The Selected Letters of Cassiodorus: A Sixth-Century Sourcebook

by Cassiodorus, M. Shane Bjornlie (Translator)

Overview

One of the great Christian scholars of antiquity and a high-ranking public official under Theoderic, King of the Ostrogoths, Cassiodorus compiled edicts, diplomatic letters, and legal documents while in office. The collection of his writings, the Variae, remains among the most important sources for the sixth century, the period during which late antiquity transitioned to the early middle ages.
 
Translated and selected by scholar M. Shane Bjornlie, The Selected Letters gathers the most interesting evidence from the Veriae for understanding the political culture, legal structure, intellectual and religious worldviews, and social evolution during the twilight of the late-Roman state. Bjornlie’s invaluable introduction discusses Cassiodorus’s work in civil, legal, and financial administration, revealing his interactions with emperors, kings, bishops, military commanders, private citizens, and even criminals. Section notes introduce each letter to contextualize its themes and connection with other letters, opening a window to Cassiodorus’s world.

 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780520297340
Publisher:	University of California Press
Publication date:	09/08/2020
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	328
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.75(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

M. Shane Bjornlie is Associate Professor of Roman and Late Antique History in the Department of History at Claremont McKenna College.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

Cassiodorus, the Variae, and Their World 1

The Variae as a Letter Collection 9

A Note on the Present Translation 14

Chronology of Key Events 17

Indictional Years Relative to Cassiodorus's Tenure in Public Offices 20

Maps vii

Section I Sixth-Century Italy in a Wider World: Diplomatic Letters from the Ostrogothic Court to the Eastern Imperial and Western "Barbarian" Courts 23

Section II The Senate in Public Life and Public Office: Letters to the Senate, Letters to Individual Senators, and Letters Announcing the Appointment of Senators to Office 44

Section III Civil Bureaucracy and Administration in Italy: Letters Describing Activities of the Court Bureaucracy and Letters of Appointment to Bureaucratic Posts 69

Section IV Taxes and Finances: Letters Describing Fiscal Organization and the Collection and Distribution of State Resources 85

Section V Administration of the Provinces: Letters Concerned with Ostrogothic Affairs in Regions outside Italy 101

Section VI Goths and the Military: Letters concerning Gothic Settlement and the Organization of the Military 130

Section VII Urban Life: Letters Describing Attention to the Urban Environment 149

Section VIII Rural Life: Letters concerning People in the Countryside and Their Obligations to the State 174

Section IX Religion: Letters to Bishops and Letters Touching upon the Court's Spiritual Sentiments and Involvement in Religious Matters 187

Section X Family and Gender: Letters concerning Households and Relations between Family Members and Letters to Women 207

Section XI Law, Order, and Conflict: Letters Describing the Court's Approach to Criminal Charges against Individuals 224

Section XII Intellectual Culture: Letters Pertaining to Aspects of Late-Antique Intellectual Culture 241

Section XIII Nature: Letters That Provide Literary Perspectives on the Natural World 264

Glossary 287

Concordance of Letters Cited in This Volume 293

Selected Bibliography of Related Reading 299

Index of Individuals 303

Index of Concepts, Peoples, and Terms 307

Index of Places 311

Editorial Reviews

"Bjornlie makes the material as readable as it’s ever going to be. . . . We need reliable, well-annotated translations, and products of this quality should be recognised as the original contributions they are. A formidable and committed translator, Cassiodorus would surely agree."

London Review of Books