Calls for Papers/Aug 16, 2021

Empires without Boarders: Collaboration and Rivalry between the Roman and Sasanian Empire in Late Antiquity

Empires without Boarders: Collaboration and Rivalry between the Roman and Sasanian Empire in Late Antiquity lead image

Empires without Boarders: Collaboration and Rivalry between the Roman and Sasanian Empire in Late Antiquity, sessions at 2022 International Medieval Congress, University of Leeds, July 4–7, 2022

For several centuries, the Roman and Sasanian Empires engaged in conflict. Frontiers shifted and various peoples were forced to either moblilise, fortify, or simply co-exist with neighbours. Importantly, the two powers continuously interacted with each other, not only politically and militarily, throughout their co-existence, but also culturally. Therefore, there would always be rivalry but also collaboration between them,

What were these collaborations though? Which aspects of their rivalry manifested? How did they pose themselves in accordance to one-another and their neighbours? What did other think about these two empires battling it out in the Near East, but at the same time, co-existing for such a long period? 

In keeping the IMC 2022 theme of 'borders', papers are sought for a strand of panels examining comparative and interdisciplinary approaches to the idea of rivalry and collaboration between the Romanos and Sasanians. Papers for this panel can focus on Roman-Sasanian relations from the Third to the Seventh Century AD.

  • Possible topics might include (but at not limited to):
  • Political Rivalry and Collaboration
  • Cultural Exchange
  • Religious Conflict or Tolerance
  • Comparison of Gender Roles; Their Interaction and Reception
  • The Military Rivalry between Powers - Military Collaboration/Invention
  • The Geographic Borders of the Near East (Rivalry between Neighbours/Power Struggles in the Late Antique Near East)