Papers by Catherine Keane
BRILL eBooks, May 20, 2024
BRILL eBooks, May 20, 2024
The church annexes of late antique Cyprus were bustling places of industry, producing olive oil, ... more The church annexes of late antique Cyprus were bustling places of industry, producing olive oil, flour, bread, ceramics, and metal products. From its earliest centuries, the church was an economic player, participating in agricultural and artisanal production. More than a Church brings together architecture, ceramics, numismatics, landscape archaeology, and unpublished excavation material, alongside consideration of Cyprus’s dynamic and prosperous 4th–10th-century history. Keane offers a rich picture of the association between sacred buildings and agricultural and industrial facilities—comprehensively presenting, for the first time, the church’s economic role and impact in late antique Cyprus. https://brill.com/display/title/70278
BRILL eBooks, May 20, 2024
Religions, Nov 11, 2021
This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY
Ecclesiastical Economies: The Integration of Sacred and Maritime Topographies of Late Antique Cyprus, 2021
This article focusses on the relationship of the church with productive landscapes and coastal to... more This article focusses on the relationship of the church with productive landscapes and coastal topographies within numerous Cypriot contexts of the 4th–8th centuries. Through synthesising the archaeological research and architectural remains of these aspects and categories, the coastal settlements of the island are recontextualised in terms of their mercantile, religious, and cultural networks, on inter- and intraregional scales. The advantages of researching late antique insular societies on local, individual scales and within economic contexts are therefore highlighted. These integrative approaches can illuminate the constructions of religious identity across many coastal contexts, particularly in larger islands with micro-regions and trans-Mediterranean connectivity, like Cyprus. By considering the importance of the administrative and economic roles of the late antique church within these maritime topographies, future archaeological research can integrate both the monumentality and pragmatic aspects of sacred landscapes.
CfP "Byzantium Bizarre: Storytelling through sacred spaces", ICMS Kalamazoo, 2021
We cordially invite the submission of abstracts for our session "Byzantium Bizarre: Storytelling ... more We cordially invite the submission of abstracts for our session "Byzantium Bizarre: Storytelling through sacred spaces" at the 2022 International Congress on Medieval Studies, taking place online from May 9-14, 2022. Church architecture, sacred locations and legend can produce a bizarre interplay in the late antique and Byzantine Mediterranean. Particularly interesting are extraordinary churches that tell a story or have a legend, tradition, or mythology attached to them, revealing the human fascination toward the bizarre.
Please submit the abstract for your paper (300 words abstract plus a short description of 50 words) by September 15, 2021, through the conference portal at wmich.edu/medievalcongress/call.
We, Dr. des. Catherine Keane ([email protected]) and Dr. Katharina Palmberger ([email protected]), the organizers of this panel, are happy to answer any of your questions.
Conference Presentations by Catherine Keane
Session 4 Sacred Landscapes and Human-Environment Relations Chair: Sabine Neumann (Marburg) 9.45-... more Session 4 Sacred Landscapes and Human-Environment Relations Chair: Sabine Neumann (Marburg) 9.45-10.30 Monumental visibility and administration at late antique mines and quarries Catherine Keane (Marburg) 10.30-11.15 The Sacred Nature in Greek Cult and Nature sanctuaries Mirja Biehl (Marburg) 11.15-12.00 Mountains as Sacred Landscapes.
Olive Oil And Wine Production in The Aegean and Mediterranean in Antiquity:
Rural Settlements, Ur... more Olive Oil And Wine Production in The Aegean and Mediterranean in Antiquity:
Rural Settlements, Urban Centers and Trade
International Symposium
Remnants of oil production associated with churches are found throughout the Mediterranean. Basilicas are often interpreted as production sites for the subsistence needs of a monastery or the local community. In this context, the provision of a communal oil press is seen as equivalent to the shared use of bakeries or threshing floors.
In my study, I focus on three case studies that deviate from this rule: Agios Georgios in Pegeia, Agia Varvara in Amathous, and Panagia Chrysopolitissa. In Agios Georgios, oil production workshops were found at a crossroads next to stores, a sacristy and a marble table storage room. The church was established at the same time as these sites, indicating the essential initiative of the church for the establishment of the workshops. In Amathous, closer inspection of the so-called monastery indicates that the oil press was the primary aspect for the entire site. A smaller basilica was also added to the edge of the cliff, which was also used for a variety of flour production purposes during the 9th and 10th centuries. The last production facility to be considered was inserted into the atrium of Panagia Chrysopolitissa in Nea Paphos. This is an example of a secondary facility installed after the mid-7th century upheavals.
Nea Paphos Conference III
Another Acropolis Of Paphos: Fabrika Hill And Beyond
Archaeological And... more Nea Paphos Conference III
Another Acropolis Of Paphos: Fabrika Hill And Beyond
Archaeological And Historical Studies
This paper discusses the late antique churches of Nea Paphos, situating them amidst current and future research. By summarising archaeological investigations of the 20th century, a brief overview of the ecclesiastical complexes of Nea Paphos will be provided. Considerations of artistic workshops, architectural decoration, and artefactual material will be compared to other late antique Cypriot sites.
By the late 7th century, Cyprus had experienced a series of Arab raids. Until recently, the predo... more By the late 7th century, Cyprus had experienced a series of Arab raids. Until recently, the predominant scholarship had supposed these attacks to instigate an abandonment of coastal settlements and establishment of internal cities. However, the past decades have produced artifactual evidence and architectural continuities that contradict the idea of new cities replacing those on the coast, or even the dichotomy of city and countryside.
This paper shows the ongoing prosperity in a time previously thought to be either stagnation or Arab control, or both. This production and consumption are indicated by the material record of many kilns, storage areas, press installations, and amphorae found across the island, usually still in coastal sites and within church complexes. Modern reinterpretations of ceramics show Middle Byzantine forms to be in circulation as early as the late 6th and early 7th centuries. Sites such as Amathus, Katalymmata ton Plakoton, Dreamer’s Bay, and Agios Georgios Nicosia all contribute evidence towards a reanalysis of the history of agricultural and artisanal activities from the mid-4th century earthquakes to the 7th century political shifts.
In the middle and late 6th century, settlements across the Eastern Mediterranean began to accommodate dwellings and workshops in monumental and Christian areas. For Cyprus, these types of shifts seem to be more relevant to socioeconomic practicalities than to particular political or religious alliances.
Comparing the intraregional networks of Cyprus as well as complexes across the Mediterranean illuminates the church’s production role in response to the expanding empire’s commercial needs within a small community, and long-term coastal and rural transformations.
This paper consists of an examination of the archaeological material immediately surrounding the ... more This paper consists of an examination of the archaeological material immediately surrounding the episcopal structures, such as olive or wine presses (especially unusual at Sufetula, Sidi Jdidi, and Thugga). Even other activities were moved to be in proximity of the church, signifying a break in tradition to uproot extramural trade to relocation within the city. These progressions in control and activity of bishops manifest as a socio-political means, a last resort for involvement in many societal levels.
In addition to the economic activity of North African churches in local or Mediterranean trade, the paper examines the disparities in production associated with civic and church entities across the Mediterranean in order to contextualize the individual and societal agency in an inconsistently Christianized time. This illuminates the church’s production role in response to the expanding empire’s commercial needs, and the long-term transformations, at sites in Cyprus, the Negev desert, and southern Italy. This paper will therefore discuss the theme of agricultural sources in Christian contexts; of the processes resulting in episcopal industry, and hypothetically of Mediterranean trade within these parameters.
CfP, 2021
We cordially invite the submission of abstracts for our session "Byzantium Bizarre: Storytelling ... more We cordially invite the submission of abstracts for our session "Byzantium Bizarre: Storytelling through sacred spaces" at the 2022 International Congress on Medieval Studies, taking place online from May 9-14, 2022. Church architecture, sacred locations and legend can produce a bizarre interplay in the late antique and Byzantine Mediterranean. Particularly interesting are extraordinary churches that tell a story or have a legend, tradition, or mythology attached to them, revealing the human fascination toward the bizarre. In our panel, we look forward to discussing these sociocultural aspects of Byzantine churches, particularly those linking material to the sacred spaces, architecture, and archaeology.
Talks by Catherine Keane
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The Program in Medieval Studies presents
The 20th Anni... more University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The Program in Medieval Studies presents
The 20th Anniversary Alumni Lecture Series
Cyprus was a prosperous, independent island that was able to build its importance through diverse trade relations. Within Cypriot localities, both rural and urban, a strong connection between religious and secular buildings can be traced, indicating a strong influence of the church on the local economy. This paper studies ecclesiastical monuments in relation to agricultural and industrial facilities from the 4th to 9th centuries. By bringing together the fields of architecture, ceramics, numismatics, and landscape archaeology, combined with a consideration of the island's late antique history and vitality, the role of the church and its influence before and after the 7th century Arab invasions is comprehensively presented.
Drafts by Catherine Keane
In Late Antiquity, Cyprus was a prosperous, independent island that was able to build its importa... more In Late Antiquity, Cyprus was a prosperous, independent island that was able to build its importance through diverse trade relations. Its socio-economic and cultural development was shaped by invasions and earthquakes, but also by trans-Mediterranean contact and the lively cult of saints from the earliest years of Christianity. As Christianity developed in the eastern Mediterranean, the Church established a great influence over the island, as evidenced by numerous large basilicas and the formation of many bishoprics.
Within Cypriot localities, both rural and urban, a strong connection between religious and secular buildings can be traced, indicating a strong influence of the church on the local economy. From an archaeological point of view, this phenomenon takes numerous forms and transformations. Both civic and religious monuments have been given archaeological attention in the past, however, the relationships between production sites and economic structures located close to churches have been neglected.
This dissertation is a comprehensive study of ecclesiastical monuments in relation to agricultural and industrial facilities from the 4th to 10th centuries. The particular focus is on the dynamics between economic spaces and sacred architecture, and is organised by the type of product or industrial activity. By bringing together the fields of architecture, ceramics, numismatics, and landscape archaeology, combined with a consideration of the island’s late antique history and vitality, the role of the church and its influence before and after the 7th century Arab invasions is comprehensively presented here for the first time.
Books by Catherine Keane
More than a Church: Late Antique Ecclesiastical Complexes in Cyprus, 2024
The church annexes of late antique Cyprus were bustling places of industry, producing olive oil, ... more The church annexes of late antique Cyprus were bustling places of industry, producing olive oil, flour, bread, ceramics, and metal products. From its earliest centuries, the church was an economic player, participating in agricultural and artisanal production.
More than a Church brings together architecture, ceramics, numismatics, landscape archaeology, and unpublished excavation material, alongside consideration of Cyprus’s dynamic and prosperous 4th–10th-century history. Keane offers a rich picture of the association between sacred buildings and agricultural and industrial facilities—comprehensively presenting, for the first time, the church’s economic role and impact in late antique Cyprus.
https://brill.com/display/title/70278
Uploads
Papers by Catherine Keane
Please submit the abstract for your paper (300 words abstract plus a short description of 50 words) by September 15, 2021, through the conference portal at wmich.edu/medievalcongress/call.
We, Dr. des. Catherine Keane ([email protected]) and Dr. Katharina Palmberger ([email protected]), the organizers of this panel, are happy to answer any of your questions.
Conference Presentations by Catherine Keane
Rural Settlements, Urban Centers and Trade
International Symposium
Remnants of oil production associated with churches are found throughout the Mediterranean. Basilicas are often interpreted as production sites for the subsistence needs of a monastery or the local community. In this context, the provision of a communal oil press is seen as equivalent to the shared use of bakeries or threshing floors.
In my study, I focus on three case studies that deviate from this rule: Agios Georgios in Pegeia, Agia Varvara in Amathous, and Panagia Chrysopolitissa. In Agios Georgios, oil production workshops were found at a crossroads next to stores, a sacristy and a marble table storage room. The church was established at the same time as these sites, indicating the essential initiative of the church for the establishment of the workshops. In Amathous, closer inspection of the so-called monastery indicates that the oil press was the primary aspect for the entire site. A smaller basilica was also added to the edge of the cliff, which was also used for a variety of flour production purposes during the 9th and 10th centuries. The last production facility to be considered was inserted into the atrium of Panagia Chrysopolitissa in Nea Paphos. This is an example of a secondary facility installed after the mid-7th century upheavals.
Another Acropolis Of Paphos: Fabrika Hill And Beyond
Archaeological And Historical Studies
This paper discusses the late antique churches of Nea Paphos, situating them amidst current and future research. By summarising archaeological investigations of the 20th century, a brief overview of the ecclesiastical complexes of Nea Paphos will be provided. Considerations of artistic workshops, architectural decoration, and artefactual material will be compared to other late antique Cypriot sites.
This paper shows the ongoing prosperity in a time previously thought to be either stagnation or Arab control, or both. This production and consumption are indicated by the material record of many kilns, storage areas, press installations, and amphorae found across the island, usually still in coastal sites and within church complexes. Modern reinterpretations of ceramics show Middle Byzantine forms to be in circulation as early as the late 6th and early 7th centuries. Sites such as Amathus, Katalymmata ton Plakoton, Dreamer’s Bay, and Agios Georgios Nicosia all contribute evidence towards a reanalysis of the history of agricultural and artisanal activities from the mid-4th century earthquakes to the 7th century political shifts.
In the middle and late 6th century, settlements across the Eastern Mediterranean began to accommodate dwellings and workshops in monumental and Christian areas. For Cyprus, these types of shifts seem to be more relevant to socioeconomic practicalities than to particular political or religious alliances.
Comparing the intraregional networks of Cyprus as well as complexes across the Mediterranean illuminates the church’s production role in response to the expanding empire’s commercial needs within a small community, and long-term coastal and rural transformations.
In addition to the economic activity of North African churches in local or Mediterranean trade, the paper examines the disparities in production associated with civic and church entities across the Mediterranean in order to contextualize the individual and societal agency in an inconsistently Christianized time. This illuminates the church’s production role in response to the expanding empire’s commercial needs, and the long-term transformations, at sites in Cyprus, the Negev desert, and southern Italy. This paper will therefore discuss the theme of agricultural sources in Christian contexts; of the processes resulting in episcopal industry, and hypothetically of Mediterranean trade within these parameters.
Talks by Catherine Keane
The Program in Medieval Studies presents
The 20th Anniversary Alumni Lecture Series
Cyprus was a prosperous, independent island that was able to build its importance through diverse trade relations. Within Cypriot localities, both rural and urban, a strong connection between religious and secular buildings can be traced, indicating a strong influence of the church on the local economy. This paper studies ecclesiastical monuments in relation to agricultural and industrial facilities from the 4th to 9th centuries. By bringing together the fields of architecture, ceramics, numismatics, and landscape archaeology, combined with a consideration of the island's late antique history and vitality, the role of the church and its influence before and after the 7th century Arab invasions is comprehensively presented.
Drafts by Catherine Keane
Within Cypriot localities, both rural and urban, a strong connection between religious and secular buildings can be traced, indicating a strong influence of the church on the local economy. From an archaeological point of view, this phenomenon takes numerous forms and transformations. Both civic and religious monuments have been given archaeological attention in the past, however, the relationships between production sites and economic structures located close to churches have been neglected.
This dissertation is a comprehensive study of ecclesiastical monuments in relation to agricultural and industrial facilities from the 4th to 10th centuries. The particular focus is on the dynamics between economic spaces and sacred architecture, and is organised by the type of product or industrial activity. By bringing together the fields of architecture, ceramics, numismatics, and landscape archaeology, combined with a consideration of the island’s late antique history and vitality, the role of the church and its influence before and after the 7th century Arab invasions is comprehensively presented here for the first time.
Books by Catherine Keane
More than a Church brings together architecture, ceramics, numismatics, landscape archaeology, and unpublished excavation material, alongside consideration of Cyprus’s dynamic and prosperous 4th–10th-century history. Keane offers a rich picture of the association between sacred buildings and agricultural and industrial facilities—comprehensively presenting, for the first time, the church’s economic role and impact in late antique Cyprus.
https://brill.com/display/title/70278
Please submit the abstract for your paper (300 words abstract plus a short description of 50 words) by September 15, 2021, through the conference portal at wmich.edu/medievalcongress/call.
We, Dr. des. Catherine Keane ([email protected]) and Dr. Katharina Palmberger ([email protected]), the organizers of this panel, are happy to answer any of your questions.
Rural Settlements, Urban Centers and Trade
International Symposium
Remnants of oil production associated with churches are found throughout the Mediterranean. Basilicas are often interpreted as production sites for the subsistence needs of a monastery or the local community. In this context, the provision of a communal oil press is seen as equivalent to the shared use of bakeries or threshing floors.
In my study, I focus on three case studies that deviate from this rule: Agios Georgios in Pegeia, Agia Varvara in Amathous, and Panagia Chrysopolitissa. In Agios Georgios, oil production workshops were found at a crossroads next to stores, a sacristy and a marble table storage room. The church was established at the same time as these sites, indicating the essential initiative of the church for the establishment of the workshops. In Amathous, closer inspection of the so-called monastery indicates that the oil press was the primary aspect for the entire site. A smaller basilica was also added to the edge of the cliff, which was also used for a variety of flour production purposes during the 9th and 10th centuries. The last production facility to be considered was inserted into the atrium of Panagia Chrysopolitissa in Nea Paphos. This is an example of a secondary facility installed after the mid-7th century upheavals.
Another Acropolis Of Paphos: Fabrika Hill And Beyond
Archaeological And Historical Studies
This paper discusses the late antique churches of Nea Paphos, situating them amidst current and future research. By summarising archaeological investigations of the 20th century, a brief overview of the ecclesiastical complexes of Nea Paphos will be provided. Considerations of artistic workshops, architectural decoration, and artefactual material will be compared to other late antique Cypriot sites.
This paper shows the ongoing prosperity in a time previously thought to be either stagnation or Arab control, or both. This production and consumption are indicated by the material record of many kilns, storage areas, press installations, and amphorae found across the island, usually still in coastal sites and within church complexes. Modern reinterpretations of ceramics show Middle Byzantine forms to be in circulation as early as the late 6th and early 7th centuries. Sites such as Amathus, Katalymmata ton Plakoton, Dreamer’s Bay, and Agios Georgios Nicosia all contribute evidence towards a reanalysis of the history of agricultural and artisanal activities from the mid-4th century earthquakes to the 7th century political shifts.
In the middle and late 6th century, settlements across the Eastern Mediterranean began to accommodate dwellings and workshops in monumental and Christian areas. For Cyprus, these types of shifts seem to be more relevant to socioeconomic practicalities than to particular political or religious alliances.
Comparing the intraregional networks of Cyprus as well as complexes across the Mediterranean illuminates the church’s production role in response to the expanding empire’s commercial needs within a small community, and long-term coastal and rural transformations.
In addition to the economic activity of North African churches in local or Mediterranean trade, the paper examines the disparities in production associated with civic and church entities across the Mediterranean in order to contextualize the individual and societal agency in an inconsistently Christianized time. This illuminates the church’s production role in response to the expanding empire’s commercial needs, and the long-term transformations, at sites in Cyprus, the Negev desert, and southern Italy. This paper will therefore discuss the theme of agricultural sources in Christian contexts; of the processes resulting in episcopal industry, and hypothetically of Mediterranean trade within these parameters.
The Program in Medieval Studies presents
The 20th Anniversary Alumni Lecture Series
Cyprus was a prosperous, independent island that was able to build its importance through diverse trade relations. Within Cypriot localities, both rural and urban, a strong connection between religious and secular buildings can be traced, indicating a strong influence of the church on the local economy. This paper studies ecclesiastical monuments in relation to agricultural and industrial facilities from the 4th to 9th centuries. By bringing together the fields of architecture, ceramics, numismatics, and landscape archaeology, combined with a consideration of the island's late antique history and vitality, the role of the church and its influence before and after the 7th century Arab invasions is comprehensively presented.
Within Cypriot localities, both rural and urban, a strong connection between religious and secular buildings can be traced, indicating a strong influence of the church on the local economy. From an archaeological point of view, this phenomenon takes numerous forms and transformations. Both civic and religious monuments have been given archaeological attention in the past, however, the relationships between production sites and economic structures located close to churches have been neglected.
This dissertation is a comprehensive study of ecclesiastical monuments in relation to agricultural and industrial facilities from the 4th to 10th centuries. The particular focus is on the dynamics between economic spaces and sacred architecture, and is organised by the type of product or industrial activity. By bringing together the fields of architecture, ceramics, numismatics, and landscape archaeology, combined with a consideration of the island’s late antique history and vitality, the role of the church and its influence before and after the 7th century Arab invasions is comprehensively presented here for the first time.
More than a Church brings together architecture, ceramics, numismatics, landscape archaeology, and unpublished excavation material, alongside consideration of Cyprus’s dynamic and prosperous 4th–10th-century history. Keane offers a rich picture of the association between sacred buildings and agricultural and industrial facilities—comprehensively presenting, for the first time, the church’s economic role and impact in late antique Cyprus.
https://brill.com/display/title/70278