Byzantium is the forgotten empire. Spanning the ancient world and the new, the Byzantine Empire emerged at the fall of Rome and lasted all the way to the Renaissance. Perhaps because it thrived during the misnamed “Dark Ages,” and because it was headquartered where Europe and Asia meet (Byzantium is now called Istanbul), it is seen as being neither here nor there, old nor new, and as such is pretty much ignored in our modern education system. Colin Wells tries his best here to set the record straight, to rehabilitate Byzantium’s reputation, and stake its claim as the actual fulcrum of world events. Sailing from Byzantium is not a straightforward recounting of the empire’s history, but rather is a detailed acknowledgement of its immeasurable influence on three different surrounding worlds: the “West” (i.e. Europe), the Islamic world, and the Slavic world. Wells makes a convincing case that Byzantium’s transmission of ancient Greek classics and philosophy helped inspire the Renaissance, was the main fuel to the golden age of Islamic learning, and brought civilization to Russia and eastern Europe.
The book’s final section is the most dense, as Slavic culture remains a mystery to most Americans even to this day. And the influence of the Byzantine world on the Renaissance is somewhat well-known already. But of particular interest is Wells’ documentation of the connection between Byzantium and the growing Islamic caliphate, and how Byzantine Greek and humanist philosophy transmuted Muslim desert warriors into an empire of astrologers and alchemists, interested in knowledge for the first time.
But alas, it was not to last: while Europe built upon the Renaissance and created our modern world, even a thousand years ago Islamic fundamentalists decried the knowledge and humanism of the “infidel,” and eventually they won out over the Muslim intellectuals, plunging the Middle East into its own Dark Ages from which is has not yet emerged. Eventually, in 1453, Muslims invaded, sacked and destroyed Byzantium, changed its name to Istanbul, and obliterated the refined Byzantine culture forever. In this respect, Sailing from Byzantium tells the hidden story behind the world events of today. But the book is not for the casual reader, and might be off-putting to anyone not already cursorily familiar with the Middle Ages; Wells plunges into his material like a scholar on fire, with just the briefest introduction into the fundamentals of Byzantium’s story.
One final note: The press release accompanying the book was truly embarrassing, rife with egregious errors and mis-statements, and misrepresented the book and essential historical facts. The unfortunate practice by modern publishers of assigning uneducated young interns to write the publicity materials for books that scholars spent years laboring over, thereby rendering a lifetime of scholarship moot with a few tossed-off ignorant lines after a riffle through the manuscript, has simply got to stop.
Grade: B+
reynato Says:
April 28th, 2008 at 7:46 pmVisit reynato
great story about sailing from byzantium..
i hope i can buy a copy of this..
Greek Says:
August 27th, 2008 at 10:10 amVisit Greek
The byzantine era is perhaps one of the most interesting eras in world history. politics, religion, war, inovation….and so on. Nevertheless, ask anyone about Byzantium…and they will think is a Greek Recipe for a Greek Dish.
Money Help Says:
September 15th, 2008 at 10:11 pmVisit Money Help
I find it interesting how little we know about the Byzantine Empire, but I’m not sure Wells’ book is going to have an impact on this. Like you said, it’s not good for the casual reader.
nick the greek Says:
December 5th, 2008 at 3:58 pmVisit nick the greek
I am fascinated with the history behind the bezantine empire. It really was a great empire because Byzantium really took the meaning of Christianity to the next level.
reader Says:
January 3rd, 2009 at 1:26 pmVisit reader
“Sailing to Byzantium” is a poem by William Butler Yeats
Meshif Says:
January 6th, 2009 at 3:21 amVisit Meshif
I hope one day my English launguage skill let me read this book to my French dauther. Long story, you know…
transmission Says:
January 13th, 2009 at 12:07 pmVisit transmission
B+ you say? Alright I guess I’ll have to give this a go. I love stories about ancient Rome, slaves, and it seems that this could be just the story. Sounds extremely interesting to me.
emily Says:
January 29th, 2009 at 4:42 pmVisit emily
Same here. The Roman and Byzantine times fascinate me. Its too bad that there aren’t that many books on the market. Thanks or writing about this one.
para sayma makinesi Says:
March 11th, 2009 at 3:51 amVisit para sayma makinesi
i am livng yo istanbul. I want to say to you somethings about istanbul, istanbul very nice city for all world. And historical city . (older roma). Now istanbul very big city , living 15milion people. And tradecity . If you have enought time and enought money i prefer to you come istanbul and visit here please.
giamaris Says:
June 17th, 2009 at 12:05 pmVisit giamaris
Constantinopole is indeed a great place. I was there a few years ago and I was impressed. East meets west in one city. Half of the city is in Europe the other half in Asia…
glosario poker Says:
July 29th, 2009 at 10:59 amVisit glosario poker
Im not an habitual reader, but this books rise a spark on me, even when is a gripping intellectual adventure story, dificult to read for someone like me, because englis it is not my native language, but im trying hard because is wonderful, and i want to know every word writed on the 368 pages.
bluevoyage Says:
October 27th, 2009 at 8:20 amVisit bluevoyage
At the beginning I was a bit skeptical if I would read the book from first to final page. Despite quite high level of language used It was nice challenge probably even more because I like ancient world and mystic oriental touch.
Rob Says:
November 19th, 2009 at 7:17 pmVisit Rob
I’m fairly familiar with the art of Egypt and Greek history but was unfamiliar with the Byzantine influence until I encountered this book. It’s written in an enthusiastic, scholarly voice and is an enjoyable read for those who seeking to learn more about this culture.
stationery Says:
April 7th, 2011 at 6:32 amVisit stationery
SAILING FROM BYZANTIUM is an interesting book. Come and get a copy now.
andy Says:
May 23rd, 2011 at 2:26 pmVisit andy
Whilst Britain stagnated in the dark ages the Byzantine Empire shone like a beacon at the crossroads of east and west.
I’d yet to encounter a book that encapsulates the essence of just what it was that made Byzantium so important to the future of the modern world.
Sailing from Byzantium covers most bases pretty well and even though I’m a history nut, I would imagine most people who have no more than a passing interest could last the pace with this.