Inaug.-diss.--Rostock.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on November 5, 2007) Includes bibliographical references.

Despite a vast amount of research on Late Antiquity, little attention has been paid to certain figures that prove to be influential during this time. The focus of historians on Constantine I, the first Roman Emperor to allegedly convert to Christianity, has often come at the cost of ignoring Constantine's predecessor, Diocletian, sometimes known as the "Second Father of the Roman Empire". The success of Constantine's empire has often been attributed to the work and reforms of Diocletian, but there have been very few studies of the man beyond simple biography. This work will attempt to view three of Diocletian's major innovations in order to determine the lasting effect they had over the Roman Empire and our modern world. By studying 1) Diocletian's assumption of new, divinely inspired titles; 2)Diocletian's efforts at controlling prices in the marketplace; and 3)Diocletian's Persecution of the Christians in the Roman Empire at the turn of the fourth century CE, we can gain valuable insight into the ways through which Roman Emperors extended their authority throughout different facets of Ancient World, including developments that would shape the future of Western Civilization for the next 1400 years.

No description available.

This essay, The Saint Domnius cathedral in Split, is written with the intention to examine the Sankt Domnius cathedral. By examining the cathedral and the contemporary historic contexts in the Croatian region of Dalmatia from the antique period up to the 13th century middle ages, the study shows how the process of change due to the historic contexts is visible on the cathedral building itself. The main questions in this study are: how has the early Christians community’s relationship to the antique legacy and the antique remains influenced the building of Saint Domnius cathedral between the early and high middle age periods?  Which historic contexts can have influenced the Christian community’s relationship to the antique legacy and the antique remains?  To answer these questions this study has done a detailed description of the relevant historic events and people in the region of Dalmatia. The study has also showed relevant earlier study’s made on the campanile of Saint Domnius cathedral and the sphinxes found in the nearby area and the history and documentation of restorations made on the original mausoleum building that today is the Saint Domnius cathedral. A field study has also been made at the cathedral that revealed multiply carved crosses and names on the outside walls. The conclusion of the study shows that the antique legacy and ancient remains of Emperor Diocletian’s palace was regarded with hatred and forbidden by the early Christian community from the 4th to 5th century. The early Christians showed their hatred for Diocletian by destroying antique material that contained a symbolic meaning. This was an act of revenge from the Christian community for the prosecution that Diocletian had brought upon the Christians at the beginning of the 4th century. The revenge resulted in the destruction of Diocletian’s sarcophagus and the sphinxes that represented his honour and status. The walls on his mausoleum also got carved with crosses. From the 5th until the 7th century the palace was abounded because of escalating threats in the area. This resulted in the preservation of the palace and the mausoleum. When the palace once again got inhabited in the 7th century the Christian community did probably not regard the once hated antique remains with content.  The reason for this can be that the people had simply forgotten the symbolic meaning behind the remains and regarded it only as decorative remains. Besides this, the Croatians that had immigrated to the area at the same time showed a dominated position in the region. The Croatian were mostly pagan until the 9th century and therefore they may have lacked the sympathy for the early Christians prosecution.  At the same time the mausoleum was turned in to a cathedral, the building was probably chosen because of its central position and it’s already exclusive furnishing and material it contained. The reason why I don’t believe this was an act of revenge was as stated above, the ignorance of the remains true symbolic meaning and the dominant pagan Croatians influence in the region. However they also left a central motif of Diocletian unharmed in the new converted cathedral. The middle ages continued with periods of greatness for the Croatian people, they formed the kingdom of Croatia and expanded the borders. When a feud with the kingdom of Hungary about the rights to the crown ended with the defeat for the Croats in the 12th century, they were forced in to a political union with Hungary. The Croats lost their independence and developed a yearning for their once dominant position in this part of Europe. They manifested this yearning by building the campanile at Sankt Domnius cathedral. The campanile was finished at the 13th century and displayed consciously selected symbolic material that linked the Croatians prehistory to the antique prehistory in the region. The campanile became a monument that showcased the Croatian identity. / Den här uppsatsen, Sankt Domnius katedralen i Split, är skriven i syftet att undersöka Sankt Domnius katedralen. Genom att undersöka katedralen och den samtida historiska kontexten i den kroatiska regionen Dalmatien, från den antika perioden fram till medeltiden på 1200-talet. Visar studien hur förändringsprocessen från de historiska kontexterna är synliga på katedralbyggnaden. Huvudfrågorna inom denna studie är: Hur har de tidigt kristna samhällets relation till det antika arvet och de antika lämningarna influerat Sankt Domnius katedralen mellan de tidiga och högmedeltida perioderna? Vilka historiska kontexter kan ha influerat de kristna samhällets relation till det antika arvet och antika lämningarna? För att besvara dessa frågor har denna studie gjort en detaljerad beskrivning av relevanta historiska event och människor från den dalmatiska regionen. Studien har även framfört tidigare relevanta studier som gjorts på Sankt Domnius kampanil och sfinxarna som hittats i närheten av området runt katedralen. Studien uppmärksammar även historien och dokumentationen av de tidigare restaureringsarbetena som untgörts på den ursprungliga mausoleum byggnaden som idag är Sankt Domnius katedralen. En fältstudie har även gjorts på katedralen som påvisa ett flertal inristade kors och inritade namn på katedralens ytterväggar. Studiens slutsats visar att det antika arvet och de antika lämningarna av kejsare Diocletianus palats var betraktat med hat och förbjöds av det tidigt kristna samhället från 300-talet till 400-talet. De tidiga kristna visade sitt hat för Diocletianus genom att förstöra antikt material som innehade en symbolisk mening. Det var en hämnd från det kristna samhället för den förföljelse som Diocletianus hade utfört på de kristna i början av 300-talet. De kristnas hämnd resulterade i förstörelsen av Diocletianus sarkofag och sfinxarna som representerade hans heder och status. Väggarna till hans mausoleum blev även inristade med kors. Från 400-talet fram till 600-talet blev Diocletianus palats övergivet pga. eskalerade militära hot i området. Detta resulterade i att palatset och Diocletianus mausoleum preserverades. När palatset återigen befolkades på 600-talet behandlades troligtviss inte de antika lämningarna länge med förakt av det kristna samhället. Anledningen till detta kan ha varit att människorna glömt bort den symboliska meningen i lämningarna och betraktade den endast som dekorativa material. Förutom detta så hade kroaterna som immigrerade till om rådet vid denna tid visat en dominerad position i regionen. Kroaterna bestod till stor del av hedningar fram till 800-talet och de kan därför ha saknat sympati för den kristna förföljelsen. Vid denna tid transformerades mausoleum byggnaden till en katedral, byggnaden valdes troligtviss pga. den centrala position som den befann sig i och den redan exklusiva inredningen och material som fanns inuti. Anledningen till att jag inte tror att valet att konvertera Diocletianus mausoleum till en katedral inte var en hämnds aktion är som jag nämnde tidigare, okunskapen av de antika lämningarnas sanna betydelse och den dominanta hedniska kroatiska influensen i regionen. Ett centralt motiv av Diocletianus som lämnades kvar orörd i den nya konverterade katedralen.   Medeltiden fortsatte med perioder av storhet för det kroatiska folket, de formade Kungariket Kroatien och expanderade sina gränser. När en fejd med Kungariket Ungern om rättigheterna till tronen slutade med en förlust för kroaterna på 1100-talet, tvingades de att ingå i en politisk union med Ungern. Kroaterna förlorade sin självständighet och utvecklade en nationalromantisk längtan till deras forna dominerade position i denna del av Europa. De manifesterade sin längtan genom att bygga kampanilen vid Sankt Domnius katedralen. Kampanilen stod klar på 1200-talet och uppvisade medvetna val av symboliskt material som sammankopplade den kroatiska förhistorian till den antika förhistorian i regionen. Kampanilen blev ett monument som uppvisade den kroatiska identiteten.

L’Adversus nationes est un texte polémique où l’auteur, Arnobe de Sicca, défend le christianisme en plus d’attaquer le paganisme. Nous y retrouvons les principales accusations lancées contre le christianisme ainsi que les attaques des intellectuels chrétiens contre les païens. Il s’agit de l’un des derniers textes apologétiques rédigé avant la paix de Milan (311). Arnobe y explique l’importance de s’éloigner des erreurs du paganisme et d’adhérer au christianisme dans le but de sauver son âme. Bien qu’il ne s’agisse pas d’une œuvre à caractère historique, Arnobe fournit, pour étayer son argumentation, plusieurs indices sur sa conception de l’histoire romaine. L’Adversus nationes, qui n’est pas traduit intégralement en français à ce jour, n’a pas été très souvent étudié du point de vue de l’interprétation de l’histoire. Une telle étude permet de comprendre la pensée de son auteur sur Rome, son histoire et ses périodes politiques. La première partie de ce mémoire présentera une petite biographie d’Arnobe ainsi qu’un survol du contexte historique dans lequel il vivait. Puis, les principales caractéristiques de l’histoire rhétorique seront exposées au deuxième chapitre. La seconde partie du mémoire traitera de l’analyse de passages de l’Adversus nationes. Le troisième chapitre sera consacré aux grands personnages romains. Le quatrième chapitre traitera de la providence divine dans l’histoire romaine. Finalement, le cinquième chapitre cherchera à retrouver les sources d’Arnobe lorsqu’il traite d’évènements historiques importants. Ce mémoire offre, comme conclusions, une nouvelle hypothèse concernant la datation du livre 1 de l’Adversus nationes et une nouvelle influence concernant certains récits historiques rapportés par Arnobe. / Adversus nationes is a polemical text in which the author, Arnobius of Sicca, defends Christianity in addition to attacking paganism. This text includes the main accusations against Christianity as well as the counter-arguments intellectual Christians presented against pagans. It is one of the last apologetic texts written before the peace of Milano (311). Arnobius explains the importance of moving away from the mistakes of paganism and of adhering to Christianity in order to save one’s soul. Although the nature of this text is not historical, Arnobius provides several hints on his conception of Roman history, to strengthen his argumentation. Adversus nationes, which has not yet been completely translated into French, has not often been studied from the point of view of interpreting history. Such a study allows a better understanding of its author’s thoughts on Rome, its history and its political systems. The first part of this thesis presents a brief biography of Arnobius as well as an overview of the historical context in which he lived. Then, the main rhetorical characteristics of history are exposed in the second chapter. The second part of this thesis provides an analysis of key passages in Adversus nationes. The third chapter focuses on major Roman figures. The fourth chapter addresses divine providence in Roman history. Finally, the fifth chapter looks for Arnobius’s sources behind his treatment of important historical events. In its conclusion, this thesis offers a new hypothesis regarding the date of book 1 of Adversus nationes and uncovers a new influence concerning certain historical accounts reported by Arnobius.

L’Adversus nationes est un texte polémique où l’auteur, Arnobe de Sicca, défend le christianisme en plus d’attaquer le paganisme. Nous y retrouvons les principales accusations lancées contre le christianisme ainsi que les attaques des intellectuels chrétiens contre les païens. Il s’agit de l’un des derniers textes apologétiques rédigé avant la paix de Milan (311). Arnobe y explique l’importance de s’éloigner des erreurs du paganisme et d’adhérer au christianisme dans le but de sauver son âme. Bien qu’il ne s’agisse pas d’une œuvre à caractère historique, Arnobe fournit, pour étayer son argumentation, plusieurs indices sur sa conception de l’histoire romaine. L’Adversus nationes, qui n’est pas traduit intégralement en français à ce jour, n’a pas été très souvent étudié du point de vue de l’interprétation de l’histoire. Une telle étude permet de comprendre la pensée de son auteur sur Rome, son histoire et ses périodes politiques. La première partie de ce mémoire présentera une petite biographie d’Arnobe ainsi qu’un survol du contexte historique dans lequel il vivait. Puis, les principales caractéristiques de l’histoire rhétorique seront exposées au deuxième chapitre. La seconde partie du mémoire traitera de l’analyse de passages de l’Adversus nationes. Le troisième chapitre sera consacré aux grands personnages romains. Le quatrième chapitre traitera de la providence divine dans l’histoire romaine. Finalement, le cinquième chapitre cherchera à retrouver les sources d’Arnobe lorsqu’il traite d’évènements historiques importants. Ce mémoire offre, comme conclusions, une nouvelle hypothèse concernant la datation du livre 1 de l’Adversus nationes et une nouvelle influence concernant certains récits historiques rapportés par Arnobe. / Adversus nationes is a polemical text in which the author, Arnobius of Sicca, defends Christianity in addition to attacking paganism. This text includes the main accusations against Christianity as well as the counter-arguments intellectual Christians presented against pagans. It is one of the last apologetic texts written before the peace of Milano (311). Arnobius explains the importance of moving away from the mistakes of paganism and of adhering to Christianity in order to save one’s soul. Although the nature of this text is not historical, Arnobius provides several hints on his conception of Roman history, to strengthen his argumentation. Adversus nationes, which has not yet been completely translated into French, has not often been studied from the point of view of interpreting history. Such a study allows a better understanding of its author’s thoughts on Rome, its history and its political systems. The first part of this thesis presents a brief biography of Arnobius as well as an overview of the historical context in which he lived. Then, the main rhetorical characteristics of history are exposed in the second chapter. The second part of this thesis provides an analysis of key passages in Adversus nationes. The third chapter focuses on major Roman figures. The fourth chapter addresses divine providence in Roman history. Finally, the fifth chapter looks for Arnobius’s sources behind his treatment of important historical events. In its conclusion, this thesis offers a new hypothesis regarding the date of book 1 of Adversus nationes and uncovers a new influence concerning certain historical accounts reported by Arnobius.

This thesis deals with the period, which was not fully researched until now by the czech numismatists. It is a unique numismatic work fully dedicated to the tetrarchic period in czech language. Its center of gravity lies in the detailed study of the production of coins and iconography, both before the reform, in 294, and afterwards. It is also given a description of previous period of the end of the third century AD to facilitate the understanding of monetary developments and policies of the tetrarchic period. The study of the numismatic material and literature allow to deliver new opinions concerning the disintegration of tetrarchic system and of the monetary reforms from the end of the third century AD. It is discussed the problematic of using marks on coins, which are usually interpreted as an indication of nominal value. The work includes a detailed study of 1,752 gold coins of the second half of the 3rd century, which helps to clarify the vague classification of gold coins and their standards. Attached is a catalog of the Roman imperial coins from AD 284-337, which are deposited in the Charles University collection of ancient. These coins have not been published until now. Key words: Tetrarchy, Diocletian, Constantinus, nummus, monetary refroms, coinage, marks of value, XXI, Heraclea, golden...

This MA thesis will discuss the reception of common, non-scholarly polytheists (pagans) to the persecution of Christians from the early empire until the Great Persecution (303-313, 322-324). Though modern scholars have addressed this issue and asserted that there was a change in attitude, many have not developed this into anything more than a passing statement. When chronologically analyzing the Christian acts, passions, letters, and speeches recounting the deaths of martyrs deemed historically authentic, and accounting for the literary and biblical topoi, we can demonstrate that the position of non-Christians changed. The methodology of this thesis will chronologically assess the martyr acts, passions, speeches, and letters which are historically accurate after literary and biblical topoi are addressed. These sources are available in the appendix. Throughout this analysis, we will see two currents. The primary current will seek to discern the change in pagan reception of anti-Christian persecution, while the second current will draw attention to the Roman concept of religio and superstitio, both important in understanding civic religion which upheld the pax deorum and defined loyalty to the Roman order through material sacrifices and closely connected to one's citizenship. Religio commonly denoted proper ritual practices, while superstitio defined irregular forms of worship which may endanger the state. As we will see, Christians were feared and persecuted because it was believed that their cult would anger the gods and disrupt the cosmological order. The analysis will begin with a discussion centered on the "accusatory" approach to the Christian church during the first two centuries when the Roman state relied on provincial delatores (denounces) to legislate against the cult. During the first two centuries persecution was mostly provincial, sporadic and was not centrally-directed. We will see that provincial mobs were the most violent during the first two centuries. During the third century the actions of the imperial authority changed and began following an "inquisitorial" approach with the accession of Emperors Decius and Valerian, the former enacting an edict of universal sacrifices while the latter undertook the first Empire-wide initiative to crush the Christian community. It is during the third century that the attitude of non-elite pagans may have begun to change. This will be suggested when discussing the martyrdom of Pionius. When discussing the fourth century Great Persecution under the Diocletianic tetrarchy, it will be suggested that the pagan populace may have begun to look upon the small Christian community sympathetically. The thesis will conclude with the victory of Constantine over Licinius and the slow but steady rise of Christianity to prominence, becoming the official religio of the empire with traditional paganism relegated to the status of a superstitio.

African teacher of rhetoric Arnobius of Sicca, who lived at the turn of the 3rd and 4th century, is one of the less known Christian authors. He is the author of Christian apology written in Latin called Adversus nationes. His statement attracted particular interest of philologists and historians of antiquity, because it contains large amounts of mythological material. The aim of this work is to introduce Arnobius not only as a crucial source of pagan theology, but also as an important Christian witness of the complicated religious - political situation of Christianity in the time before the Milan Edict, particularly at the time of Diocletian's persecution of Christians. Given the need to work with original texts includes this thesis also the first Czech translation of Arnobiusʼ apology.