Presentation from the I Seminário Internacional de Estudos sobre a Antiguedade e o Medievo: Ocidente e Oriente, 11-12 April 2017, Univesidade Estadual de Londrina, funded by Santander Universities.

1. Byzantine Spain – New
Perspectives
Jamie Wood, University of Lincoln, UK
jwood@lincoln.ac.uk / @woodjamie99

2. Byzantine territories
in Hispania
according to
Thompson (1969:
upper map) and
Arce (2011: lower
map)

3. The frontier question
L. García Moreno, ‘Estudios sobre la organisación
administrativa del Reino Visigodo de Toledo’, Anuario de
historia del Derecho Español 44 (1974), pp. 5–157
G. Ripoll López, ‘On the Supposed Frontier between the
Regnum Visigotho- rum and Byzantine Hispania’, in W.
Pohl, I. Wood and H. Reimitz (eds), The Transformation of
Frontiers from Late Antiquity to the Carolingians (Leiden,
2000), pp. 95–115
J. Wood, 'Defending Byzantine Spain: Frontiers and
Diplomacy', Early Medieval Europe 18.3 (2010), 292-319

4. Archaeological evidence
L. García Moreno, ‘Colonias de comerciantes
orientales en la Península Ibérica. S. V–VII’,
Habis 3 (1972), pp. 127–54
P. Reynolds, Hispania and the Late Roman
Mediterranean: Ceramics and Trade,
London: Duckworth, 2009
J. Vizcaíno Sánchez, La presencia bizantina en
Hispania (siglos VI-VII). La documentación
arqueológica, Murcia: Universidad de Murcia,
2009

5. Plan of the walls of the Cerro Cepero-Basti
forum area, based on analysis of ceramic
materials collected in the excavation
campaign of 2006. © CEAB

6. Cerro del Quemao (BAZ-
060), Basti. © CEAB

7. El Tolmo de Minateda,
Albacete
L. Abad Casal and S. Gutiérrez Lloret, ‘Iyih (El
Tolmo de Minateda, Hellín, Albacete). Una civitas
en el limes visigodo-bizantino’, Antigüedad y
Cristianismo 14 (1997), 591-600.

8. Discriptio Hispaniae I
The whole of Hispania has the shape of a triangle according to the disposition
of its land. It is surrounded by the Ocean sea from two sides, that is to say,
from north and south. From the east, instead, it is delimited by the Tyrrhenian
sea. The first of these angles points to the territory of Narbonenses. The
second angle points northwest, where Brigantia and his soaring lighthouse is
situated. Its third angle is in Gades, where the Pillar of Hercules is located. At
the same time, there are two Hispaniae inside this triangle: Citerior Hispania
and Ulterior.
Carthage delimits Citerior Hispania. Here Julius Caesar, vanquisher of Franks,
Gepids, victorious both in Africa and Europe, established the boundaries of
castles and fortified? towns that belonged to metropolitan jurisdiction and
surveyed the rivers that flow into the Ocean.
Regarding the boundaries of Palentia's, Carthage's or the Celtiberians'
territories, over the Superior Province whose name is Gallicia, we preserved all
boundary stones built there. Furthermore, the river Ebro, which divides clearly
the Province of Iberia, flows through three hundred twenty eight miles. It flows
across Numantia, Vardulia and Cantabria, whose land extends to Metropolitan
Carthage.

9. Discriptio Hispaniae II
Because all trifinia come from Carthage. Unto this boundary comes the river Baetis, where
Corduba is situated, and (this territory) receives the name of Carthage. Further comes the
Baetica, which reaches as far as the Gaditan fen. Beyond that comes Augusta Emerita which
receives also the name of Lusitania. Its boundaries run to the metropolitan city of Bracara, to
which Gallicia belongs. There are some boundary stones from the latter which run along stone-
pavedroads that are marked by miliaria inscribed with the name of Caesar, [and] the divine
Constantine. Because all trifinia come from the above mentioned Carthage. (Its territory)
reaches the territory of Tormogi, who receive the name of Oretani. Then goes further to a main
arca (quadrangular landmark?) which is in the territory of Salamanca, near to the river Duero. At
that point is located this arca with four built sides that point as follows: to the right, Lusitania,
beyond that, the Baetica; (UNKNOWN ABBREVIATIONS: H L M HT QS QS) to the left, the Gallicia;
Asturias, Cantabria as much as Vasconia, on that side which reaches Carthage at east. Then
landmarks which have carved stones every sixty (miles or yards?) run unto a stone pile. Then
every thirty (miles or yards) unto a stone carved with that time emperor's name and the
authority of the senate. This is not an arca but a trifinium. From that point, at the east, come the
first woods of Pyrenees. At north, a hill surges which leads through the Vaccaei to the
Cantabrians and the Astures.
In turn, the above mentioned Hispania Ulterior borders to the Vaccaei, the Celtiberians and the
Oretani at the east; at north and west to the Ocean sea, at the south to the Gaditan strait of the
Ocean, through which the sea gets inside the earth.

10. Some recent bibliography
R. Andreu Edició crítica, traducció i estudi de l’Ars Gromatica siue
Geometria Gisemundi. Doctoral Thesis. Universitat Autònoma de
Barcelona. 2013
D. Claude, ‘Die diplomatischen Beziehungen zwischen dem
Westgotenreich und Ostrom (475–615)’, Mitteilungen des Instituts
für Österreichische Geschichtsforschung 104 (1996), pp. 13–25
M. Vallejo Girvés, Bizancio y la España tardo antigua, Alcalá de
Henares: Universidad de Alcala de Henares, 1993
M. Vallejo Girvés, ‘Commentiolus, Magister militum Spaniae
missus a Mauricio Augusto contra hostes barbaros. The Byzantine
Perspective on the Visigothic Conversion to Catholicism’, Romano-
Barbarica 14 (1996–7), pp. 289–306
M. Vallejo Girvés, Hispania y Bizancio: Una relación desconocida,
Madrid: Akal, 2012
J. Vizcaíno Sánchez, ‘Bizantinos en Hispania. Un problema
recurrente en la arqueología Española’, Achivo español de
arqueología 75 (2002), pp. 313-332