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Lynda Garland has recently been appointed Praeses of the editorial board of the Byzantine section of the on-line encyclopaedia De Imperatoribus Romanis. Lynda is currently looking for contributors of entries on individual emperors, empresses and their family members for the period from 717 to 1453. If you are interested in writing one ore more entries for the Byzantine section of the project please contact Lynda (ldillon@metz.une.edu.au). The editors are also interested in offers of entries on empresses or other imperial family members in the late Roman period. Scholars interested in contributing to the Late Antique section of the project are asked to contact either Michael DiMaio, the Managing Editor (mdimaio@ids.net) or Richard Weigel, Praeses Senior of the editorial board (Richard.Weigel@wku.edu).Publications figure prominently in Australian news this issue.
Byzantina Australiensia is interested in expanding its publications to include scholarly editions of Byzantine texts. It is envisaged that ByzAus will be able to provide a cheap and relatively fast option for publication, which allows the editor to offer a substantial apparatus criticus. The option of presenting a translation of the edited text for publication as a separate volume in the series or on facing pages in the same volume is also available. Interested contributors should approach the President of AABS, John Melville-Jones (see the opening of the Newsletter for contact details).
Distribution of ByzAus has changed hands, in anticipation of the retirement of Michael Jeffreys from his position as Professor of Modern Greek at the University of Sydney. The files and stock have been relocated to the Centre for Early Christian Studies, McAuley Campus, Australian Catholic University. Pauline Allen and Philomena Edwards have graciously agreed to take on this task. PLEASE DO NOT SEND ANY ORDERS TO THE OLD MAIL OR EMAIL ADDRESSES. All orders should be addressed to: Centre for Early Christian Studies, McAuley Campus, Australian Catholic University, P O Box 247, Everton Park QLD 4053, Australia. For fast service send the order by email to: p.edwards@mcauley.acu.edu.au.
Our heartfelt gratitude to the Jeffreys, Elizabeth and Michael (plus the two K/Catherines - daughter and departmental secretary) who for so many years shouldered the burden of sales and distribution. Without the Jeffreys' willingness to sacrifice space in their home and to put in hundreds of hours of unpaid labour over the years the volumes in Byzantina Australiensia could not have been made available at such a low price, nor would the series be the success it is today.
Sam Lieu and Alanna Nobbs, in the Ancient History Documentary Research Centre at Macquarie University, are founding editors of a new academic monograph series, Studia Antiqua Australiensia. While the series aims to complement Byzantina Australiensia and will therefore rarely include Byzantine items, material relevant to Late Antiquity is likely to become a feature. Details are provided in Reviews and Resources below.
Also on the topic of publications, the production rate of Australian Byzantine and Late Antiquity scholars has reached a record high. In the latest report to the AIEB we were able to list twelve books produced in the last two years. This is in stark contrast to the one, which we were able to list in the previous report. To place this achievement in context, in the same period AABS lost two of its more senior scholars to retirement or positions overseas. Now that it has reached 21 AABS can feel confident that it has well and truly come of age.
Also featured in local news this issue is the continuing international recognition and focus of Australian research.
Harold Tarrant, University of Newcastle, is one of three collaborators awarded an Australian Research Council Large Grant for their project "Ancient Interpretation of Plato's Dialogues-Proclus On the Timaeus". His fellow collaborators are D.C. Baltzly (Monash) and D.T. Runia (Leiden).
Sam Lieu has demonstrated a distinguished record of attracting grants for his international Manichaean and Byzantine historiography projects as witnessed by the following list:
1997-1999 ARC Large Grant, Corpus Fontium Manichaeorum
1997 ARC Small Grant, Byzantine Historiography on Late Antiquity
1998 ARC Small Grant, Byzantine sources on Constantine
1999 ARC Small Grant, Romano-Persian frontier policy, esp. the Euphrates frontier
2000-2002 ARC Large Grant, Syriac sources on Manichaeism
1998-2003 ARC Fellowship: Dr. Erica Hunter (Manichaean and Mandaean texts)
1997-1999 Chiang Ching Kuo Foundation Grant, Manichaean texts from Central Asia
In 1999 his contribution to Australian scholarship was recognised when he was elected Fellow of the Australian Academy of the HumanitiesOur president, John Melville-Jones is also engaged in an international project focused on producing an edition and translation of the Morosini Codex. Check out the web site (listed above) for a sample of the translation and a view of the original document. The project is funded generously by the Australian Research Council.
