But perhaps the most important financial reform of Anastasius was the abolition, upon the advice of his trusted praetorian prefect, Marinus, a Syrian, of the system under which the town corporations (curiae) were responsible for collecting the taxes of the municipalities; Anastasius assigned this task to officials named vindices, who were probably appointed by the praetorian prefect. This new system of collecting the taxes increased the revenue considerably, but it was modified in the following reigns.

Under Anastasius the problem of sterile lands seems to have become more acute than ever. The burden of additional taxation for persons unable to pay, as well as for the unproductive land, fell upon the landowners, who thus became responsible for the full payment of taxes to the government. This additional assessment, called in Greek epibole ( éπɩßoλń ), i.e., “increase," "surcharge,” was exacted with particular firmness during the reign of Justinian the Great.

Of some interest in the history of the colonate was the decree of Anastasius stating that a free peasant-tenant, who has lived in the same place for thirty years, became a colonus, i.e., a man attached to the soil, without losing his personal freedom and right to own property.

The time of Anastasius I was marked also by the great currency reform. In the year 498 the large bronze follis with its smaller denominations was introduced. The new coinage was welcome, especially to the poorer citizens, for the copper money in circulation, which had become scarce, was bad in quality and had no marks of value. The new coins were struck at the three mints which were in operation under Anastasius-at Constantinople, at Nicomedia, and at Antioch. The bronze coinage introduced by Anastasius remained the model of the imperial currency till about the second half of the seventh century (the time of Constantine IV),182

To the number of humanitarian reforms of Anastasius we must add his decree forbidding the fights between men and beasts in the circus.

In spite of the fact that Anastasius often granted tax reductions

132 See W. Wroth, Catalogue of the Imperial Byzantine Coins in the British Museum (London, 1908), I, xiii-xiv; lxxviii. Bury, I, 446-47.

to many provinces and cities, especially those in the East devastated by the Persian War, and although he carried out a building program including the Long Wall, aqueducts, the lighthouse of Alexandria, etc., the government, toward the end of Anastasius' reign, still possessed a large reserve which is estimated by the historian, Procopius, perhaps with some exaggeration, at 320 thousand pounds of gold, equivalent to about $65,000,000 or $70,000,000.133 The economy of Anastasius was of great importance to the abundant activities of his second successor, Justinian the Great. The time of Anastasius was a splendid introduction to the Justinian epoch.

Summary. The main interest of the epoch beginning with Arcadius and ending with Anastasius (395-518) lies in the national and religious problems and in the political events always closely connected with the religious movements of this period. The Germanic, or to be more exact, the Gothic, tyranny, which had grown very strong in the capital, menaced in the late fourth century the entire state and was further complicated by the Arian leanings of the Goths. This menace ceased to exist at the beginning of the fifth century under Arcadius, and was completely destroyed during its later and much weaker outburst in the middle of the fifth century by Leo I. Then came the new Ostrogothic menace from the North at the end of the century, but it was directed by Zeno into Italy. Thus the Germanic problem in the eastern part of the Empire was settled to the advantage of the government.

The eastern part of the Empire was also successful in achieving a favorable settlement in the second half of the fifth century of the other national problem, less acute and significant, namely, the problem of the Isaurian predominance. As far as the raids of the northern peoples, Bulgarians and Slavs, are concerned, it must be remembered that the latter were only beginning their attacks upon the borders of the Empire during this period, and by these intrusions it was not yet possible to foretell the great rôle which the Slavs and later the Bulgarians were destined to play in the history of the Byzantine Empire. The period of Anastasius may be viewed only as an introduction to the Slavic epoch in the Balkan peninsula. The religious problem of this epoch falls into two phases: the 133 Procopii, Historia Arcana, 19, 7-8 (ed. Haury [1906], p. 121).

orthodox up to the time of Zeno, and the Monophysitic under Zeno and Anastasius. Zeno's favorable attitude toward the Monophysitic doctrine and the explicit Monophysitic sympathies of Anastasius should be considered not only from the dogmatical point of view, but from the political as well. By the end of the fifth century the western part of the Empire, in spite of a theoretically recognized unity, had practically detached itself from Constantinople. In Gaul, in Spain, and in Northern Africa new barbaric kingdoms were formed; Italy was practically ruled by German chiefs, and at the end of the fifth century the Ostrogothic kingdom was founded on Italian territory. This state of affairs explains why the eastern provinces-Egypt, Palestine, and Syria-became of exceptionally great importance to the eastern half of the Empire. The great merit of both Zeno and Anastasius lies in the fact that they understood where the center of gravity had shifted to, and, appreciating the importance of the eastern provinces, they used every possible means to find a way of binding together the capital and these provinces. And since the latter, especially Egypt and Syria, were mostly devoted to the Monophysitic doctrine, there could be only one course for the Empire, and that was to make peace with the Monophysites at any cost. This explains the evasive and rather purposely obscure Henoticon of Zeno. It was one of the first steps taken by Zeno toward the reconciliation with the Monophysites. When this attempt failed to bring the desired results, Anastasius decided to follow a very definite Monophysitic policy. Both these emperors were politically perspicacious rulers as compared with the emperors of the subsequent period. In their Monophysitic policy they were both confronted by the orthodox movement, widely supported in the capital, in the Balkan peninsula, in most of the provinces of Asia Minor, in the islands, and in some portions of Palestine. Orthodoxy was also defended by the Pope, who, because of the Henoticon, had broken off all relations with Constantinople. The inevitability of the collision between politics and religion explains the internal religious upheavals during the reign of Anastasius. He did not succeed in bringing about the desired peace and harmony within the Empire during his lifetime. His successors led the Empire along an

entirely different path. The alienation of the eastern provinces was already beginning to be felt at the end of this period.

On the whole it may be said that there was hard struggle on the part of the different nationalities, dictated by greatly differing aims and hopes: the Germans and the Isaurians aimed to attain political supremacy, while the Copts in Egypt and the Syrian population were concerned primarily with the triumph of their religious doctrines.

LITERATURE, LEARNING, EDUCATION, AND ART FROM THE TIME OF CONSTANTINE THE GREAT TO JUSTINIAN

The developments in literature, learning, and education during the period from the fourth to the beginning of the sixth century is closely connected with the relations established between Christianity and the ancient pagan world with its great culture. The debates of the Christian apologists of the second and third centuries on the question of whether or not it is permissible for a Christian to use pagan materials wrought out no definite conclusion. While some of the apologists found in Greek culture certain merits and deemed it possible to reconcile it with Christianity, others, on the contrary, denied that pagan antiquity was of any significance to the Christian, and repudiated it. A different attitude prevailed in Alexandria, the old center of heated philosophic and religious disputes, where the discussions on the compatibility of ancient paganism with Christianity decreased the sharpness of contrast between these two seemingly irreconcilable elements. So we find in the works of Clement of Alexandria, the famous writer of the late second century, the following statements: "Philosophy, serving as a guide, prepares those who are called by Christ to perfection."134 Still, the problem of the relation between pagan culture and Christianity was by no means settled by the debate of the first three centuries of the Christian era.

But life did its work, and pagan society was gradually being converted to Christianity, which received a particularly great impetus in the fourth century, when it was aided on the one hand by the protection of the government and on the other hand by the numerous so-called "heresies," which awakened intellectual disputes, 134 Clementis Alexandrini, Stromata. I, 5 (Migne, Patr. Gr., VIII, 717–20).

aroused passionate discussions, and created a series of new and important questions. Meanwhile Christianity was gradually absorbing many of the elements of pagan culture, so that, in Krumbacher's words, "Christian topics were being unconsciously clothed in pagan garb."135

Christian literature of the fourth and fifth centuries was enriched by the works of great writers in the field of prose as well as poetry. At the same time the pagan traditions were continued and developed by representatives of pagan thought.

In the wide realm of the Roman Empire, within the boundaries which existed until the Persian and Arabian conquests of the seventh century, the Christian Orient of the fourth and fifth centuries had had several distinct, well-known literary centers, whose representative writers exerted great influence far beyond the limits of their native city or province. Cappadocia, in Asia Minor, had in the fourth century the three famous "Cappadocians," Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, and Gregory of Nyssa. In Syria the cultural centers important for the history of civilization were the cities of Antioch and Berytus (Beirut) on the seacoast; the latter was particularly famous for the studies in the field of law, and the time of its brilliant activities lasted from about 200 to 551 A.D.136 In Palestine, Jerusalem had at this time not yet completely recovered from the destruction which occurred during the reign of Titus, and consequently it did not play a very significant part in the cultural life of the fourth and fifth centuries. But Caesarea, and later, toward the end of the fourth century, the southern Palestinian city of Gaza with its flourishing school of famous rhetoricians and poets, contributed much to the treasures of thought and literature in this period. But above all these the Egyptian city of Alexandria still remained the center which exerted the widest and deepest influence upon the entire Asiatic Orient.

The new city of Constantinople, destined to have a brilliant future in the time of Justinian, was only beginning to show signs of literary activity during this period. Here the official protection of

135 K. Krumbacher, Die griechische Literatur des Mittelalters. Die Kultur der Gegen. wart. P. Hinneberg, I, 8 (3. Auflage, Leipzig-Berlin, 1912), 337.

136 See P. Collinet, Histoire de l'École de droit de Beyrouth (Paris, 1925), p. 305.