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Revealing Antiquity
A Chronicle of the Last Pagans
A Chronicle of the Last Pagans is a history of the triumph of Christianity in the Roman Empire as told from the perspective of the the adherents of the mysteries, cults, and philosophies that dominated Greco–Roman culture.
With a sovereign command of the diverse evidence, Pierre Chuvin portrays the complex spiritual, intellectual, and political lives of professing pagans after Christianity became the state religion. While recreating the unfolding drama of their fate―their gradual loss of power, exclusion from political, military, and civic positions, their assimilation, and finally their persecution―he records a remarkable persistence of pagan religiosity and illustrates the fruitful interaction between Christianity and paganism. The author points to the implications of this late paganism for subsequent developments in the Byzantine Empire and the West. Chuvin's compelling account of an often forgotten world of pagan culture rescues an important aspect of our spiritual heritage and provides new understanding of Late Antiquity.
With a sovereign command of the diverse evidence, Pierre Chuvin portrays the complex spiritual, intellectual, and political lives of professing pagans after Christianity became the state religion. While recreating the unfolding drama of their fate―their gradual loss of power, exclusion from political, military, and civic positions, their assimilation, and finally their persecution―he records a remarkable persistence of pagan religiosity and illustrates the fruitful interaction between Christianity and paganism. The author points to the implications of this late paganism for subsequent developments in the Byzantine Empire and the West. Chuvin's compelling account of an often forgotten world of pagan culture rescues an important aspect of our spiritual heritage and provides new understanding of Late Antiquity.
200 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 1990
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January 7, 2015A brief study that I read in the bright sunshine of the university library when I should have been reading something related to my courses.
This book about the fuzziness of paganism, is bookended by a decree of the first Byzantine Emperors forbidding families from sitting amongst the graves of their ancestors eating picnics and tying red ribbons to their graves - which was condemned as a pagan practise, with one from the early Ottomans forbidding people from doing the same - but this time it was forbidden as an explicitly Christian practise.
The judgement that tying red ribbons to the grave was explicitly a Christian or Pagan practise was one imposed from outside. The practise was the same. The cultural importance and naturalness of the activity to the families doing this was probably the same. In other words what people actually did was not always a function of formal systems of belief, just as many a Christian family will put up a Christmas tree or give Easter eggs without reflecting or being troubled that neither practise is to be found in the Bible. Instead we tend to do things because we always have and because it works for us. The examples of the Byzantine and Ottoman negative reaction to popular devotion is a warning against over analysing to my mind. Sometimes the cigar is a cigar.
This book about the fuzziness of paganism, is bookended by a decree of the first Byzantine Emperors forbidding families from sitting amongst the graves of their ancestors eating picnics and tying red ribbons to their graves - which was condemned as a pagan practise, with one from the early Ottomans forbidding people from doing the same - but this time it was forbidden as an explicitly Christian practise.
The judgement that tying red ribbons to the grave was explicitly a Christian or Pagan practise was one imposed from outside. The practise was the same. The cultural importance and naturalness of the activity to the families doing this was probably the same. In other words what people actually did was not always a function of formal systems of belief, just as many a Christian family will put up a Christmas tree or give Easter eggs without reflecting or being troubled that neither practise is to be found in the Bible. Instead we tend to do things because we always have and because it works for us. The examples of the Byzantine and Ottoman negative reaction to popular devotion is a warning against over analysing to my mind. Sometimes the cigar is a cigar.
December 5, 2022
This elegantly written work has an elegiac feel; the author’s sympathy are clearly with the kind of sophisticated urban conservatives like the fourth century Prefect of Rome Q. Aurelius Symmachus, who said:
“What does it matter by which wisdom each of us arrives at truth? It is not possible that only one road leads to so sublime a mystery.”
I certainly find that a more attractive proposition than the blood soaked fanaticism of the Christians persecutors. In Thessalonica in 390 AD the soldiers of the emperor Theodosius massacred seven thousand people who had been protesting against homophobic policies. Theodosius was then excommunicated by St Ambrose of Milan – even though the hypocritical Ambrose was the one who had whipped up the homophobia in the first place.
One senses and shares the author’s distaste for the many pogroms against pagans carried out by the Christians, with increasing severity, until finally Justinian’s laws condemned all pagans to death. The satisfied smugness with which murderous thugs like the monk John of Ephesus recorded their atrocities are deeply distasteful.
The very last pagans which can be glimpsed in the sixth century are, according to Chuvin, “intellectuals, historians, philosophers and poets.” It’s clear that these are the people the author relates to – as most readers will surely do as well. Nevertheless the author also acknowledges that these kind of sophisticated pagans were not the only victims. A lot of the paganism that was destroyed is reminiscent of the worst superstitions of the middle ages – it’s all about love potions, witchcraft, and necromancy. This is hardly the School of Athens.
One of the things that incurred the death penalty was “decorating a tree with ribbons.” I have not been to Ireland for many years, but I recall how driving down rural Irish lanes one would frequently encounter trees, at seemingly random intervals, suddenly weighed down with hundreds of fluttering coloured ribbons. Apparently, these were trees associated with apparitions of the Virgin Mary. In reality, they were of course relics of pagan superstition associated with the worship of nature spirits (although all of those tying on the ribbons would have angrily rejected the supposition that they were anything other than devout Catholics). I wonder if such sights are still commonplace in Ireland, as they were thirty years ago. If they are not, it suggests to me that Roman Imperial Edicts have now at last succeeded – after almost 1,700 years.
“What does it matter by which wisdom each of us arrives at truth? It is not possible that only one road leads to so sublime a mystery.”
I certainly find that a more attractive proposition than the blood soaked fanaticism of the Christians persecutors. In Thessalonica in 390 AD the soldiers of the emperor Theodosius massacred seven thousand people who had been protesting against homophobic policies. Theodosius was then excommunicated by St Ambrose of Milan – even though the hypocritical Ambrose was the one who had whipped up the homophobia in the first place.
One senses and shares the author’s distaste for the many pogroms against pagans carried out by the Christians, with increasing severity, until finally Justinian’s laws condemned all pagans to death. The satisfied smugness with which murderous thugs like the monk John of Ephesus recorded their atrocities are deeply distasteful.
The very last pagans which can be glimpsed in the sixth century are, according to Chuvin, “intellectuals, historians, philosophers and poets.” It’s clear that these are the people the author relates to – as most readers will surely do as well. Nevertheless the author also acknowledges that these kind of sophisticated pagans were not the only victims. A lot of the paganism that was destroyed is reminiscent of the worst superstitions of the middle ages – it’s all about love potions, witchcraft, and necromancy. This is hardly the School of Athens.
One of the things that incurred the death penalty was “decorating a tree with ribbons.” I have not been to Ireland for many years, but I recall how driving down rural Irish lanes one would frequently encounter trees, at seemingly random intervals, suddenly weighed down with hundreds of fluttering coloured ribbons. Apparently, these were trees associated with apparitions of the Virgin Mary. In reality, they were of course relics of pagan superstition associated with the worship of nature spirits (although all of those tying on the ribbons would have angrily rejected the supposition that they were anything other than devout Catholics). I wonder if such sights are still commonplace in Ireland, as they were thirty years ago. If they are not, it suggests to me that Roman Imperial Edicts have now at last succeeded – after almost 1,700 years.
November 14, 2020
A translation from the French and only the first part of a longer work, this book will probably only appeal to the professional classicist or historian of classical antiquity. One quarter of it consists of detailed notes, mostly citing sources, the text itself mostly referencing late examples of pagans, mostly from the upper classes. Popular paganism, which continued much longer but which is rarely detailed in our sources, is not much discussed.
The 'religions' of the ancient Greeks and Romans of record were primarily performative, cults associated with polity and characterized by practice, by ritual. Christianity added to this philosophical elements, dogmas and doctrines referring to belief, which in the instances of some thinkers were held as being more important than practices. This is a common take on the difference, a stance accepted by the author. It is, of course, simplistic, avoiding, as he does, the ways in which Christianity absorbed late-antique paganism and, in so doing, was itself transformed so as to become unrecognizable to its founders.
The 'religions' of the ancient Greeks and Romans of record were primarily performative, cults associated with polity and characterized by practice, by ritual. Christianity added to this philosophical elements, dogmas and doctrines referring to belief, which in the instances of some thinkers were held as being more important than practices. This is a common take on the difference, a stance accepted by the author. It is, of course, simplistic, avoiding, as he does, the ways in which Christianity absorbed late-antique paganism and, in so doing, was itself transformed so as to become unrecognizable to its founders.
December 6, 2020
I had to read this via PDF because the only English translation is $800 and out of print. That out of the way, this book is one of the most essential and complete exhibitions I have ever read on the transformation of the Roman world from "pagan" to Christian. The authoritative academic work on the subject as far as I'm concerned. I found this chronicle absolutely fascinating from a political, historical, religious, and cultural point of view. Highly recommended to those interested in history and indigenous European/Near-Eastern/North African religion.
April 10, 2011
I found this concise and scholarly history a joy to read. My interest in the subject was piqued by ads in the NYRB for Alan Cameron's mammoth "The Last Pagans of Rome"-- newly released at the daunting price of $85. And after reading Peter Brown's NYRB review of Cameron's new book, I'm glad I chose to read Pierre Chuvin's work instead. This despite the fact that Brown's review of the other book is entirely and enthusiastically positive.
Chuvin's "A Chronicle of the Last Pagans" has no axe to grind. It is detached, erudite, and illuminating. He does not take sides. History is not a cutting contest, "us" against "them". For me, part of the attraction of reading ancient history is that these people are long dead and buried and it's both silly and futile to get worked up into a lather over who was "good" and who was "bad". Which is not to say that the subject has nothing to say about human nature; quite the opposite. With detachment, passions drop away and reason can take over. Scholarship can take over. In the hands of a master like Pierre Chuvin, even a little wry humor can emerge.
I am puzzled when authors choose a subject they despise. This was the case with Alan Schom's biography of Napoleon-- Schom finds his subject personage not only an utter failure as a human being, but an incompetent general as well! I found it exhausting as well as perverse. The same seems to be the case with Cameron's new work; Brown (admiringly) quotes Cameron characterizing the last pagans of Rome as "the arrogant, philistine land-grabbers most of them were". Furthermore "there was no Pagan revival in the West, no pagan party, no pagans editing classical texts, above all no last Pagan stand". Really? What to make, then, of that battle at the river Frigidus? or of Libanius' impassioned speech "For The Temples"? The reviewer manages to find "no malice" in this book ("arrogant, philistine land-grabbers"?) Indeed, he finds Cameron's manner "benign"!
No thanks. I'll give the laurel branch to Pierre Chuvin's calm, insult-free "A Chronicle of the Last Pagans".
Chuvin's "A Chronicle of the Last Pagans" has no axe to grind. It is detached, erudite, and illuminating. He does not take sides. History is not a cutting contest, "us" against "them". For me, part of the attraction of reading ancient history is that these people are long dead and buried and it's both silly and futile to get worked up into a lather over who was "good" and who was "bad". Which is not to say that the subject has nothing to say about human nature; quite the opposite. With detachment, passions drop away and reason can take over. Scholarship can take over. In the hands of a master like Pierre Chuvin, even a little wry humor can emerge.
I am puzzled when authors choose a subject they despise. This was the case with Alan Schom's biography of Napoleon-- Schom finds his subject personage not only an utter failure as a human being, but an incompetent general as well! I found it exhausting as well as perverse. The same seems to be the case with Cameron's new work; Brown (admiringly) quotes Cameron characterizing the last pagans of Rome as "the arrogant, philistine land-grabbers most of them were". Furthermore "there was no Pagan revival in the West, no pagan party, no pagans editing classical texts, above all no last Pagan stand". Really? What to make, then, of that battle at the river Frigidus? or of Libanius' impassioned speech "For The Temples"? The reviewer manages to find "no malice" in this book ("arrogant, philistine land-grabbers"?) Indeed, he finds Cameron's manner "benign"!
No thanks. I'll give the laurel branch to Pierre Chuvin's calm, insult-free "A Chronicle of the Last Pagans".
February 25, 2019
I found this thin volume fascinating because of the dense history of how "pagans" worshipping their own Gods and Goddesses through rituals, were persecuted by the Christian rulers during the period of the Holy Roman Empire. What's especially interesting was that powers of so-called divination and magic, were the source of their disdain. Knowing the future was believed to have come from one's personal Genius. In the clash of the old and new religion, books were burned and philosophers beheaded. The death penalty for practicing paganism came and went over time. The last pagans were mainly intellectuals, historians, philosphers and poets.
Yet, there remained a trace of paganism in peasants worshiping idols or trees, as in the French fées in Joan of Arc's time. What came to my mind was the connection between prophecy and religion in general, i.e. the need to know the future and/or be safeguarded in the afterlife. Joan's condemnation was, in part, due to her knowledge of the future. Her accusors said this knowledge came from the devil, where she claimed it came from God. My view on Joan of Arc's mind, using the latest neuroscience, is in peer review. I'll let you know when the article comes out.
Yet, there remained a trace of paganism in peasants worshiping idols or trees, as in the French fées in Joan of Arc's time. What came to my mind was the connection between prophecy and religion in general, i.e. the need to know the future and/or be safeguarded in the afterlife. Joan's condemnation was, in part, due to her knowledge of the future. Her accusors said this knowledge came from the devil, where she claimed it came from God. My view on Joan of Arc's mind, using the latest neuroscience, is in peer review. I'll let you know when the article comes out.
April 22, 2021
Very well written and accessible, though a little more brief than I'd like. An excellent introduction to the topic (since it's only a partial translation) that doesn't gloss over the general horrors of the time period.
December 27, 2015
This short book does a marvelous job narrating the slow, inexorable death of classical civilization. Chuvin has full command of the original sources and weaves them into a threnody that is poignant (Justinian's closing the School of Athens and the quixotic departure of the philosophers for Persia), brutal (is there another religion besides Christianity that sends heretics to burn at the stake with such elan?), and occasionally absurd (Anatolias, the governor of Antioch, running away to the local bishop from a ceremony honoring Zeus when the Byzantine police closed in and pretending to be consulting the bishop on a matter of scripture).
January 7, 2022
This book's title should certainly be taken literally, as a "chronicle" is the best description of it. While I was inspired to read the book because of The Mountain Goats' 2020 concept album surrounding it, I ultimately think it's a solid little book about a specific topic, which thankfully I know a decent amount about. However, I would only recommend this to those who know a good amount about the topic beforehand, as Chuvin doesn't pull any punches in regards to context for his discussions on certain events surrounding the chronology of Late Antiquity.
January 14, 2025
"A Chronicle of the Last Pagans" by French scholar and antiquarian Pierre Chuvin details the waning days of paganism in the late Roman Empire. The book covers roughly the time period from the life of the emperor Constantine the Great (272-337 CE) to the emperor Justinian (482-565 CE). So essentially from the rise of Christianity as a state sponsored religion under the Emperor Constantine during whose reign Christianity displaced the old ethno-religious pagan cults of the Roman Empire as the defacto state religion to Justinian who was the last Roman emperor to deal directly with the pagan population through legislation and whose court contained some of the last pagan politicians and philosophers known to late antiquity. Chuvin does a superb job of making the text readable, instead of a list of dates and dry text about legislative measures the reader is treated to a lot of first person sources detailing the experiences of the last of the pagans in the Roman Empire. Chuvin also covers many of the pivotal events that marked the decline of paganism such as the passing of the Theodosian Edicts against sacrifices and pagan worship (391 CE), destruction of the Serapeaum (391 CE), the lynching of the philosopher Hypatia (415 CE), and the exodus of the pagan philosophers from Athens to the Persian court follow Justinian's closure of the philosophy and rhetorical school there (529 CE).
Chuvin does a superb job of noting where his information stops. He gives tantalizing tidbits on things like the continuation of paganism among rural peasants in parts of Europe, Egypt, and the Near East he owns that the first person sources on these peoples and religious traditions are sparse. He also details information regarding later Islamic chroniclers in regards the anomaly of the Sabians and the last pagans of Harran who persisted well into the Islamic era. All-in-all the book is well presented and Chuvin shines a bright light on a part of social history in late antiquity that is often lost in political histories of wars and emperors. A social shift just as socially impactful as the fall of the Roman state, the sudden and dramatic shift of the spiritual life of the Roman Empire away from the faith of their fathers into the new Christian faith. A change that in the grand scheme of history was almost overnight. I would recommend this text to anyone interested in late antiquity or the history of religions.
Edit: It should be noted that the "Chronicle of the Last Pagans" is a small part of a much larger work by Pierre Chuvin, parred down for consumption by a larger swath of the population. In that I believe this abridged work does its job well, concise, hard hitting, and informative.
Chuvin does a superb job of noting where his information stops. He gives tantalizing tidbits on things like the continuation of paganism among rural peasants in parts of Europe, Egypt, and the Near East he owns that the first person sources on these peoples and religious traditions are sparse. He also details information regarding later Islamic chroniclers in regards the anomaly of the Sabians and the last pagans of Harran who persisted well into the Islamic era. All-in-all the book is well presented and Chuvin shines a bright light on a part of social history in late antiquity that is often lost in political histories of wars and emperors. A social shift just as socially impactful as the fall of the Roman state, the sudden and dramatic shift of the spiritual life of the Roman Empire away from the faith of their fathers into the new Christian faith. A change that in the grand scheme of history was almost overnight. I would recommend this text to anyone interested in late antiquity or the history of religions.
Edit: It should be noted that the "Chronicle of the Last Pagans" is a small part of a much larger work by Pierre Chuvin, parred down for consumption by a larger swath of the population. In that I believe this abridged work does its job well, concise, hard hitting, and informative.
April 19, 2025
3.25 When trying (and failing) to find an ebook for this (uni library pulled through), I saw a reddit comment that described this book as an academic text written for laymen by someone who doesn't quite know how to do that. That's definitely a fair and accurate assessment. Excluding the notes and the index, this is a tight and dense 150 pages. It does a lot with those 150 pages, taking us from 300 to the 500s, covering many specific events and individuals (so, so many names) with a lot of detail packed in every paragraph. Not locking in my full attention for even half a paragraph forced me to reread the entire page. Given that at this point I have an attention span like swiss cheese, the experience of reading was very much a two pages forward one page back kind of ordeal. I fell asleep three times during. It's honestly quite boring, at least for the first half.
I can't really speak for the like, content, of the book, because I don't know much about the subject matter except for what I've now read here. It seemed well balanced though between anecdotes and narrative and precise raw facts. I think it assumed a bit of knowledge on the part of the reader going in, but still made an attempt to explain things enough to keep up if you didn't. (I still had Wikipedia and a dictionary out half the time though).
I started this purely because of the Mountain Goats album Songs for Pierre Chuvin, but I enjoyed the content apart from that (otherwise this would have been unreadable). It shed light on the events referenced the album, and every time I hit a song title within the text I got really excited, and I learned what some of the titles meant (Exegetic Chains, for example). So thanks John Darnielle for the book recommendation I guess. The melancholy and whispered hopefulness of album is definitely reflected in here, and I found myself in tears thinking about the last of the pagans at some points while reading which may sound absurd after what I’ve just said in the last couple paragraphs.
Overall, I wouldn't really recommend this book unless you're already interested in Late Antiquity or paganism or Christianity or a sedative less accessible than actual sedatives. But even if you aren't interested (as I wasn't; before this book I wouldn't have been able to name any historical event between the years of 350 and 550) there’s enough in here to probably get you hooked on something.
I can't really speak for the like, content, of the book, because I don't know much about the subject matter except for what I've now read here. It seemed well balanced though between anecdotes and narrative and precise raw facts. I think it assumed a bit of knowledge on the part of the reader going in, but still made an attempt to explain things enough to keep up if you didn't. (I still had Wikipedia and a dictionary out half the time though).
I started this purely because of the Mountain Goats album Songs for Pierre Chuvin, but I enjoyed the content apart from that (otherwise this would have been unreadable). It shed light on the events referenced the album, and every time I hit a song title within the text I got really excited, and I learned what some of the titles meant (Exegetic Chains, for example). So thanks John Darnielle for the book recommendation I guess. The melancholy and whispered hopefulness of album is definitely reflected in here, and I found myself in tears thinking about the last of the pagans at some points while reading which may sound absurd after what I’ve just said in the last couple paragraphs.
Overall, I wouldn't really recommend this book unless you're already interested in Late Antiquity or paganism or Christianity or a sedative less accessible than actual sedatives. But even if you aren't interested (as I wasn't; before this book I wouldn't have been able to name any historical event between the years of 350 and 550) there’s enough in here to probably get you hooked on something.
December 22, 2023
This book manages to be very brief and very thorough at the same time. The narrative is better structured than other, chaotic books, but still can be difficult to follow due to going back and forth in time when mentioning events in different parts of the empire. The chapter titles definitely help.
The main text is around 180 pages, and the citation appendix is around 20 - if that doesn't tell you something, I don't know what will. It's blindingly obvious that the writer is extremely well read and punctual with his sources and citations.
However, there are so many people, names, dates and events mentioned in such short passages that I believe make this book a questionable recommendation for a casual reader. Of course, important figures from both sides should be mentioned, but with them being already so many, the inclusion of people of lesser importance (beurocrats, servants etc) by name, makes things convoluted for non-academic readers. It also doesn't help that there are two persons named Porphyry - on complete opposite sides, adding to the confusion.
Being a strictly historical book, it's mainly an account of events (a lot of events) and there's very little room for the presentation of the people/ideas of each side. Some notable exceptions are Hypatia and St. Augustine, but more than anything, this book could be a good starting point for further research, if you want to get into the religious aspect of things.
Bottom line, this is a very specific book, about a very specific subject. It is very well researched, written in a dry style, aimed at people who are looking for particular information, and it absolutely succeeds in providing it.I don't think it even attempts to be entertaining, so I would avoid any such expectations.
The main text is around 180 pages, and the citation appendix is around 20 - if that doesn't tell you something, I don't know what will. It's blindingly obvious that the writer is extremely well read and punctual with his sources and citations.
However, there are so many people, names, dates and events mentioned in such short passages that I believe make this book a questionable recommendation for a casual reader. Of course, important figures from both sides should be mentioned, but with them being already so many, the inclusion of people of lesser importance (beurocrats, servants etc) by name, makes things convoluted for non-academic readers. It also doesn't help that there are two persons named Porphyry - on complete opposite sides, adding to the confusion.
Being a strictly historical book, it's mainly an account of events (a lot of events) and there's very little room for the presentation of the people/ideas of each side. Some notable exceptions are Hypatia and St. Augustine, but more than anything, this book could be a good starting point for further research, if you want to get into the religious aspect of things.
Bottom line, this is a very specific book, about a very specific subject. It is very well researched, written in a dry style, aimed at people who are looking for particular information, and it absolutely succeeds in providing it.I don't think it even attempts to be entertaining, so I would avoid any such expectations.
April 18, 2019
I was so looking forward to this book and finally snagged a discarded library copy, but in the end I can only give 3/5 stars. It's a condensed history of paganism from Constantine through Justinian, with lots of notes the reader will appreciate and would be a good reference for the history student. However, the author's attitude was somewhat troubling. He implies that the paganism of antiquity was more along the lines of a political ideology that one could change at whim, that most pagans converted freely, and that the dramatic persecutions of pagans (with punishments such as exile, torture, numerous forms of execution, and being stripped of property rights) was merely just a political tactic. It seems that any time a Christian is implicated in persecuting a pagan, the author waves it off as just political maneuvering or is outright justified. When the historical evidence is lacking, the author inserts his own guesses, all leading toward a benevolent view of triumphant Christianity and the dying off of superstitious paganism. This obvious bias just smacks of apologetics. So, while the content of this book is quite detailed and should be appreciated on that basis alone, the presentation is downright haughty to anyone even remotely sympathetic to the plights of the last pagans.
December 15, 2022
Very much an academic book and very dry, but if you're into a legit chronicle and interested in the end of paganism in the Roman empire (and have enough background knowledge to make reading worthwhile), it might be interesting! Definitely not a book for laypeople - I wonder if this was just a light read for John Darnielle, without whom I would not know about Pierre Chuvin or this book. Wouldn't surprise me at all.
Anyway, I did a lot of skimming because much of the context was lost on me (my knowledge of the early Christian era in Rome is... marginal), but I didn't want to knock it any stars just because I didn't know something; however, I did knock it two because it was 1) super dry, although that could have been translation, but did distract me somewhat, and 2) it was very much a record of incidents that I thought could have used more elaboration with regards to the wider context in which they were taking place, but I've been out of academia for awhile and history wasn't my background when I was, so that could be on me...
All in all, it was an interesting read! I just had to work to parse out the bits that weren't mired down in the details. If you were writing a paper on the end of paganism in the Roman empire, this would definitely be a source to consult.
Anyway, I did a lot of skimming because much of the context was lost on me (my knowledge of the early Christian era in Rome is... marginal), but I didn't want to knock it any stars just because I didn't know something; however, I did knock it two because it was 1) super dry, although that could have been translation, but did distract me somewhat, and 2) it was very much a record of incidents that I thought could have used more elaboration with regards to the wider context in which they were taking place, but I've been out of academia for awhile and history wasn't my background when I was, so that could be on me...
All in all, it was an interesting read! I just had to work to parse out the bits that weren't mired down in the details. If you were writing a paper on the end of paganism in the Roman empire, this would definitely be a source to consult.
November 30, 2024
"Co zaś do pogańskich wierzeń naszych współczesnych, którzy nazywają siebie "nowymi poganami", ta czasem perwersyjna forma romantyzmu nie ma nic wspólnego z wiarą wyznawców religii Juliana czy Proklosa ani z tradycyjnymi kultami [...] o których przywróceniu marzyli".
June 29, 2024
A well-researched work bogged-down with lackluster prose and too many offhanded references. Bonus points for inspiring the best Mountain Goats album.
February 27, 2017
Απλα φωτιζει τις πιο σκοτεινες στιγμες της ιστοριας της λεκανης της Μεσογειου.Σιγουρα ο αναγνωστης θα ηθελε περισσοτερες λεπτομερειες σχετικα με το πως εγινε η αλλαγη της θρησκειας.Απο την αλλη ομως μπορει αυτο να ειναι και ενα εναυσμα για να ξεκινησεις να αναζητας αυτο που δεν σου προσφερεται απλοχερα απο τα βιβλια ιστοριας που σε τριγυριζουνε
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