Invitation to the upcoming lecture by Assoc. Prof. Paschalis Androudis (Associate Professor of Byzantine and Islamic Art and Archaeology, School of History and Archaeology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki) on Wednesday, 8 October 2025, at 7:00 p.m. (EEST).
The lecture is titled “The Varangians in the Greek East (10th-12th c.),” and will be held at the Norwegian Institute at Athens in a hybrid format, accommodating both in-person and online attendance via Zoom.
Abstract
The lecture deals with the presence of the Varangians in the Greek East during the 10th–12th centuries. Known for the service they offered to the Byzantine emperor, these Scandinavian warriors distinguished themselves by their bravery and self-denial, forming his loyal guard. Many of them fell fighting in Greece (Grikkland), as runic inscriptions on stones about Greece (Greklandsstenarna) found in Sweden inform us. Information about their activities is provided by written sources and the limited archaeological evidence associated with them to date. The lecture also refers to the various sources on their presence in Byzantium (Scandinavian, Russian, Greek, and Arabic), as well as to evidence from art.
Biographical Information
Dr. Paschalis Androudis was born in Thessaloniki in 1965. He studied Architecture in the Polytechnic School of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH), where he obtained his Diploma in 1988. He completed his postgraduate studies at the University Paris I Panthéon- Sorbonne, Paris, France, earning a master’s degree (DEA) in Byzantine Art and Archaeology (1990) and a PhD in Byzantine Archaeology (1995), with a thesis on «Les églises cimetériales monastiques du Mont Athos». Additionally, he earned a second MA in Conservation Studies from the Institute of Advanced Architectural Studies at the University of York (1995). During his postgraduate studies, he was awarded scholarships from various institutions in Greece, France and the European Union, including the Leventis Foundation, the Onassis Foundation, the Sorbonne and Arvanitidis Foundation Scholarship, the National Hellenic State Foundation Scholarship and the European Union. He has extensive experience working on numerous archaeological excavations and recording of archaeological material. He has conducted over 100 architectural studies for the stabilization and restoration of various ecclesiastical, secular, and fortification structures, encompassing Byzantine, post-Byzantine, and Ottoman monuments across Greece. In 2014, he was elected Lecturer in Byzantine Art and Archaeology at the Department of History and Archaeology of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, a position he continues to hold as an Associate Professor of Byzantine and Islamic Art and Archaeology. He has published 14 books, including his PhD thesis, more than 150 papers in peer-reviewed journals, conference proceedings, and volumes, and actively participated in more than 250 scientific conferences both in Greece and internationally. He organized 15 Online and Hybrid International Conferences on various Mediterranean Studies.
Registration is required for both in-person and virtual attendance.
To attend in person, please register at [email protected]
To attend online, please register via the following link: https://uib.zoom.us/meeting/register/UGj3tQHIQXaEcK8pYIRRTA