[SunkenCiv]

A devastating plague that struck during the reign of Emperor Justinian in 541 AD, killing a quarter of the population... sequencing of DNA taken from two skeletons buried in Bavaria, Germany, in the 6th century has uncovered the complete genome of Yersinia pestis, the bacteria also blamed for the Black Death that struck Europe in 1348.

Thanks Renfield! I agree, colorado tanker -- for one thing, Justinian's reconquest of decent-sized swaths of the already fallen parts of the Empire cost an enormous fortune; for another, the Byzantine era went on for centuries more, hitting its next (and final) peak during the reign of Basil II, and not ending until Constantinople fell to the Turks in 1453.

[colorado tanker]

I am fascinated by lost civilizations and I find the Byzantine Empire one of the most fascinating. One occasionally finds little windows into the civilization. There is a fascinating display of fabrics from Byzantine Egypt at the Cluny in Paris. Haven’t made it to Istanbul yet, but it’s on my bucket list.