Eroticism of the Byzantine Tale “Callimachus and Chrysorrhoe” in the Comparative Perspective

The current work analyzes three erotic sequences of the Byzantine romance "Callimachus and Chrysorrhoe" which dates back to the 14th century, particularly a scene with Chrysorrhoe hanged with her hair; sexual intercourse in a bath and a reunion in a tent. The author also investigates sexual implications of a speech of Callimachus at court and a representation of Eros in the tale. Some visual materials are attached to compare them to some episodes or buildings from the romance. The author also applies approaches and conclusions of Elias, Foucault and Geertz to the text. The work is supplied with historical information which helps to comprehend meanings of settings of the erotic scenes. The author comes to a conclusion that this text was unusual for contemporary readers, too; an author was innovative in the unique blend of familiar patterns; the tale unexpectedly borrows a plotline from hagiography and by this mean it shows shifts in a system of Byzantine genres.