Egypt in the Byzantine World 300-700

Egypt in the period from the reign of the emperor Constantine to the Arab conquest was both a vital part of the Late Roman and Byzantine world participating fully in the culture of its wider Mediterranean society and a distinctive milieu launched on a path to developing the Coptic Christian culture that we see fully only after the end of Byzantine rule. This book is the first comprehensive survey of Egypt to treat this entire period including the first half-century of Arab rule. Twenty-one renowned specialists present the history society economy culture religious institutions art and architecture of the period. Topics covered range from elite literature to mummification and from monks to Alexandrian scholars. A full range of Egypt''s uniquely rich source materials - literature papyrus documents letters and archaeological remains - gives exceptional depth and vividness to this portrait of a society and recent archaeological discoveries are described and illustrated.