StoryPharm Training in Narrative and in Literary Criticism 21-24 October 2025
October 14, 2025
Polyphonic Remedies: Mind and Body in the Kyranides
October 30, 2025
Michael Psellos (left) with his student, Byzantine Emperor Michael VII Doukas
Codex 234, f. 245a, Mount Athos, Pantokrator Monastery, 12th/13th c.
(source)
“Diagnosing an Empire: Emperors and Disease in the Chronographia” by StoryPharm fellow James Gilmer.
James Gilmer, one of StoryPharm fellows hosted by the University of Cardiff is investigating the relationship between imperial illness and the ‘rot’ in the imperial administration through the Chronographia of Michael Psellos. James will use evidence from contemporary and Byzantine medicine to answer the perplexing question: does an ailing emperor infect the imperial administration, or does an ailing administration lead to disease in the reigning emperor? This exciting talk is given in the context of the Cardiff Ancient History and Religion Seminar Series.
James’ research project Byzantine Imperial Women in Narratives of Illness and Healing focuses upon the association between Byzantine empresses, princesses, and imperial women with medicine and suffering during the middle Byzantine period. As part of his research, he will be examining the intertextual relationships between genres of written works with the goal of demonstrating the gendered aspects of suffering and the healing process.
For more information on the lecture and how to attend online please see the flyer here.
Anna Komnene’s Alexiad (12th-century manuscript). Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Florence. View source
