The Danubian Revolution in the Roman Empire: How DNA and Archaeology Are Illuminating the Cycles of Crisis and Restoration in Late Antiquity
Professor Kyle Harper, one of the foremost contemporary historians, is to give a lecture titled ‘The Danubian Revolution in the Roman Empire: How DNA and Archaeology Are Illuminating the Cycles of Crisis and Restoration in Late Antiquity,’ at the SASA Grand Hall, on Thursday, 8 June, at 6 p.m.
As stated by the summary of the lecture, joint interdisciplinary work by archaeologists, historians, and geneticists is radically broadening our knowledge of ancient history. Numerous discoveries in the history of the Roman Empire, many arising from archaeological sites located in Serbian territory, have yielded unexpected insights into the nature and cause of change within the Empire. The centuries between the period known as the ‘crisis of the third century’ and Justinian reign in the mid-6th century brought about a series of crises, such as mass migrations, climate changes and pandemic diseases. This period also bore witness to the rule of the Roman Empire transferred to a series of imperial dynasties which were chiefly of middle Danubian origin. The lecture will highlight recent studies and results in this field, and show future ways of researching these momentous centuries of the human past.
Professor Kyle Harper received his Bachelor of Arts in history, art and literature from the University of Oklahoma (USA), and his Master’s and Doctorate from Harvard University. He is a long-standing professor of classics and letters at the University of Oklahoma. Currently, he is a visiting professor at the College de France. His bibliography includes a number of scientific and expert papers. He is the author of seven books, which garnered a lot of attention from the scientific community. His book ‘The Fate of Rome: Climate, Disease, and the End of an Empire’ has been translated into eleven languages. For his scientific work, he received various awards and recognitions including the Wenjin Book Award from the National Library of China.