The Transformation of Frontiers

In the process of the transformation of the Roman world, the notion of frontiers, but also their topography changed. Within and beyond the old Roman empire, new frontiers were established. This volume explores their meaning and their impact. Three contributions discuss Roman frontiers and their perception in late antiguity, demonstrating that they were not simply defence lines, but also a basis for offensive operations, a focus in eleborate exchange networks and a means of internal control. The frontiers of early medieval kingdoms are the topics of several papers, two of which propose theorectial medels for an understanding of the realm and frontier, of liminality and centrality, wheras othersanalyse the construction, but also in the context of conversion and missions. It becomes clear that the transformation of frontiers was not a linear process in which the imperial frontiers were abandoned and the means of controlling them declined, and the new kningdoms gradually managed to define their frontiers. Rather, the degree to which control was established on liminal movements depended on specific circumstances and cannot be generalized.