LEAD SEALS IN BYZANTINE THRACE
Byzantine lead seals, or molybdoboulla, are a unique source of Byzantine history. They increase immensely our knowledge of Byzantine administration and social structures, as well as the prosopography and historical geography of the empire.
An international conference in Vienna aims at exploring Byzantine Thrace based on sigillographic material found in situ. The conference focuses on issues of mobility and communication within and outside the geographical area of Thrace in order to explain and reconstruct various historical complexities, processes and networks. On the other hand, it addresses questions related to communication networks and their visualisation on maps with the help of digital tools. Finally, it presents aspects of historical geography and of the living space of Thrace to which sigillography contributes significantly.
The Conference is organised in the framework of the international project Lead Seals in Byzantine Thrace: Re-examination of data, mapping the distribution of findings and tracing the communication networks (LSByT). Funded by the Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation (http://www.lsbyt.web.auth.gr/). Host Institution: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki; Collaborating Institutions: ÖAW/IMAFO/ABF and Konstantin Preslavsky University Shumen/Bulgaria (cf. https://www.oeaw.ac.at/byzanz/gesellschaft-und-landschaft/sigillographie/lead-seals-in-byzantine-thrace).