than the sixth century. In spite of the variety of topics dealt with in the collection, which is typical of most Festschriften and which, at any rate, serves to highlight the many areas to which the honorands have made fundamental contributions, it is possible to identify some major running themes. These include the possible continuity of Christianity in the post-Roman period, the ways in which the Anglo- Saxons perceived and made use of the Roman past, and the development of medieval Winchester through a combination of literary, documentary and archaeological evidence discussed in a cluster of essays placed at the end of the volume. Perhaps even more cohesion could have been reached through a more frequent use of cross-references among those essays which deal with related themes. All in all, this is an impressive collection on which both its editors and its contributors must be congratulated. Very sadly, Birthe Kjølbye-Biddle died before the volume was officially published; however, as indicated on the Winchester Studies website, the editors were able to present her with an advance copy a few days before her death. FRANCESCA TINTI UNIVERSIDAD DEL PAÍS VASCO,IKERBASQUE, BASQUE FOUNDATION FOR SCIENCE The asceticism of Isaac of Nineveh. By Patrik Hagman. (Oxford Early Christian Studies.) Pp. viii + . Oxford: Oxford University Press, . £.      JEH () ; doi:./S The present monograph derives from the author’s thesis (Åbo ) and differs from it merely in the disposition of material. Right from the outset it is worth stressing that this is the first comprehensive study of the ascetic doctrine of one of the best-known representatives of Syriac Christianity (sharing this fame with Ephrem of Nisibis). Isaac’s works not only circulated in the different branches of Syriac Christianity (East Syrian, West Syrian, Rum Orthodox, Maronite) but were also translated, from the Middle Ages onwards, into various languages. They are available today even in Japanese. Isaac’s works exerted a profound impact on the Christian world – although only the ‘first part’ of his corpus, edited by P. Bedjan in , enjoyed universal popu- larity, whereas dissemination of the other parts – the ‘second’ (edited by S. P. Brock in ) and ‘third’ (of which an edition by S. Chialà is forthcoming) – was limited to the Syro-Arabic Christian communities. Considering this impact, one cannot but regret that until recently there were almost no detailed studies of Isaac’s heritage. Two notable exceptions are W. Thomson’s – unfor- tunately, scarcely known and somewhat outdated – unpublished thesis ‘Isaac of Nineveh: a study in Syrian mysticism’ (Harvard ), and Chialà’s Dall’ascesi eremitica alla misericordia infinita: ricerche su Isacco di Ninive e la sua fortuna (Florence ) which provided a full introduction to Isaac’s theology and literary heritage as well as the posterior influence of his corpus. In this respect Hagman’s mono- graph is very welcome, for it offers a thorough treatment of Isaac’s ascetic system. Isaac was born in the region of Beth Qat ˙ raye, somewhere on the western coast of the Persian Gulf, and lived as a solitary in the mountainous region of Khuzistan  JOURNAL OF ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY