Archaeological and Historical approaches to Byzantine Agricultural Landscape

The research project “Archaeological and Historical Approaches to the Byzantine Rural Landscape” is an interdisciplinary initiative that aims to study the formation and transformation of the countryside during the longue durée of the Byzantine period. Transcending the traditional focus on large urban centers and monumental complexes, the program concentrates on the rural space, which constituted the demographic, economic, and productive backbone of the empire. Its geographical scope covers the wider Byzantine territory, with a specific emphasis on the Greek and Asia Minor regions. Utilizing a heuristic approach, the project synthesizes data from archaeological field research (systematic survey, excavation of rural settlements and installations) with modern methodological tools, such as Geographical Information Systems (GIS) for spatial analysis, remote sensing, and environmental archaeology. These material remains are cross-referenced with a critical analysis of written sources (hagiographical texts, land registry praktika, legislative documents such as the “Farmer’s Law” [Nomos Georgikos]) allowing for a deeper understanding of land organization, cultivation practices, and social structures through realized experience and archaeological evidence. At the core of the research lie central questions concerning the form of rural settlements (choria), their relationship with urban centers and monastic land ownership, the exploitation of natural resources, land fragmentation, and the organization of production, as well as the impact of historical phenomena—such as climate changes, epidemics, and hostile incursions—on the landscape and human activity. The goal of the program is to synthesize a dynamic and holistic image of the Byzantine rural landscape, highlighting the countryside not as a passive periphery, but as the fundamental economic and social core of the Byzantine Empire.