The Byzantium of the Early Rus’
It is generally assumed that the Mediterranean Empire shaped all aspects of the civilization of East Slavs, for better or for worse. Indeed, Byzantium and Old Rus' came into contact with each other in many spheres, and remained tied for many centuries -- but the results of that interaction ranged broadly: in most cases the Byzantine influence was rejected, and many cultural phenomena originating акщь Byzantium were distorted or reconceptualized. This project is aimed at establishing the contours of the imagined Byzantium in Rus', a ‘Rusian Byzantium’
Professional Biography
Sergey Ivanov is corresponding Fellow of the British Academy. He specializes in Byzantine culture and Byzantino-Slavic relations. Ivanov authored more than 200 scholarly publications, among them the monographs: "In Search of Constantinople. A Guidebook through Byzantine Istanbul and Its Surroundings" (Istanbul, 2022), "Pearls Before Swine: Missionary Work in Byzantium" (Paris, 2015), "Holy Fools in Byzantium and Beyond" (Oxford, 2006) etc.