Doctoral and Postdoctoral Spring School in Rome, Italy: Arabo-Byzantine Workshop: Towards a Cross-Disciplinary Analysis of Eastern Mediterranean Sources

18-22 May, 2026

“A fresh understanding of medieval Eastern Mediterranean history requires a careful and integrated reading of a wide range of primary sources. Textual, documentary, and material sources (such as manuscripts, papyri, coins, and seals) all offer distinct perspectives, yet they are often studied in disciplinary and linguistic isolation. An effective historical analysis demands not only philological precision, but also a solid methodological approach that includes close attention to the materiality of these objects: their format, script, language, and context of production. Such features can reveal much about circulation of objects and knowledge, as well as its transmission and usage. This is especially vital when working with sources in Arabic and Greek, the two dominant languages of administration, culture, and daily life across much of the medieval Eastern Mediterranean. Moreover, bilingual or multilayered sources (such as Graeco-Arabic manuscripts and papyri, or Arabo-Byzantine coinage) provide invaluable insight into contact zones and hybrid identities. A critical and comparative reading across both source typologies and linguistic traditions thus allows historians to reconstruct cultural and event-driven history in a more comprehensive and dynamic way, uncovering layers of meaning that would remain hidden in a monolingual or single-source approach.

The aim of this workshop is to equip participants with both a nuanced understanding of the different typologies of medieval sources and the methodological tools necessary to address their diversity and fluidity in a rigorous way. In addition, the workshop seeks to foster dialogue between experts and early-career researchers from a range of disciplines (including Classical, Byzantine, and Islamic Studies) who have often worked in isolation within the boundaries of their respective fields.

The workshop will be organized over five thematic days, each dedicated to a specific category of sources for the study of medieval Eastern mediterranean history (paleography/codicology, diplomatics, sigillography/numismatics, papyrology, and philology) and their critical and comparative analysis. Each afternoon, two participants will present their own work (30-minute presentations followed by 15 minutes of discussion). Each day will conclude with either a case study or a practical session designed to build on and integrate the material covered in the morning sessions.”

For more information https://www.efrome.it/en/la-recherche/actualite-et-appels/news/doctoral-and-postdoctoral-spring-school