The imagery of Byzantium in popular discourse is a culturally and historically constructed notion. As has been noted, the very name “Byzantium” is both a retronym and an exonym, and scholars today very often insist on using a more proper description – “The Eastern Roman Empire.” Writers, playwrights, musicians, and politicians throughout centuries constructed their versions of Byzantium, which depended on local artistic or political needs. In many cases, these constructed versions had very little to do with the “historical” Byzantium. At the same time, academic discourse might – and did – influence the imagery of Byzantium in the popular imagination. During the conference, we would like to discuss these imaginary visions of Byzantium, including the intersections of popular and academic images of Byzantium. We also welcome papers dealing with the use (and abuse) of key events in Byzantine history (such as the Fall of City) and their reworkings in literature and culture. Topics of interest include (but are not limited to): - The reception of Byzantium in schoolbooks in Europe and beyond; - Byzantium for the young – Byzantium in children’s literature and games; - Literary reworkings of key events and personages in the history of Byzantium; - Byzantine Studies and its influence on the popular understanding of Byzantium; - The ways of popularising Byzantium; - Byzantium in the digital age; - Byzantium in popular culture (games, speculative fiction, TV series, films).