1997. (djvu)
Medvedev I. Petersburg Byzantine Studies - 2006. (djvu)
Medvedev I. Legal culture of the Byzantine Empire - 2001. (djvu)
About strategy. Byzantine military treatise VI century - 2007. (djvu)
Orosius P. History against the pagans. (rtf)
Easter Chronicle - 2004. (djvu)
Przhegorlinsky A. Byzantine church at the turn of the XIII-XIV centuries. - 2011. (pdf)
The successor of Feofan. Lives of Byzantine kings - 2009. (djvu)
Prokhorov G. Rus' and Byzantium in the era of the Battle of Kulikovo. Articles - 2000. (djvu)
Rudakov A. Essays on Byzantine culture according to hagiography - 1997. (djvu)
Skrzhinskaya E.Ch. Rus', Italy and Byzantium in the Middle Ages. - 2000. (djvu)
Strategikon Mauritius - 2004. (djvu)
Taft R. Byzantine Church Rite - 2000. (djvu)
Khvostova K. Byzantine civilization as a historical paradigm - 2009. (djvu)
Chichurov I.S. (ed.) Avtibwpov. To the 75th anniversary of Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Gennady Grigorievich Litavrin - 2003. (djvu)
Shukurov R. Great Komnenos and the East (1204-1461) - 2001. (pdf)

Description:
The Byzantine Library is a series of the Aletheia publishing house, which published books dedicated to the history of Byzantium. It published modern popular science and scientific books by contemporary Russian and foreign scientists involved in the history of Byzantium, as well as translations of traditional Byzantine works.
Here are 44 volumes of the series.

Target

Introduce children to the history of the Byzantine Empire, from which Russians were baptized into the Orthodox faith, icons and holy books.

Equipment

For students: pencils and albums.

The librarian talks about Byzantine libraries, the children draw “Byzantine” fortresses, palaces, book depositories in their albums according to their ideas.

Information for teachers

In 660 BC. The noble sailor and skilled commander Byzantium founded a city on the European shore of the Bosphorus and named it by his own name - Byzantium. But in 325 AD. Emperor Constantine decided to move the capital of the empire from Rome to the border of Europe and Asia. His choice fell on the city of Byzantium. In its place, the “city of Constantine” arose - Constantinople. Famous architects, sculptors, stonemasons, and carpenters were brought in to build the city. To decorate the new capital, the old one was robbed - a huge number of statues were taken from Rome. Almost all major cities of the empire were forced to give away their beautiful sculptures. In 395, the Roman Emperor Theodosius the Great divided the empire between his sons - Honorius received the West and Rome, Arcadius received the East and Constantinople, which became the capital of Byzantium. During the reign of Emperor Justinian, the capital was decorated with new palaces, harbors, baths, and the Great Palace was rebuilt. On his order, the Church of St. Sophia was built - the greatest creation of Byzantine architecture of the 6th century. “This temple presented a wonderful sight - to those who looked at it it seemed exceptional, to those who heard about it - completely incredible. It rises in height as if to the sky, and, like a ship on the high waves of the sea, stands out among other buildings, as if bending over the rest of the city, decorating it and, as an integral part of it, itself is decorated by it. He was famous for his indescribable beauty.”

Constantinople was the center of political power, education and culture. The emperor's court, government agencies, the patriarchal office were located here; the best scientists, writers, artists, and jewelers were here. Education was quite good - not only primary, elementary, but also higher. The university taught Greek and Latin grammar, Greek and Latin eloquence, law and philosophy. The opening of the university took place in 425 by decree of Theodosius II. Naturally, the book was of paramount importance in the cultural life of the empire. Having officially recognized Christianity, Emperor Constantine himself ordered the production of 50 copies of the Bible. Books of secular content were also needed. The development of mathematics, astronomy, alchemy and other sciences required attention. A significant number of educated people who had previously lived in Rome moved to the new capital. Naturally, when they moved, they took their libraries with them.

Along with the emergence of Constantinople, writing workshops and scriptoria arose. It was at this time that the codex replaced the scroll. This transition to a new form of handwritten book was reflected in the work methods of copyists. Ancient calligraphers did not use tables; they worked with papyrus on their knees, and for convenience they placed a small bench under their feet. Scriptoria of various monasteries, educational institutions, state and private writing workshops from century to century accumulated book treasures, preserved and increased spiritual wealth, distributing books not only in the capital, but throughout the empire and neighboring states. D.S. Likhachev wrote: “The Byzantine handwritten book, in terms of the perfection of its artistic design, the beauty of the letters in the text, and the elegance of the binding, can be considered as one of the remarkable phenomena of medieval art.” A remarkable feature of the Constantinople manuscripts is the harmonious connection between image, decor and text. The color of the parchment, the shade of ferrous ink, the colors of the miniatures, the shine of gold - everything was taken into account by the craftsmen.

It is characteristic that the state scriptorium and the imperial library became the central scientific institutions of the capital over the centuries. These two institutions were closely related. The scriptorium worked to replenish the library's collections, and the library itself kept samples for copying and translation. Let us note that the book industry in Constantinople knew periods of rise and fall, and could not do without the massive destruction of libraries and book treasures. According to legend, Emperor Leo III burned the high school building along with teachers and books. This happened in 726.

As for the imperial library, there is no exact information about its location. Perhaps the books were in the emperor's chambers, in palace storerooms, in temples. One of the documents indicates that the main part was located in a stone loggia near the entrance to the palace. There were stone benches along the walls of the loggia, and slabs placed on low stands served as tables; the tables were adjacent to one another. The books were located in cabinets, in special boxes, and in vessels. The sovereign's chambers, the walls of which were covered with mosaics and frescoes, were not furnished - cabinets were arranged in wall niches.

There were both public and patriarchal libraries in Constantinople, but the Studite Monastery rightfully occupied the lead in the number of books produced, their high quality, and cultural influence on many countries. Founded it back in the 5th century. Roman patrician Roman Studio. All manuscripts of the Studite Monastery are parchment; writing material of very high quality was produced in the monastery. Next to the large scriptorium there was a library in which the monks were supposed to spend holidays. The abbot of the monastery, Theodore the Studite (759–826), one of the most educated people of his time, introduced a strict charter, which, among other instructions, specified the rules of conduct for a scribe and the duties of a book guardian.

? What rules were written in the charter, in your opinion?

“You should know that on those days in which we are free from bodily affairs, the book guardian hits the tree (beat, hanging board) once, and the brethren gather in the book guard room, and each takes a book and reads until the evening. Before riveting, the book attendant hits the lampstand again one day, and everyone comes and returns the books according to the appointment.”

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It is important for us that the charter of this monastery had a great influence on our library work. In 1062, the abbot of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery, Theodosius, sent his representative to the Studite Monastery to write off the charter. And this charter successfully spread throughout the Russian monasteries.

The transition from the ancient world to the Middle Ages was less dramatic in Byzantium, a state with a thousand-year history (IV-XV centuries), formed during the collapse of the Roman Empire in its eastern part (Balkan Peninsula, Asia Minor, southeastern Mediterranean). The culture of Byzantium was a synthesis of ancient, eastern and early Christian cultures. The Christian rulers of Byzantium were tolerant of pagan culture and did not completely abandon the heritage of antiquity. Greek was the official and most widespread language of the empire, therefore the works of the great Greeks of antiquity were publicly available, enjoyed honor and were the basis of education. All this contributed to the creation of favorable conditions for the development of culture.

Literacy was widespread in the empire. There were numerous primary and secondary schools. Already from the 4th century, universities were opened, not only in the capital, but also in the provinces.

Libraries played an important role in the intellectual life of Byzantium. One of the most famous was the imperial library, created in the 4th century by Emperor Constantine I the Great. His descendants continued to take care of the library and by the end of the 5th century it represented a significant collection of about 120 thousand books. Among the book rarities were lists of Homer's poems, written in gold letters on snakeskin. Scientists were invited to rewrite books and generally maintain the library's collections at a high level. This state of affairs was consistent with ancient tradition.

In the middle of the 4th century, the son of Constantine the Great, Constantius II, founded a state scriptorium in the capital. “ Scriptor" in Latin means “ scribe”, and the word itself “ scriptorium” means a workshop for creating handwritten books. The emperor appointed the head of the scriptorium - a special official - the archon, under whose command there were many calligraphers.

Constantius II was the creator of the Constantinople Public Library, the first public library of the Middle Ages. It was famous for its rich funds and existed, according to some sources, until the fall of the Byzantine Empire.

Along with the imperial and public libraries, there were libraries of religious institutions, educational institutions and private individuals.

There were book collections in all churches and monasteries. We have received information about the library of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, the libraries of the Studite and Athos monasteries. The Patriarchal Library existed at least from the 7th century. Its collection was predominantly of a religious nature, but in addition to books consecrated by the church, there were also works of “heretical” content. They were stored in special boxes, separate from the works of orthodox authors. It is known that some monasteries in the capital practiced issuing books to the laity.

Unlike Western Europe, in Byzantium, where the monarchy was strong, the church did not have a monopoly on education. Numerous secular educational institutions had their own libraries, since teaching was inextricably linked with books. But of all these libraries, the library of the University of Constantinople, created at the beginning of the 5th century, stands out. It was in charge of a special servant, who was called “ bibliophile"  .

Byzantium was also famous for its private book collections. Not only emperors, nobles and church hierarchs had personal libraries, but also scientists, professors, and teachers. The richest book lovers often, when ordering a book from a copyist, specifically specified the elements of its design. The main attention was paid to ornamentation and binding, for the manufacture of which ivory, gold, enamel and precious stones were used.

Among the Byzantine book collectors, the first attempt in the Middle Ages to provide a bibliographic description of the collection was made. One of the most educated Byzantines of the 9th century, Patriarch Photius, wrote the essay “ Myriobiblion”, which means “ Books of a thousand" This was a description of more than 300 books - ancient and Christian. The writer briefly outlined the contents of the book and provided information about the author. Sometimes Photius did not limit himself to a simple retelling and included his own reflections and critical notes in the annotation.

Little is known about the structure of Byzantine libraries. In the early Middle Ages, following the ancient tradition, the library was placed in the open porticoes of buildings, and even the owners of private collections, following fashion, willingly displayed their book wealth. Gradually, this tradition of openly storing books began to be replaced by the practice of secretly “saving” them from readers. These changes were caused by circumstances of a different nature. Firstly, in the Middle Ages the cost of books increased significantly. Secondly, there was the influence of Christianity, which was initially a persecuted and persecuted religion and therefore religious books were kept in secret, hidden places - chests and chests. In large libraries, books were provided with a code and arranged in accordance with it. On some manuscripts that have come down to us, marks have been preserved indicating the closet (or shelf) and the place of the book on the shelf.

The fate of Byzantine libraries is unenviable. Irreversible damage was caused to them by the crusaders who invaded the territory of the empire. At the beginning of the 13th century, they captured Constantinople by storm and plundered the city. There is evidence that the crusaders mercilessly destroyed books and carried writing materials on spears through the entire city. Entire transports loaded with crusader war trophies - richly decorated Byzantine manuscripts - were sent to Western Europe.

In the second half of the 14th century, Constantinople was restored and again became the capital of the empire. Along with the destroyed city, the libraries were also restored, but this calm was short-lived. In the middle of the 15th century, the Byzantine Empire fell under the onslaught of the Ottoman Turks, and again this was accompanied by destruction, burning and plundering of book depositories. Historians wrote about ships carrying books, about carts loaded with manuscripts, and about how the gold and silver that decorated the bindings were mercilessly torn off and sold.

The importance of Constantinople for Western civilization is great. The activities of Byzantine bibliophiles, the work of scriptoria, and the very fact of the existence of many libraries helped preserve a significant part of the heritage of Hellas, which was lost at that time to the West.