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Kingdom of Snow: Roman Rule and Greek Culture in Cappadocia

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Raymond Van Dam by means of patristics has taken Cappadocia for his own with this excellent history. From the beginning Van Dam cites the need for scholars of early Christain fathers to push their knowledge and utility beyond the theological realm and into the arena of social history. In most of the chapters, Van Dam is able to narrate in impressive detail the battle of cultures and creeds in this province during the fourth century. He also reveals information on the quality of life of the Cappadocian lower classes by reading closely the petitions of Basil and Gregory of Nyssa. Each chapter does not always find fluid integration in the next, but the book as a whole expresses marvellous insight and understanding of the life in a border province, the fortification of a Christian ethical world, and the complex relations of Christian fathers with Roman emperors sharing varying degrees of Greek Culture. This volume stands as the first of three in what seems to be an refined and thoughtful historical enterprise.