PL
The paper draws on the accounts by Palladius, bishop of Bithynian Helenopolis, to gather insights into slave prices. The figures contained in the source vary to a great extent (from 3 to 20 solidii for a slave). The author verifies the information against other late antique and early Byzantine accounts regarding slave prices.
EN
The paper analyses the reports regarding slave prices which may be found in “Historia Lausiaca” written by Palladius, bishop of Bithynian Helenopolis. Two accounts concerning the prices of slaves were analyzed in detail. The figures provided by the antique author show a substantial spread, as prices vary from 3 (in Italy at the beginning of the fifth century) to 20 solidii per slave in a certain Egyptian city (probably in Alexandria) in the mid-fourth century. The author, comparing the data with other late antique accounts, attempts to establish the probative value of Palladius’s account on the slave prices in the early fifth century, and thus assess the usefulness of hagiographic literature in studies on late Roman and early Byzantine economy.