A conversation with Charlie Kuper about the Menologion of Basil II, a lavishly illustrated manuscript pairing brief notices about the saints with images of them and their ordeals, arranged according to the liturgical calendar. We talk about how this manuscript was made and how it can be read, specifically the texts in relation to the images.

Charlie Kuper is an Assistant Professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where he works on manuscripts from Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Charlie has just published a new edition and translation of The Menologion of Basil II as part of the Dumbarton Oaks Medieval Library. For a digitized version of the entire manuscript (Vat.gr. 1613), where you can see the images as well, go here. Look around in it, skim it, zoom in, enjoy!

Byzantium & Friends is hosted by Anthony Kaldellis, a Professor at the University of Chicago. You can follow him on his personal website. You can listen to more episodes of Byzantium & Friends through Podbean, Spotify or Apple Podcasts.