iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Michael Edward Stewart

Mateusz Fafinski @calthalas.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

"In some places Rome does not fall at all. In others, such as Italy, there are multiple, sometimes repeated farewell parties, where the guests do not want to leave and the host does not switch the music off." How do we think about the Fall of Rome today? www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

cambridge.org

Towards and beyond the ‘Fall’: rethinking Rome’s end | The Journal of Roman Studies | Cambridge Core

Towards and beyond the ‘Fall’: rethinking Rome’s end

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

hopefully out by the end of the year if all goes as planned

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Pleased that after months of slow progress, I have recently made some great progress on a review essay for Histos on Procopius that seeks to honour the memory of @averilcam.bsky.social through the lens of her intellectual rivalry with Anthony Kaldellis, touchy subject, but one proving worth pursuing

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Pleased that my new edited volume Portraits of Generalship already has a thorough review by one of my academic heroes Michael Whitby in Plekos: www.academia.edu/172760196/St...

academia.edu

Stewart.Generalship

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Kinzer Coins @kinzercoins.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

👑 One dynasty, three coins, Byzantium's golden age. Justin I, the founder. Justinian I, the great rebuilder. Justin II and Sophia, the imperial couple. Which chapter of the dynasty is yours? NEWSUBSCRIBER 10% off kinzercoins.com/collections #Byzantine

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Now this is "fake news". The Russian army can barely raise enough cannon fodder for its disastrous war in Ukraine...let alone consider taking on NATO...

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Yale Classics Library @yaleclassicslib.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Byzantium Beyond Byzantium: proceedings of the plenary sessions at the 25th International Congress of Byzantine Studies / Adrian C. Pirtea, Giulia Rossetto & Nikos Zagklas, eds. www.vandenhoeck-ruprecht-verlage.com/themen-entde... @aieb-byzantium.bsky.social #openaccess

vandenhoeck-ruprecht-verlage.com

Byzantium Beyond Byzantium

The volume contains the plenary papers delivered at the 25th International Congress of Byzantine Studies. The studies address multiple aspects of Byzantine history, culture, literature, archaeology, a...

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Reposted by Michael Edward Stewart

Ancient History 101 Podcast @ancienthistory101.org · 14/08/2026

What caused the fall of the Roman empire? Plenty of pundits are happy to peddle a myriad of theories, all complete with an agenda. But what's the true answer? We asked @drdragases.bsky.social - but to hear his full answer, you'll have to listen to our full episode What Is 'Late Antiquity?'

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

Ὁ Ὀδυσσεὺς διμοιριαῖος, λευκὸς τῷ σώματι, ἁπλόθριξ, εὐπώγων, μαλακόχρους, μιξοπόλιος, σύνοφρυς, εὔρινος, μεγαλόψυχος, δυνατὸς πολεμιστής, προγάστωρ, ἠθικός, εὐόμιλος. John Malalas' depiction of Odysseus

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

The story of the next two centuries in both the East and the West can be understood as a continual struggle between emperors and their generals over who was the "manager" and who was the "managed."

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Mary Jaharis Center for Byzantine Art and Culture @mjcbac.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

New book: Michael Stewart, ed., Portraits of Generalship and Authority in the Age of Justinian (Routledge, 2026) maryjahariscenter.org/blog/portrai...

maryjahariscenter.org

Portraits of Generalship and Authority in the Age of Justinian | Mary Jaharis Center

There are currently no approaching deadlines.

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 13/07/2026

Symmetry: 4 real children/4 book children

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 13/07/2026

Always great to get the official book in your hand...the culmination of four plus years of work

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

My top 5 remaining ones would be Journal of Roman Studies/Byzantion/Traditio/Speculum/Studies in Late Antiquity

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

Happy to have a short review in a journal that has long been on my Mt. Rushmore of favourties. Anyone else have a bucketlist of journals they would like to publish in?

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International Medieval Congress Leeds @imc-leeds.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

The #IMC2026 Bookfair is OPEN! 🎊 Monday 06 July - 08.30-19.30 Tuesday 07 July - 08.30-18.30 Wednesday 08 July - 08.30-18.30 Thursday 09 July - 08.30-13.00 There will be a reception officially launching the Bookfair on Monday 06 July at 18:00! #MedievalSky #MedievalSky

A picture of the IMC Bookfair. People can be seen talking, and walking around the various Bookfair Stands.

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

I raise this point because some scholars use this argument to reject the view that Procopius composed SH at a time when Germanus appeared poised to become emperor, by fair or foul means. Hence, Procopius had a clear incentive to distance himself from Justinian and from Germanus’ rival Belisarius.

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

Moreover, given their familiarity with the often extravagant polemics that Roman Christians deployed against perceived heretics, even the most devout Christian Constantinopolitans would have been unlikely to take seriously Procopius’ accusations that Justinian was the Antichrist.

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

One need only consider the hostile rhetoric directed by the sons of Constantine against one another & by the cousins Constantius II & Julian against each other, to question Börm’s contention that Germanus would not have accepted such a harsh portrayal of his cousin Justinian in the Secret History.

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Royal Historical Society @royalhistsoc.org · 17/06/2026

We are very sorry to learn of the death of Professor Rosamond McKitterick (1949-2026), historian of early medieval Europe bit.ly/4fQzy9Q Professor McKitterick was elected a Fellow @royalhistsoc.org in 1980 and, among many other roles, also served as President @eccleshistsoc.bsky.social #Skystorians

Cover images of five books by Professor Rosamond McKitterick.

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

A primary concern is not to step on any toes, since I have been on friendly terms with both and respect them immensely as scholars and people. This desire explains why it may take a bit longer to finish it...but it is shaping up pretty well

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

Living up to the adage that the best scholarly writing often stems from an argument by a rival that makes one's blood boil, the field benefited from a series of reviews, responses, and rejoinders, as well as numerous explicit and implicit jibes exchanged between the two scholars.

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

As small tribute to Averil Cameron, my current project for Histos covers a "sensitive" yet important topic in our field. Cameron's highly charged intellectual rivalry with Anthony Kaldellis, which was provoked by the personal nature of his early attacks of her work on Procopius.

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 15/06/2026

Coincidentally my new article for Byzantina Symmeikta on naval warfare in Procopius has also been published on June 15: ejournals.epublishing.ekt.gr/index.php/bz...

ejournals.epublishing.ekt.gr

Masters of the Sea: Rhetoric and Reality in Procopius’ Depictions of Naval Power in Gothic Wars|Byzantina Symmeikta

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Dr. Jeroen W.P. Wijnendaele @drdragases.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

Michael Whitby. Single-handedly channeling the rage every editor of a collective volume has ever felt throughout generations.

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Reposted by Michael Edward Stewart

John Ma 🇺🇦 @nakhthor.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

I suppose I should mention that my book on the Polis has a chapter on reading the Iliad and the Odyssey historically: portrayal a diverse, fluid world poised btw lordly power and community claims; a failed feudal turn (thank God).

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

I rarely give papers, but I made an exception here for a conference on Belisarius dedicated to the memory of Dariusz Brodka. Unfortunately, not able to attend in person.

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Reposted by Michael Edward Stewart

Yale Classics Library @yaleclassicslib.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

Journal of the Australian Early Medieval Association Vol. 21, No. 1 (2026) search.informit.org/toc/jaema/21/1 @jaema.bsky.social

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Reposted by Michael Edward Stewart

The Institute of Classical Studies @ics.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

The latest ICS newsletter is here with news and announcements, updates on blogs, events, and publications: mailchi.mp/sas/ics-news... Receive future editions by subscribing here: mailchi.mp/sas/ics-news...

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

I have been preparing a review essay on some recent books on Procopius for Histos when I received this bad news, will try an honour her contributions to Procopian studies there. Should be out by the end of the year...I want to make sure its good.

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

My academic hero Averil Cameron has died...We first started corresponding back in the early 2000s, mainly about Procopius...later we frequently conversed on Twitter about a myriad of things Late Antique and more. She could be tough on young scholars, but a compliment then meant even more...RIP

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

A fascinating paper on the discovery in Scandinavia in 2025 of what may the earliest surviving solidus from the reign of Leo I: www.researchgate.net/profile/Svan...

researchgate.net

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

New issue of the Journal of Late Antiquity:

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John Ma 🇺🇦 @nakhthor.bsky.social · 28/03/2026

Paperback of my book on the Polis

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

I rarely give papers these days, but I made an exception for the conference in Krakow in May focussing on Belisarius & honouring Dariusz Brodka. My paper is “Family Strategy and Succession in the House of Belisarius”. It's based on a chapter from a book I'm working on that will appear in 2028.

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

A similar shift has occurred in an era in which postgraduates, rather than becoming independent professors, must instead join larger projects headed by senior scholars. To survive, they mute the more radical voices in their heads and toe the party line, often stifling creativity.

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Michael Edward Stewart @mikeaztec.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

This gatekeeping can be conscious or unconscious, so when esteemed scholars proclaim their preferences for more traditional methodological approach to an ancient author like Procopius, they likely don't mean to gatekeep, but they subtly push prospective PHD scholars to more conservative approaches.

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