"Sur le chemin de Jerusalem" is the comprehensive examination of three unknown mosaic pavements, exhibited in the Museum of Maaret-en-Nouman in Northern Syria. A comparison with other known documents brings together elements of evidence to their provenance, to the type of building they had adorned, and to the underlying links between architectural organization and mosaic ornamental decoration in an ecclesiastic environment. The picture catalogue detailing the size and composition of each of the three mosaics dates the iconographic material from the third quarter of the fourth century to the first half of the fifth century, that period in time which witnessed the Christianization of the North Syrian countryside and a great development of Christian pilgrimages to the Holy Sites of Palestine. / The mosaic of Temanaa features the cosmographic representations of late antique Near East. With the mosaic of Beseqla, we find the earliest dated example of a decorated pavement of a paleochristian baptistery. Tell Aar is the fragmentary mosaic of an unusually early example of a five-aisle transept basilica housing apostolic remains. / The exceptional quality of these documents demonstrates how close attention to material history can effectively increase our knowledge of the growth and expansion of early Christianity.

No description available.

No description available.

Late Antiquity and the associated rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire are often thought to be fraught with violence and radical change. This understanding has recently become more nuanced, and we now understand that the period was a dynamic one, involving both continuity and change. Similarly, with respect to women, it is now thought that the rise of Christianity brought with it sweeping changes, for example, in standards of morality and sexuality, but also firm continuity, for example, in law. Throughout previous centuries, the experiences of these women have been seen primarily through the lens of Christian literature, such as homilies, Church histories, and saints’ lives. As a result, the picture of an early Christian woman was a highly idealized one, of a submissive and subservient wife whose place was in the home and who was considered an image of retained guilt and an object of sexual temptation to the men around her. Since these sources are highly ideological, such a representation is less than reliable. Using legal and documentary sources, therefore, which are inherently less ideological than literary sources, this thesis analyzes the areas of continuity and change in the lives of early Christian Egyptian women in order to assess the evolution of their roles, rights, and responsibilities to understand what effect the rise of Christianity had on their day-to-day lives. That is to say, this thesis aims to answer the question: Did the rise of Christianity actually affect or change the rights or status of women in Late Antique Egypt? The thesis concludes, on the basis of the mentioned sources that early Christianity affected little meaningful change on the rights and status of women in Late Antique Egypt, but that the situation is far more complex than the normative literature suggests. Some change can be seen in understandings of sexuality, particularly in the Christian emphasis on virginity, but this change is not inherently gendered. Beyond this, there is overwhelming evidence for continuity.

Inaugural-Dissertation zur Erlangung des Doktorgrades der Philosophischen Fakultät der Ludwig-Maximilian-Universität zu München. / Includes bibliographical references.

Inaug.-Diss.--Halle. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

Inaug.-Diss.--Halle. / Includes bibliographical references.

Proefschrift--Leyden. / "Stellingen": 3 p. laid in. "Summary": p. 178-187. "Lijst van gebruikte boeken": p. 168-177.

Thesis (M. Div.)--St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, Crestwood, N.Y., 2003. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 62-66).

Thesis (M. Div.)--St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, Crestwood, N.Y., 2003. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 62-66).