Download or read book John Lydus and the Roman Past written by Michael Maas and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2005-08-17 with total page 220 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: John Lydus and the Roman Past offers a new interpretation of the emergence of Byzantine society as viewed through the eyes of John Lydus, a sixth-century scholar and civil servant. Maas show that control of classical inheritance was politically contested in the reign of Justinian. He demonstrates how the past could be used to convey legitimacy and social definition at a time of profound change.