A conversation with Emily Neumeier (Temple University) about Ali Pasha of Ioannina (d. 1822), a powerful Ottoman governor of Albanian origin who created a quasi-independent realm at a time when the Ottoman empire was feared to be collapsing. We talk about how he crated his own brand-image, in part by forging closer relations with his Christian Greek subjects and also through archaeological work and use of antiquities. His was an almost post-imperial world, but the nation-state had not yet arrived. We also talk about the concept of the "post-Byzantine," which is used, especially in art history, for works of this period. The conversation is based on three of Emily's articles -- "Mediating Legacies of Empire," "Rivaling Elgin," and "Spoils for the New Pyrrhus" -- that you can find on her academia webpage.

A conversation with Volker Menze (Central European University) about the fifth-century patriarch Dioskouros of Alexandria, what we really know about him, and why he was demonized in the western traditions. A close reading of the Council Acts suggests a different picture: a bishop who thought he was doing right by the established creed and following the directives of the emperor suddenly found himself in the hot seat. The conversation is based on Volker's book Patriarch Dioscorus of Alexandria: The Last Pharaoh and Ecclesiastical Politics in the Later Roman Empire (Oxford University Press 2023).

A conversation with Przemysław Marciniak (University of Silesia) about books of fantasy, science fiction, horror, and alternative history that are either set in Byzantium or have a Byzantine ambiance. We talk about the features that signal a Byzantine setting and what the latter is good. Basically, we chat about books that we liked (or did not like). The conversation is based on Przemek's chapter 'Fantastic(al) Byzantium: The Image of Byzantium in Speculative Fiction,' in M. Kulhánková and P. Marciniak, eds., Byzantium in the Popular Imagination: The Modern Reception of the Byzantine Empire (I.B. Tauris 2023) 249-260.