International congress of byzantine studies belgrade, 22 27 august 2016

Aitor Fernández
Universidad de Alcalá, Alcala de Henares, Spain; 
[e-mail]
Afflictis longae: Physical Punishments, Seclusion Penalties and Capital 
Executions amongst Military Elites within Phocas’ Revolt
The revolt of the Roman field army stationed in the Danube limes during the autumn of 602 
marked not only the abrupt end of Maurice’s regime and the bloody elevation to the purple of its leader 
Phocas, but also, leaving aside some exceptions, the effective purge of the most part of the military 
and civil palatine elites closely linked to the previous emperor. Beginning with an overhaul of the 
main narrations which deal with the insurrection, beyond its undeniable and far-reaching political 
consequences both in the short and in the medium-long term for the Empire, this communication, 
which is inscribed within the research project «Contextos históricos de aplicación de las penas de 
reclusión en el Mediterráneo Oriental (siglos V-VII): casuística y legislación (HAR 2014-52744-P)», 
intends to focus on the form and implications of the violence that was inflicted in the frame of this 
rebellion towards a particular group of the highest echelons of the society: the military. In this way, 
and taking into account primarily the information provided by the various written sources, we will 
analyze the circumstances, patterns and meanings of the diverse chastisements imposed on the key 
figures of the Roman army, beginning with Maurice himself, in order to determinate whether they 
were arbitrary measures or, on the contrary, were according to the law, their degree of exceptionality 
or continuity as well as the message that the new imperial administration headed by Phocas tried to 
send out through them.
Marko Drašković
Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Institute for Byzantine Studies, Belgrade, Serbia; 
[e-mail]
The Economic Aspects of the Aqueduct Abuse 
and the Relating State Policy in the V Century Byzantium
The paper deals with the constitutions which were issued by the Augusti Theodosius II and Zeno in 
order to curb the abuse of aqueducts. These are - two constitutions of Theodosius II directed to Cyrus of 
Panopolis, praetorian prefect of the East, a constitution of Theodosius II directed to Eutichius, praetorian 
prefect of the East, a constitution of Zeno addressed to Adamantius, eparch of Constantinople, as well 
as the constitution of Zeno directed to Sparacius. These constitutions are being analyzed in context of 
other contemporary or same-epoch sources - constitutions concerning public and private construction 
(especially on financing of state buildings and on repressing of private building-entrepreneur abuses), 
constitutions on the relevant financial and administrative obligations of the members of senatorial 
order and other landowners, constitutions prescribing the relating competencies of praetorian prefect 
of the East, eparch of Constantinople and provincial governors, and also relating data of the narrative 

---

202
sources (primarily, Socrates Scholasticus and Zosimus), letters (primarily of Libanius), papyri, notitiae 
of the capitals, treatises, panegyrics, and the representative results of archaeological analysis.
First of all, the paper comments the economic and administrative context of abuses that appear 
in the narrative preambles of constitutions - issuance of permissions for aqueduct connection by 
unauthorized persons (mainly provincial officials), distraction of aqueduct- and reservoir water for 
irrigation of private suburban villas and water-mills, unauthorized construction and modification 
of state water-pipes, infringing of aqueduct-keeping principles, privatization of the other public 
water-supply facilities, illegal diversion of revenues belonging to civic aqueduct fund, as well as 
bribery of hydrofylaces (usually by imperial manor administrators).
The central part of the paper is devoted to the analysis of economic, social, political, administrative, 
and financial contexts standing behind the considered state anti-abuse policy, led by the imperial 
consistory, praetorian prefect of the East and eparch of Constantinople. The imperial policy considered 
includes analysis of the following matters - issuance of more precising procedure rules for imperial 
grant of connection to state water facilities, special penalties prescribing for circumvention of the 
imperial authority in the same matter, expansion of hydrofylaces` authority to search private homes, 
cancelation of rescripts allowing privatization of public water facilities, reinforcement of the rights for 
Hadrian’s aqueduct use, protection of aqueduct supply for thermae and nymphaea, confiscation of land 
estates, mills and gardens irrigated by aqueduct usurpation, extension of regulations concerning the 
minimal distance between private buildings and aqueducts, supplementation of the water-distribution 
principle in private buildings, grant of new revenues for the maintenance of aquaeducts, introduction 
of the new officials authorized for control of existing aqueduct`s funds, etc.
A special effort is taken to identify and reconstruct the parts of social and administrative 
mechanisms of the state-property abuses in early Byzantine epoch, as a general background of the 
aqueduct abuse. Also, the paper discusses the possibility of “innovations” concerning this sort of 
abuse, in regard to the practice of IV century. Finally, the said government measures are being 
considered in the context of more general economic- and social policy of the fifth-century Empire, 
especially policy directed against the administrative abuses and senatorial struggle for new privileges.