Paul Magdalino is Emeritus Bishop Wardlaw Professor of Byzantine History at the University of St Andrews and a Fellow of the British Academy. Having earned his D.Phil. from Oxford University, he spent most of his academic career at St Andrews, but also taught at Harvard University and Koç University, Istanbul. With a prolific publication record spanning several decades, Professor Magdalino’s meticulous scholarship has greatly increased our knowledge and understanding of the Byzantine world, offering, in particular, fresh insights into the complexities of its institutions and ideologies. His research interests broadly include the politics, society and culture of the middle Byzantine empire, but his more specialized works have focused on the city of Constantinople, the occult sciences and political ideology. His magnum opus, The Empire of Manuel Komnenos, earned him the Anglo-Hellenic League’s prestigious Runciman Award in Literature (1993). Professor Magdalino has served on several editorial and research committees, including “Oxford Studies in Byzantium” and the “Medieval Mediterranean” Brill Monograph Series.