Malalas' purpose in writing his work is twofold: 1) to set out the course of sacred history as interpreted by the Christian chronicle tradition (covered by Books 1-9); and 2) to provide a summary account of events under the Roman emperors up to and including his own lifetime (covered by Books 10-18).

Preliminary Material /Elizabeth Jeffreys , Brian Croke and Roger Scott -- Malalas, the man and his work /Brian Croke -- Byzantine chronicle writing /Brian Croke -- Malalas' world view /Elizabeth Jeffreys -- Malalas and his contemporaries /Roger Scott -- A record of public buildings and monuments /Ann Moffatt -- Chronological structures in the chronicle /Elizabeth Jeffreys -- Malalas' sources /Elizabeth Jeffreys -- Language of Malalas /Alan James -- The transmission of Malalas' chronicle /Elizabeth Jeffreys -- The development of a critical text /Brian Croke -- Modem study of Malalas /Brian Croke -- Conclusion /Elizabeth Jeffreys -- Passages cited from Malalas /Elizabeth Jeffreys -- Index /Elizabeth Jeffreys , Brian Croke and Roger Scott.

Byzantine chronicles have traditionally been regarded as a somewhat inferior form of Byzantine history writing, especially in comparison with 'classicizing' historians. The aim of many of these papers is both to rescue the reputation of the Byzantine chroniclers, especially Malalas and Theophanes, and also to provide some examples of how these two chroniclers in particular can be exploited usefully both to reveal aspects of the past itself, notably of the period of Justinian, and also of how the Byzantines interpreted their own past, which included on occasions rewriting that past to suit altered contemporary needs. For the period of Justinian in particular, proper attention to aspects of the humble Byzantine chronicle can also help achieve a better understanding of the period than that provided by the classicizing Procopius with his emphasis on war and conquest. By considering more general aspects of the place of history-writing in Byzantine culture, the papers also help explain why history remained such an important aspect of Byzantine culture.

Preliminary Material /Pauline Allen and Elizabeth Jeffreys -- Introduction /Pauline Allen and Elizabeth Jeffreys -- Inheriting the Fifth Century: Who Bequeathed What? /Philip Rousseau -- Writing the Reign of Justinian: Malalas versus Theophanes /Roger Scott -- Procopius and the Samaritans /Katherine Adshead -- Bury, Malalas and the Nika Riot /Michael Jeffreys -- The Chronicle of John Malalas, Book I: A Commentary /Elizabeth Jeffreys -- The Use of Pagan Mythology in the Christian Empire with Particular Reference to the Dionysiaca of Nonnus /Wolfgang Liebeschuetz -- Notes of Christian Epigrams in Book One of the Greek Anthology /Barry Baldwin -- The Reading of Paul the Silentiary /Ian Martlew -- Early Monasticism and Ps. Denys /Daniel Callam -- Impact of St Sabas: The Legacy of Palestinian Monasticism /Kathleen Hay -- Aspects of Spiritual Direction: The Palestinian Tradition /John Chryssavgis -- Junillus Africanus' Instituta Regularia Divinae Legis in its Justinianic Context /Michael Maas -- The Silence of the Sources: The Sixth Century and East-Syrian 'Antiochene ' Exegesis /Corrie Molenberg -- Severus of Antioch and the Homily: The End of the Beginning? /Pauline Allen -- The Sixth Century: A Turning-Point for Byzantine Homiletics? /Mary Cunningham -- Through the Tunnel with Leontius of Jerusalem: The Sixth-Century Transformation of Theology /Patrick Gray -- Christ's Image versus Christology: Thoughts on the Justinianic Era as Threshold of an Epoch /Karl-Heinz Uthemann -- Sixth-Century Art and Architecture in 'Old Rome ': End or Beginning? /Joan Barclay Lloyd -- Sixth-Century Ravenna from the Perspective of Abbot Agnellus /Ann Moffatt -- Forming and Transforming Proto-Byzantine Urban Public Space /Michael Milojević -- Byzantium, Planet Earth and the Solar System /Paul Farquharson -- Climatic Change in the Fifth and Sixth Centuries? /Johannes Koder -- General Index /Pauline Allen and Elizabeth Jeffreys -- Contributors /Pauline Allen and Elizabeth Jeffreys.

Collection of articles arranged in 5 subsections: Historiography and rhetoric, Christianity in its social context, art and representation, Byzantium and the workings of the empire, and late antiquity in retrospect.

"Croke also casts new light on the career of Marcellinus, his range of literary output, which included books on topography and chronology, and the course and impact of the fifth- and sixth-century raids into Roman Illyricum. This book also enriches our understanding of society and politics in the imperial capital and raises broader questions about Christian life, liturgy, and culture in the sixth century, particularly the role of imperial and religious ceremonial in Byzantine public life."--BOOK JACKET.