Theophilus of Edessa's Chronicle and the Circulation of Historical Knowledge in Late Antiquity and Early Islam

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Publisher : Translated Texts for Historian
ISBN 13 : 9781846316982
Total Pages : 368 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (169 download)

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Book Synopsis Theophilus of Edessa's Chronicle and the Circulation of Historical Knowledge in Late Antiquity and Early Islam by : Theophilus (of Edessa)

Download or read book Theophilus of Edessa's Chronicle and the Circulation of Historical Knowledge in Late Antiquity and Early Islam written by Theophilus (of Edessa) and published by Translated Texts for Historian. This book was released on 2011 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Theophilus of Edessa was a Greek astrologer and scholar in the court of the Muslim caliphs in the eighth century. Making use of his fluency in Greek, Syriac, and Arabic, he brought together historical sources from each language to comprise a single chronicle that charted world-changing events in the Near East from 590–750 CE, among them the Arab conquests, the rise to power of a Muslim Arab dynasty, and the last great war of antiquity, between Byzantium and Iran. Though no longer extant, Theophilus's work is known from extensive citations by later historians, and Robert Hoyland has here collected and translated these citations to present the scope of the original text. Included are translations of four chronicles, several of which are being made available here for the first time to the English-language reader.

Theophilus of Edessa's Chronicle and the Circulation of Historical Knowledge in Late Antiquity and Early Islam

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Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781789628739
Total Pages : 368 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (287 download)

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Book Synopsis Theophilus of Edessa's Chronicle and the Circulation of Historical Knowledge in Late Antiquity and Early Islam by : Robert G. Hoyland

Download or read book Theophilus of Edessa's Chronicle and the Circulation of Historical Knowledge in Late Antiquity and Early Islam written by Robert G. Hoyland and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Theophilus of Edessa was an astrologer in the court of the Muslim caliphs from the 750s to the 780s, a time when their capital, Baghdad, was a thriving cosmopolitan centre of culture and trade and one of the most populous and prosperous cities of the world. He was fluent in Greek, Syriac and Arabic, and he used this ability to bring together a number of historical sources in each of these languages and blend them into a single chronicle that charted events in the Near East from 590 to the 750s. His work is no longer extant, but it was cited extensively by a number of later historians and Robert Hoyland has collected and translated all these citations so as to give an impression of the scope and content of the original text. This is important, because this chronicle underlies much of our historical knowledge about the seventh and eighth century Near East, which was a crucial period in the region, witnessing as it did the devastating war between the two superpowers of Byzantium and I...

The ‘Lost Arian History’ in Late Antique and Medieval Historiography

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Publisher : Springer Nature
ISBN 13 : 3031554442
Total Pages : 340 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (315 download)

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Book Synopsis The ‘Lost Arian History’ in Late Antique and Medieval Historiography by : Joseph J. Reidy

Download or read book The ‘Lost Arian History’ in Late Antique and Medieval Historiography written by Joseph J. Reidy and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

The Two Falls of Rome in Late Antiquity

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Publisher : Springer
ISBN 13 : 331969796X
Total Pages : 109 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (196 download)

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Book Synopsis The Two Falls of Rome in Late Antiquity by : James Moreton Wakeley

Download or read book The Two Falls of Rome in Late Antiquity written by James Moreton Wakeley and published by Springer. This book was released on 2017-12-11 with total page 109 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers a radical perspective on what are conventionally called the Islamic Conquests of the seventh century. Placing these earthshattering events firmly in the context of Late Antiquity, it argues that many of the men remembered as the fanatical agents of Muḥammad probably did not know who the prophet was and had, in fact, previously fought for Rome or Persia. The book applies to the study of the collapse of the Roman Near East techniques taken from the historiography of the fall of the Roman West. Through a comparative analysis of medieval Arabic and European sources combined with insights from frontier studies, it argues that the two falls of Rome involved processes far more similar than traditionally thought. It presents a fresh approach to the century that witnessed the end of the ancient world, appealing to students of Roman and medieval history, Islamic Studies, and advanced scholars alike.

The Arabic Historical Tradition & the Early Islamic Conquests

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Author :
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1317420268
Total Pages : 206 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (174 download)

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Book Synopsis The Arabic Historical Tradition & the Early Islamic Conquests by : Boaz Shoshan

Download or read book The Arabic Historical Tradition & the Early Islamic Conquests written by Boaz Shoshan and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-09-07 with total page 206 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The early Arab conquests pose a considerable challenge to modern-day historians. The earliest historical written tradition emerges only after the second half of the eighth century- over one hundred years removed from the events it contends to describe, and was undoubtedly influenced by the motives and interpretations of its authors. Indeed, when speaking or writing about the past, fact was not the only, nor even the prime, concern of Muslims of old. The Arabic Historic Tradition and the Early Islamic Conquests presents a thorough examination of Arabic narratives on the early Islamic conquests. It uncovers the influence of contemporary ideology, examining recurring fictive motifs and evaluating the reasons behind their use. Folklore and tribal traditions are evident throughout the narratives, which aimed to promote individual, tribal and regional fame through describing military prowess in the battles for the spread of Islam. Common tropes are encountered across the materials, which all serve a central theme; the moral superiority of the Muslims, which destined them to victory in God’s plan. Offering a key to the state of mind and agenda of early Muslim writers, this critical reading of Arabic texts would be of great interest to students and scholars of early Arabic History and Literature, as well as a general resource for Middle Eastern History.

A Social and Cultural History of Late Antiquity

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Publisher : John Wiley & Sons
ISBN 13 : 1119077001
Total Pages : 323 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (19 download)

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Book Synopsis A Social and Cultural History of Late Antiquity by : Douglas Boin

Download or read book A Social and Cultural History of Late Antiquity written by Douglas Boin and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2018-03-20 with total page 323 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 2019 PROSE Award finalist in the Classics category! A Social and Cultural History of Late Antiquity examines the social and cultural landscape of the Late Antique Mediterranean. The text offers a picture of everyday life as it was lived in the spaces around and between two of the most memorable and towering figures of the time—Constantine and Muhammad. The author captures the period using a wide-lens, including Persian material from the mid third century through Umayyad material of the mid eighth century C.E. The book offers a rich picture of Late Antique life that is not just focused on Rome, Constantinople, or Christianity. This important resource uses nuanced terms to talk about complex issues and fills a gap in the literature by surveying major themes such as power, gender, community, cities, politics, law, art and architecture, and literary culture. The book is richly illustrated and filled with maps, lists of rulers and key events. A Social and Cultural History of Late Antiquity is an essential guide that: Paints a rich picture of daily life in Late Antique that is not simply centered on Rome, Constantinople, or Christianity Balances a thematic approach with rigorous attention to chronology Stresses the need for appreciating both sources and methods in the study of Late Antique history Offers a sophisticated model for investigating daily life and the complexities of individual and group identity in the rapidly changing Mediterranean world Includes useful maps, city plans, timelines, and suggestions for further reading A Social and Cultural History of Late Antiquity offers an examination of everyday life in the era when adherents of three of the major religions of today—Christianity, Judaism, and Islam—faced each other for the first time in the same environment. Learn more about A Social and Cultural History of Late Antiquity’s link to current social issues in Boin’s article for the History News Network.

Between Memory and Power

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Publisher : BRILL
ISBN 13 : 9004466320
Total Pages : 543 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (44 download)

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Book Synopsis Between Memory and Power by : Antoine Borrut

Download or read book Between Memory and Power written by Antoine Borrut and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2023-07-17 with total page 543 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Between Memory and Power intends to demonstrate that a robust culture of historical writing existed in 2nd/8th century Syria, and to offer new methodological approaches to access this now lost history, torn between memory and oblivion. By studying the making of Umayyad heroes or Abbasid origins-myths, this book aims to reveal the successive meanings granted to Syrian history, and to identify the various layers of historical writing and rewriting during the first centuries of Islam. Taken together, these elements make possible a history of meanings of the very space of Syria, articulated around power and its expression, which grants a clear coherence to the period, extending well beyond the dynastic caesura of 132/750.

Arab Conquests and Early Islamic Historiography

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Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1838604405
Total Pages : 252 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (386 download)

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Book Synopsis Arab Conquests and Early Islamic Historiography by : Ryan J. Lynch

Download or read book Arab Conquests and Early Islamic Historiography written by Ryan J. Lynch and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2019-11-14 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the 2021 Southeast Regional Middle East and Islamic Studies Society Book Prize Of the available sources for Islamic history between the seventh and eighth centuries CE, few are of greater importance than al-Baladhuri's Kitab Futuh al-buldan (The Book of the Conquest of Lands). Written in Arabic by a ninth-century Muslim scholar working at the court of the 'Abbasid caliphs, the Futuh's content covers many important matters at the beginning of Islamic history. It informs its audience of the major events of the early Islamic conquests, the settlement of Muslims in the conquered territories and their experiences therein, and the origins and development of the early Islamic state. Questions over the text's construction, purpose, and reception, however, have largely been ignored in current scholarship. This is despite both the text's important historical material and its crucial early date of creation. It has become commonplace for researchers to turn to the Futuh for information on a specific location or topic, but to ignore the grander – and, in many ways, more straightforward – questions over the text's creation and limitations. This book looks to correct these gaps in knowledge by investigating the context, form, construction, content, and early reception history of al-Baladhuri's text.

Cyprus between Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages (ca. 600–800)

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Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1351999117
Total Pages : 228 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (519 download)

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Book Synopsis Cyprus between Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages (ca. 600–800) by : Luca Zavagno

Download or read book Cyprus between Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages (ca. 600–800) written by Luca Zavagno and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-05-18 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Research on early medieval Cyprus has focused on the late antique "golden age" (late fourth/early fifth to seventh century) and the so-called Byzantine "Reconquista" (post-AD 965) while overlooking the intervening period. This phase was characterized, supposedly, by the division of the political sovereignty between the Umayyads and the Byzantines, bringing about the social and demographic dislocation of the population of the island. This book proposes a different story of continuities and slow transformations in the fate of Cyprus between the late sixth and the early ninth centuries. Analysis of new archaeological evidence shows signs of a continuing link to Constantinople. Moreover, together with a reassessment of the literary evidence, archaeology and material culture help us to reappraise the impact of Arab naval raids and contextualize the confrontational episodes throughout the ebb and flow of Eastern Mediterranean history: the political influence of the Caliphate looked stronger in the second half of the seventh century, the administrative and ecclesiastical influence of the Byzantine empire was held sway from the beginning of the eighth to the twelfth century. Whereas the island retained sound commercial ties with the Umayyad Levant in the seventh and eighth centuries, at the same time politically and economically it remained part of the Byzantine sphere. This belies the idea of Cyprus as an independent province only loosely tied to Constantinople and allows us to draw a different picture of the cultural identities, political practices and hierarchy of wealth and power in Cyprus during the passage from Late Antiquity to the early Middle Ages.

Perspectives on Early Islamic Art in Jerusalem

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Publisher : BRILL
ISBN 13 : 9004302077
Total Pages : 260 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (43 download)

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Book Synopsis Perspectives on Early Islamic Art in Jerusalem by : Lawrence Nees

Download or read book Perspectives on Early Islamic Art in Jerusalem written by Lawrence Nees and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2015-09-17 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Perspectives on Early Islamic Art in Jerusalem, Lawrence Nees analyzes early Islamic monuments on the Haram al-Sharif, or the Temple Mount: the Dome of the Chain, and the capitals with figures of eagles in the Dome of the Rock.

Disruption

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Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0197518842
Total Pages : 337 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (975 download)

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Book Synopsis Disruption by : David Potter

Download or read book Disruption written by David Potter and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2021-06-03 with total page 337 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How do things change? The question is critical to the historical study of any era but it is also a profoundly important issue today as western democracies find the fundamental tenets of their implicit social contract facing extreme challenges from forces espousing ideas that once flourished only on the outskirts of society. This books argues that radical change always begins with ideas that took shape on the fringes. Throughout time the "mainstream" has been inherently conservative, allowing for incremental change but essentially dedicated to preserving its own power structures as the dominant ideology justifies existing relationships. In this tour of radical change across Western history, David Potter will show how ideologies that develop in opposition or reaction to those supporting the status quo are employed to effect profound changes in political structures that will in turn alter the way that social relations are constructed. Not all radical groups are the same, and all the groups that the book will explore take advantage of challenges that have already shaken the social order. They take advantage of mistakes that have challenged belief in the competence of existing institutions to be effective. It is the particular combination of an alternative ideological system and a period of community distress that are necessary conditions for radical changes in direction. The historical disruptions chronicled in this book-the rise of Christianity, rise of Islam, Protestant reformations, Age of Revolution (American and French), and Bolshevism and Nazism--will help readers understand when the preconditions exist for radical changes in the social and political order. As Disruption demonstrates, not all radical change follows paths that its original proponents might have predicted. An epilogue helps situate contemporary disruptions, from the rise of Trump and Brexit to the social and political consequences of technological change, in the wider historical forces surveyed by the book.

Cyprus in the Long Late Antiquity

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Publisher : Oxbow Books
ISBN 13 : 1789258758
Total Pages : 589 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (892 download)

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Book Synopsis Cyprus in the Long Late Antiquity by : Panayiotis Panayides

Download or read book Cyprus in the Long Late Antiquity written by Panayiotis Panayides and published by Oxbow Books. This book was released on 2023-01-24 with total page 589 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cyprus was a thriving and densely populated late antique province. Contrary to what used to be thought, the Arab raids of the mid-seventh century did not abruptly bring the island’s prosperity to an end. Recent research instead highlights long-lasting continuity in both urban and rural contexts. This volume brings together historians and archaeologists working on diverse aspects of Cyprus between the sixth and eighth centuries. They discuss topics as varied as rural prosperity, urban endurance, artisanal production, civic and private religion and maritime connectivity. The role of the imperial administration and of the Church is touched upon in several contributions. Other articles place Cyprus back into its wider Mediterranean context. Together, they produce a comprehensive impression of the quality of life on the island in the long late antiquity.

Dome of the Rock and its Umayyad Mosaic Inscriptions

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Publisher : Edinburgh University Press
ISBN 13 : 1474460445
Total Pages : 320 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (744 download)

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Book Synopsis Dome of the Rock and its Umayyad Mosaic Inscriptions by : Marcus Milwright

Download or read book Dome of the Rock and its Umayyad Mosaic Inscriptions written by Marcus Milwright and published by Edinburgh University Press. This book was released on 2019-04-01 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Dome of the Rock is a shrine located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. When was it built? What meanings was it meant to convey to viewers at the time of its construction? These are questions that have preoccupied historians of Islamic art and architecture, and numerous interpretations of the Dome of the Rock have been proposed. Marcus Milwright returns to one of the most important pieces of evidence: the mosaic inscriptions running around the two faces of the octagonal arcade. His detailed examination of the physical characteristics, morphology and content of these inscriptions provides new evidence about the chronology the building and the iconography of the Dome of the Rock.

Making Christian History

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Publisher : Univ of California Press
ISBN 13 : 0520295366
Total Pages : 331 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (22 download)

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Book Synopsis Making Christian History by : Michael Hollerich

Download or read book Making Christian History written by Michael Hollerich and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2021-06-22 with total page 331 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Known as the “Father of Church History,” Eusebius was bishop of Caesarea in Palestine and the leading Christian scholar of his day. His Ecclesiastical History is an irreplaceable chronicle of Christianity’s early development, from its origin in Judaism, through two and a half centuries of illegality and occasional persecution, to a new era of tolerance and favor under the Emperor Constantine. In this book, Michael J. Hollerich recovers the reception of this text across time. As he shows, Eusebius adapted classical historical writing for a new “nation,” the Christians, with a distinctive theo-political vision. Eusebius’s text left its mark on Christian historical writing from late antiquity to the early modern period—across linguistic, cultural, political, and religious boundaries—until its encounter with modern historicism and postmodernism. Making Christian History demonstrates Eusebius’s vast influence throughout history, not simply in shaping Christian culture but also when falling under scrutiny as that culture has been reevaluated, reformed, and resisted over the past 1,700 years.

Envisioning Islam

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Publisher : University of Pennsylvania Press
ISBN 13 : 0812291441
Total Pages : 301 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (122 download)

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Book Synopsis Envisioning Islam by : Michael Philip Penn

Download or read book Envisioning Islam written by Michael Philip Penn and published by University of Pennsylvania Press. This book was released on 2015-06-05 with total page 301 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first Christians to encounter Islam were not Latin-speakers from the western Mediterranean or Greek-speakers from Constantinople but Mesopotamian Christians who spoke the Aramaic dialect of Syriac. Under Muslim rule from the seventh century onward, Syriac Christians wrote the most extensive descriptions extant of early Islam. Seldom translated and often omitted from modern historical reconstructions, this vast body of texts reveals a complicated and evolving range of religious and cultural exchanges that took place from the seventh to the ninth century. The first book-length analysis of these earliest encounters, Envisioning Islam highlights the ways these neglected texts challenge the modern scholarly narrative of early Muslim conquests, rulers, and religious practice. Examining Syriac sources including letters, theological tracts, scientific treatises, and histories, Michael Philip Penn reveals a culture of substantial interreligious interaction in which the categorical boundaries between Christianity and Islam were more ambiguous than distinct. The diversity of ancient Syriac images of Islam, he demonstrates, revolutionizes our understanding of the early Islamic world and challenges widespread cultural assumptions about the history of exclusively hostile Christian-Muslim relations.

The Last Great War of Antiquity

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Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 019883019X
Total Pages : 495 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (988 download)

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Book Synopsis The Last Great War of Antiquity by : James Howard-Johnston

Download or read book The Last Great War of Antiquity written by James Howard-Johnston and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2021 with total page 495 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The last great war of antiquity was fought on an unprecedented scale along the full length of the Persian-Roman frontier. James Howard-Johnston pieces together the fragmentary evidence of this period to form, for the first time, a coherent story of the dramatic events, key players, and vast lands over which the conflict spread.

Beatrice's Last Smile

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Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0199766487
Total Pages : 521 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (997 download)

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Book Synopsis Beatrice's Last Smile by : Oxford University Press, Incorporated

Download or read book Beatrice's Last Smile written by Oxford University Press, Incorporated and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2023-07-13 with total page 521 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A new history of the Middle Ages, revealing how Christianity and Islam evolved out of a shared cultural and religious ferment, and how this shaped the development of the West Mark Gregory Pegg's history of the Middle Ages opens and closes with martyrdom, the first that of a young Roman mother in a North African amphitheater in 203 and the second a French girl burned to death beside the Seine in 1431. Both Vibia Perpetua and Jeanne la Pucelle died for their Christian beliefs, yet that for which they willingly sacrificed their lives connects and separates them. Both were divinely inspired, but one believed her deity shared the universe with other gods, and the other knew that her Creator ruled heaven and earth. Between them, across the centuries, lives were shaped by the ebb and flow of the divine and the human. Here is the story of people struggling in life and in death to understand themselves and their relationship to God. Beatrice's Last Smile interweaves vivid portraits of such individuals to offer a sweeping and immersive story. Some are of enduring renown -- Augustine, Muhammad, Charlemagne, Heloise --and others are obscure. An Egyptian youth fighting demons in the desert as the first monk; a Briton becomes a holy man after enslavement in Ireland; an emperor in Constantinople watches as rioters torch the city; a old Syrian monk advises the English on sex; the soul of a Merovingian noble flies through the night sky to heaven; an Irish warrior surfs the waves like a dolphin as he flees the Vikings; a crusader's boots squelch with blood on the streets of Jerusalem; a troubadour sings of love; a Muslim lord expresses admiration of the Templars; a pope proclaims that Christendom encompasses all time and space; a barefoot Franciscan friar visits the Great Khan of the Mongols; a Parisian rabbi argues for the holiness of the Talmud; and a poet laments being alive amid the horror of the Black Death. Together, they take readers from the vastness of the Roman Empire to small communities between the Mediterranean and the North Sea, from the nomads of the Asian steppes to the triumphant Church of Latin Christendom. Beatrice's Last Smile offers a pulsating history of the West: the passionate belief in the old gods that yields to a cosmos shaped by one; the transition from a penitential culture to a confessional one; the universal obsession with imitating Christ. The book is named for the moment in Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy when his long-dead love, Beatrice, smiles one final time at Dante in paradise before turning away to look eternally upon the face of God. Mark Gregory Pegg's epic narrative captures a millennium within that fleeting smile, in ways that modern readers will find illuminating and haunting.