diff --git a/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/Persisted.scala b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/Persisted.scala
index 5eac7a7..05a6593 100644
--- a/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/Persisted.scala
+++ b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/Persisted.scala
@@ -4,8 +4,11 @@ package stamina
  * A simple container holding a persistence key, a version number,
  * and the associated serialized bytes.
  */
-case class Persisted(key: String, version: Int, bytes: ByteString)
+case class Persisted(key: String, version: Int, bytes: Array[Byte]) {
+  lazy val manifest = Manifest(key, version)
+}
 
 object Persisted {
-  def apply(key: String, version: Int, bytes: Array[Byte]): Persisted = apply(key, version, ByteString(bytes))
+  def apply(manifest: Manifest, bytes: Array[Byte]): Persisted = apply(manifest.key, manifest.version, bytes)
+  def apply(key: String, version: Int, bytes: ByteString): Persisted = apply(key, version, bytes.toArray)
 }
diff --git a/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/Persister.scala b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/Persister.scala
index aeee516..0860f2e 100644
--- a/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/Persister.scala
+++ b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/Persister.scala
@@ -10,19 +10,20 @@ import scala.util._
  */
 abstract class Persister[T: ClassTag, V <: Version: VersionInfo](val key: String) {
   lazy val currentVersion = Version.numberFor[V]
+  lazy val currentManifest = Manifest(key, currentVersion)
 
-  def persist(t: T): Persisted
-  def unpersist(persisted: Persisted): T
+  def persist(t: T): Array[Byte]
+  def unpersist(manifest: Manifest, persisted: Array[Byte]): T
 
   def canPersist(a: AnyRef): Boolean = convertToT(a).isDefined
-  def canUnpersist(p: Persisted): Boolean = p.key == key && p.version <= currentVersion
+  def canUnpersist(m: Manifest): Boolean = m.key == key && m.version <= currentVersion
 
   private[stamina] def convertToT(any: AnyRef): Option[T] = any match {
     case t: T ⇒ Some(t)
     case _    ⇒ None
   }
 
-  private[stamina] def persistAny(any: AnyRef): Persisted = {
+  private[stamina] def persistAny(any: AnyRef): Array[Byte] = {
     convertToT(any).map(persist(_)).getOrElse(
       throw new IllegalArgumentException(
         s"persistAny() was called on Persister[${implicitly[ClassTag[T]].runtimeClass}] with an instance of ${any.getClass}."
@@ -30,10 +31,10 @@ abstract class Persister[T: ClassTag, V <: Version: VersionInfo](val key: String
     )
   }
 
-  private[stamina] def unpersistAny(persisted: Persisted): AnyRef = {
-    Try(unpersist(persisted).asInstanceOf[AnyRef]) match {
+  private[stamina] def unpersistAny(manifest: Manifest, persistedBytes: Array[Byte]): AnyRef = {
+    Try(unpersist(manifest, persistedBytes).asInstanceOf[AnyRef]) match {
       case Success(anyref) ⇒ anyref
-      case Failure(error)  ⇒ throw UnrecoverableDataException(persisted, error)
+      case Failure(error)  ⇒ throw UnrecoverableDataException(manifest, error)
     }
   }
 }
diff --git a/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/Persisters.scala b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/Persisters.scala
index 377a5a0..af75ab4 100644
--- a/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/Persisters.scala
+++ b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/Persisters.scala
@@ -11,19 +11,28 @@ import scala.reflect.ClassTag
  */
 case class Persisters(persisters: List[Persister[_, _]]) {
   def canPersist(a: AnyRef): Boolean = persisters.exists(_.canPersist(a))
-  def canUnpersist(p: Persisted): Boolean = persisters.exists(_.canUnpersist(p))
+  def canUnpersist(manifest: Manifest): Boolean = persisters.exists(_.canUnpersist(manifest))
 
   // format: OFF
+  private def persister[T <: AnyRef](anyref: T): Persister[T, _] =
+    persisters
+      .find(_.canPersist(anyref))
+      .map(_.asInstanceOf[Persister[T, _]])
+      .getOrElse(throw UnregisteredTypeException(anyref))
+
+  def manifest(anyref: AnyRef): Manifest =
+    persister(anyref).currentManifest
+
   def persist(anyref: AnyRef): Persisted = {
-    persisters.find(_.canPersist(anyref))
-              .map(_.persistAny(anyref))
-              .getOrElse(throw UnregisteredTypeException(anyref))
+    val p = persister(anyref)
+    Persisted(p.currentManifest, p.persistAny(anyref))
   }
 
-  def unpersist(persisted: Persisted): AnyRef = {
-    persisters.find(_.canUnpersist(persisted))
-              .map(_.unpersistAny(persisted))
-              .getOrElse(throw UnsupportedDataException(persisted))
+  def unpersist(persisted: Persisted): AnyRef = unpersist(persisted.bytes, persisted.manifest)
+  def unpersist(payload: Array[Byte], manifest: Manifest): AnyRef = {
+    persisters.find(_.canUnpersist(manifest))
+              .map(_.unpersistAny(manifest, payload))
+              .getOrElse(throw UnsupportedDataException(manifest.key, manifest.version))
   }
   // format: ON
 
diff --git a/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/StaminaAkkaSerializer.scala b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/StaminaAkkaSerializer.scala
index 50ad105..6d9abf3 100644
--- a/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/StaminaAkkaSerializer.scala
+++ b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/StaminaAkkaSerializer.scala
@@ -4,16 +4,18 @@ import akka.serialization._
 
 /**
  * A custom Akka Serializer specifically designed for use with Akka Persistence.
+ *
+ * Key and version information is encoded in the manifest.
  */
-abstract class StaminaAkkaSerializer private[stamina] (persisters: Persisters, codec: PersistedCodec) extends Serializer {
-  def this(persisters: List[Persister[_, _]], codec: PersistedCodec = DefaultPersistedCodec) = this(Persisters(persisters), codec)
-  def this(persister: Persister[_, _], persisters: Persister[_, _]*) = this(Persisters(persister :: persisters.toList), DefaultPersistedCodec)
+abstract class StaminaAkkaSerializer private[stamina] (persisters: Persisters) extends SerializerWithStringManifest {
+  def this(persisters: List[Persister[_, _]]) = this(Persisters(persisters))
+  def this(persister: Persister[_, _], persisters: Persister[_, _]*) = this(Persisters(persister :: persisters.toList))
 
-  /** We don't need class manifests since we're using keys to identify types. */
-  val includeManifest: Boolean = false
+  /** Uniquely identifies this Serializer. */
+  val identifier = 490304
 
-  /** Uniquely identifies this Serializer by combining the codec with a unique number. */
-  val identifier = 42 * codec.identifier
+  def manifest(obj: AnyRef): String =
+    persisters.manifest(obj).manifest
 
   /**
    * @throws UnregisteredTypeException when the specified object is not supported by the persisters.
@@ -21,18 +23,18 @@ abstract class StaminaAkkaSerializer private[stamina] (persisters: Persisters, c
   def toBinary(obj: AnyRef): Array[Byte] = {
     if (!persisters.canPersist(obj)) throw UnregisteredTypeException(obj)
 
-    codec.writePersisted(persisters.persist(obj))
+    persisters.persist(obj).bytes
   }
 
   /**
    * @throws UnsupportedDataException when the persisted key and/or version is not supported.
    * @throws UnrecoverableDataException when the key and version are supported but recovery throws an exception.
    */
-  def fromBinary(bytes: Array[Byte], clazz: Option[Class[_]]): AnyRef = {
-    val persisted = codec.readPersisted(bytes)
+  def fromBinary(bytes: Array[Byte], manifest: String): AnyRef = {
+    if (manifest.isEmpty) throw new IllegalArgumentException("No manifest found")
+    val m = Manifest(manifest)
+    if (!persisters.canUnpersist(m)) throw UnsupportedDataException(m.key, m.version)
 
-    if (!persisters.canUnpersist(persisted)) throw UnsupportedDataException(persisted)
-
-    persisters.unpersist(persisted)
+    persisters.unpersist(Persisted(m, bytes))
   }
 }
diff --git a/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/codec/CodecBasedStaminaAkkaSerializer.scala b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/codec/CodecBasedStaminaAkkaSerializer.scala
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..870875d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/codec/CodecBasedStaminaAkkaSerializer.scala
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+package stamina
+package codec
+
+import akka.serialization._
+
+/**
+ * A custom Akka Serializer encoding key and version along with the serialized object.
+ *
+ * This is particularly useful when there is no separate field for metadata, such as when
+ * dealing with pre-akka-2.3 persistence.
+ *
+ * Wrapping/unwrapping the metadata around the serialized object is done by the Codec.
+ */
+abstract class CodecBasedStaminaAkkaSerializer private[stamina] (persisters: Persisters, codec: PersistedCodec) extends Serializer {
+  def this(persisters: List[Persister[_, _]], codec: PersistedCodec = DefaultPersistedCodec) = this(Persisters(persisters), codec)
+  def this(persister: Persister[_, _], persisters: Persister[_, _]*) = this(Persisters(persister :: persisters.toList), DefaultPersistedCodec)
+
+  /** We don't need class manifests since we're using keys to identify types. */
+  val includeManifest: Boolean = false
+
+  /** Uniquely identifies this Serializer by combining the codec with a unique number. */
+  val identifier = 42 * codec.identifier
+
+  /**
+   * @throws UnregisteredTypeException when the specified object is not supported by the persisters.
+   */
+  def toBinary(obj: AnyRef): Array[Byte] = {
+    if (!persisters.canPersist(obj)) throw UnregisteredTypeException(obj)
+
+    codec.writePersisted(persisters.persist(obj))
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * @throws UnsupportedDataException when the persisted key and/or version is not supported.
+   * @throws UnrecoverableDataException when the key and version are supported but recovery throws an exception.
+   */
+  def fromBinary(bytes: Array[Byte], clazz: Option[Class[_]]): AnyRef = {
+    val persisted = codec.readPersisted(bytes)
+
+    if (!persisters.canUnpersist(persisted.manifest)) throw UnsupportedDataException(persisted.key, persisted.version)
+
+    persisters.unpersist(persisted)
+  }
+}
diff --git a/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/PersistedCodec.scala b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/codec/PersistedCodec.scala
similarity index 95%
rename from stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/PersistedCodec.scala
rename to stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/codec/PersistedCodec.scala
index 7ec3ffe..b48cac5 100644
--- a/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/PersistedCodec.scala
+++ b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/codec/PersistedCodec.scala
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
 package stamina
+package codec
 
 /**
  * The encoding used to translate an instance of <code>Persisted</code>
@@ -33,7 +34,7 @@ object DefaultPersistedCodec extends PersistedCodec {
       putInt(keyBytes.length).
       putBytes(keyBytes).
       putInt(persisted.version).
-      append(persisted.bytes).
+      append(ByteString(persisted.bytes)).
       result.
       toArray
   }
diff --git a/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/stamina.scala b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/stamina.scala
index bfd0d2d..ba02abc 100644
--- a/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/stamina.scala
+++ b/stamina-core/src/main/scala/stamina/stamina.scala
@@ -30,11 +30,19 @@ package stamina {
     extends RuntimeException(s"No persister registered for class: ${obj.getClass}")
     with NoStackTrace
 
-  case class UnsupportedDataException(persisted: Persisted)
-    extends RuntimeException(s"No unpersister registered for key: '${persisted.key}' and version: ${persisted.version}")
+  case class UnsupportedDataException(key: String, version: Int)
+    extends RuntimeException(s"No unpersister registered for key: '$key' and version: $version")
     with NoStackTrace
 
-  case class UnrecoverableDataException(persisted: Persisted, error: Throwable)
-    extends RuntimeException(s"Error while trying to unpersist data with key '${persisted.key}' and version ${persisted.version}. Cause: ${error}")
+  case class UnrecoverableDataException(manifest: Manifest, error: Throwable)
+    extends RuntimeException(s"Error while trying to unpersist data with key '${manifest.key}' and version ${manifest.version}. Cause: ${error}")
     with NoStackTrace
+
+  case class Manifest(manifest: String) {
+    lazy val key: String = manifest.substring(manifest.indexOf('-') + 1)
+    lazy val version: Int = Integer.valueOf(manifest.substring(0, manifest.indexOf('-')))
+  }
+  object Manifest {
+    def apply(key: String, version: Int): Manifest = Manifest(version + "-" + key)
+  }
 }
diff --git a/stamina-core/src/test/scala/stamina/PersistersSpec.scala b/stamina-core/src/test/scala/stamina/PersistersSpec.scala
index 97f6935..8f3e32e 100644
--- a/stamina-core/src/test/scala/stamina/PersistersSpec.scala
+++ b/stamina-core/src/test/scala/stamina/PersistersSpec.scala
@@ -22,15 +22,15 @@ class PersistersSpec extends StaminaSpec {
     }
 
     "correctly implement canUnpersist()" in {
-      canUnpersist(itemPersister.persist(item1)) should be(true)
-      canUnpersist(cartPersister.persist(cart)) should be(true)
+      canUnpersist(itemPersister.currentManifest) should be(true)
+      canUnpersist(cartPersister.currentManifest) should be(true)
 
-      canUnpersist(cartCreatedPersister.persist(cartCreated)) should be(false)
-      canUnpersist(Persisted("unknown", 1, ByteString("..."))) should be(false)
-      canUnpersist(Persisted("item", 2, ByteString("..."))) should be(false)
+      canUnpersist(cartCreatedPersister.currentManifest) should be(false)
+      canUnpersist(Manifest("unknown", 1)) should be(false)
+      canUnpersist(Manifest("item", 2)) should be(false)
 
       // works because canUnpersist only looks at the key and the version, not at the raw data
-      canUnpersist(Persisted("item", 1, ByteString("Not an item at all!"))) should be(true)
+      canUnpersist(Manifest("item", 1)) should be(true)
     }
 
     "correctly implement persist() and unpersist()" in {
@@ -44,17 +44,17 @@ class PersistersSpec extends StaminaSpec {
 
     "throw an UnsupportedDataException when unpersisting data with an unknown key" in {
       an[UnsupportedDataException] should
-        be thrownBy unpersist(Persisted("unknown", 1, ByteString("...")))
+        be thrownBy unpersist(Array[Byte](), Manifest("unknown", 1))
     }
 
     "throw an UnsupportedDataException when deserializing data with an unsupported version" in {
       an[UnsupportedDataException] should
-        be thrownBy unpersist(Persisted("item", 2, ByteString("...")))
+        be thrownBy unpersist(Array[Byte](), Manifest("item", 2))
     }
 
     "throw an UnrecoverableDataException when an exception occurs while deserializing" in {
       an[UnrecoverableDataException] should
-        be thrownBy unpersist(Persisted("item", 1, ByteString("not an item")))
+        be thrownBy unpersist(ByteString("not an item").toArray, itemPersister.currentManifest)
     }
   }
 }
diff --git a/stamina-core/src/test/scala/stamina/StaminaAkkaSerializerSpec.scala b/stamina-core/src/test/scala/stamina/StaminaAkkaSerializerSpec.scala
index cffa695..5c1ea66 100644
--- a/stamina-core/src/test/scala/stamina/StaminaAkkaSerializerSpec.scala
+++ b/stamina-core/src/test/scala/stamina/StaminaAkkaSerializerSpec.scala
@@ -3,14 +3,13 @@ package stamina
 class StaminaAkkaSerializerSpec extends StaminaSpec {
   import TestDomain._
   import TestOnlyPersister._
-  import DefaultPersistedCodec._
 
   val itemPersister = persister[Item]("item")
   val cartPersister = persister[Cart]("cart")
   val cartCreatedPersister = persister[CartCreated]("cart-created")
 
   class MyAkkaSerializer1a extends StaminaAkkaSerializer(List(itemPersister, cartPersister, cartCreatedPersister))
-  class MyAkkaSerializer1b extends StaminaAkkaSerializer(List(itemPersister, cartPersister, cartCreatedPersister), DefaultPersistedCodec)
+  class MyAkkaSerializer1b extends StaminaAkkaSerializer(List(itemPersister, cartPersister, cartCreatedPersister))
   class MyAkkaSerializer2 extends StaminaAkkaSerializer(itemPersister, cartPersister, cartCreatedPersister)
 
   val serializer = new MyAkkaSerializer1a
@@ -19,29 +18,29 @@ class StaminaAkkaSerializerSpec extends StaminaSpec {
 
   "The StaminaAkkaSerializer" should {
     "correctly serialize and deserialize the current version of the domain" in {
-      fromBinary(toBinary(item1)) should equal(item1)
-      fromBinary(toBinary(item2)) should equal(item2)
-      fromBinary(toBinary(cart)) should equal(cart)
-      fromBinary(toBinary(cartCreated)) should equal(cartCreated)
+      fromBinary(toBinary(item1), manifest(item1)) should equal(item1)
+      fromBinary(toBinary(item2), manifest(item2)) should equal(item2)
+      fromBinary(toBinary(cart), manifest(cart)) should equal(cart)
+      fromBinary(toBinary(cartCreated), manifest(cartCreated)) should equal(cartCreated)
     }
 
     "throw an UnregisteredTypeException when serializing an unregistered type" in {
-      a[UnregisteredTypeException] should be thrownBy toBinary("a raw String is not supported")
+      a[UnregisteredTypeException] should be thrownBy toBinary(ByteString("a raw String is not supported").toArray)
     }
 
     "throw an UnsupportedDataException when deserializing data with an unknown key" in {
       an[UnsupportedDataException] should
-        be thrownBy fromBinary(writePersisted(Persisted("unknown", 1, ByteString("..."))))
+        be thrownBy fromBinary(Array[Byte](), Manifest("unknown", 1).manifest)
     }
 
     "throw an UnsupportedDataException when deserializing data with an unsupported version" in {
       an[UnsupportedDataException] should
-        be thrownBy fromBinary(writePersisted(Persisted("item", 2, ByteString("..."))))
+        be thrownBy fromBinary(Array[Byte](), Manifest("item", 2).manifest)
     }
 
     "throw an UnrecoverableDataException when an exception occurs while deserializing" in {
       an[UnrecoverableDataException] should
-        be thrownBy fromBinary(writePersisted(Persisted("item", 1, ByteString("not an item"))))
+        be thrownBy fromBinary(ByteString("not an item").toArray, itemPersister.currentManifest.manifest)
     }
   }
 }
diff --git a/stamina-core/src/test/scala/stamina/TestOnlyPersister.scala b/stamina-core/src/test/scala/stamina/TestOnlyPersister.scala
index bc6c737..0986eb3 100644
--- a/stamina-core/src/test/scala/stamina/TestOnlyPersister.scala
+++ b/stamina-core/src/test/scala/stamina/TestOnlyPersister.scala
@@ -12,9 +12,9 @@ object TestOnlyPersister {
   def persister[T <: AnyRef: ClassTag](key: String): Persister[T, V1] = new JavaPersister[T](key)
 
   private class JavaPersister[T <: AnyRef: ClassTag](key: String) extends Persister[T, V1](key) {
-    def persist(t: T): Persisted = Persisted(key, currentVersion, toBinary(t))
-    def unpersist(p: Persisted): T = {
-      if (canUnpersist(p)) fromBinary(p.bytes.toArray).asInstanceOf[T]
+    def persist(t: T): Array[Byte] = toBinary(t)
+    def unpersist(manifest: Manifest, p: Array[Byte]): T = {
+      if (canUnpersist(manifest)) fromBinary(p).asInstanceOf[T]
       else throw new IllegalArgumentException("")
     }
   }
diff --git a/stamina-json/src/main/scala/stamina/json/json.scala b/stamina-json/src/main/scala/stamina/json/json.scala
index 6a72d44..b99c98a 100644
--- a/stamina-json/src/main/scala/stamina/json/json.scala
+++ b/stamina-json/src/main/scala/stamina/json/json.scala
@@ -55,9 +55,11 @@ package object json {
    */
   def persister[T: RootJsonFormat: ClassTag, V <: Version: VersionInfo: MigratableVersion](key: String, migrator: JsonMigrator[V]): JsonPersister[T, V] = new VnJsonPersister[T, V](key, migrator)
 
-  private[json] def toJsonBytes[T](t: T)(implicit writer: RootJsonWriter[T]): ByteString = ByteString(writer.write(t).compactPrint)
-  private[json] def fromJsonBytes[T](bytes: ByteString)(implicit reader: RootJsonReader[T]): T = reader.read(parseJson(bytes))
-  private[json] def parseJson(bytes: ByteString): JsValue = JsonParser(ParserInput(bytes.toArray))
+  import java.nio.charset.StandardCharsets
+  val UTF_8: String = StandardCharsets.UTF_8.name()
+  private[json] def toJsonBytes[T](t: T)(implicit writer: RootJsonWriter[T]): Array[Byte] = writer.write(t).compactPrint.getBytes(UTF_8)
+  private[json] def fromJsonBytes[T](bytes: Array[Byte])(implicit reader: RootJsonReader[T]): T = reader.read(parseJson(bytes))
+  private[json] def parseJson(bytes: Array[Byte]): JsValue = JsonParser(ParserInput(bytes.toArray))
 }
 
 package json {
@@ -65,25 +67,25 @@ package json {
    * Simple abstract marker superclass to unify (and hide) the two internal Persister implementations.
    */
   sealed abstract class JsonPersister[T: RootJsonFormat: ClassTag, V <: Version: VersionInfo](key: String) extends Persister[T, V](key) {
-    private[json] def cannotUnpersist(p: Persisted) =
-      s"""JsonPersister[${implicitly[ClassTag[T]].runtimeClass.getSimpleName}, V${currentVersion}](key = "${key}") cannot unpersist data with key "${p.key}" and version ${p.version}."""
+    private[json] def cannotUnpersist(manifest: Manifest) =
+      s"""JsonPersister[${implicitly[ClassTag[T]].runtimeClass.getSimpleName}, V${currentVersion}](key = "${key}") cannot unpersist data with manifest "$manifest"."""
   }
 
   private[json] class V1JsonPersister[T: RootJsonFormat: ClassTag](key: String) extends JsonPersister[T, V1](key) {
-    def persist(t: T): Persisted = Persisted(key, currentVersion, toJsonBytes(t))
-    def unpersist(p: Persisted): T = {
-      if (canUnpersist(p)) fromJsonBytes[T](p.bytes)
-      else throw new IllegalArgumentException(cannotUnpersist(p))
+    def persist(t: T): Array[Byte] = toJsonBytes(t)
+    def unpersist(manifest: Manifest, p: Array[Byte]): T = {
+      if (canUnpersist(manifest)) fromJsonBytes[T](p)
+      else throw new IllegalArgumentException(cannotUnpersist(manifest))
     }
   }
 
   private[json] class VnJsonPersister[T: RootJsonFormat: ClassTag, V <: Version: VersionInfo: MigratableVersion](key: String, migrator: JsonMigrator[V]) extends JsonPersister[T, V](key) {
-    override def canUnpersist(p: Persisted): Boolean = p.key == key && migrator.canMigrate(p.version)
+    override def canUnpersist(m: Manifest): Boolean = m.key == key && migrator.canMigrate(m.version)
 
-    def persist(t: T): Persisted = Persisted(key, currentVersion, toJsonBytes(t))
-    def unpersist(p: Persisted): T = {
-      if (canUnpersist(p)) migrator.migrate(parseJson(p.bytes), p.version).convertTo[T]
-      else throw new IllegalArgumentException(cannotUnpersist(p))
+    def persist(t: T): Array[Byte] = toJsonBytes(t)
+    def unpersist(manifest: Manifest, p: Array[Byte]): T = {
+      if (canUnpersist(manifest)) migrator.migrate(parseJson(p), manifest.version).convertTo[T]
+      else throw new IllegalArgumentException(cannotUnpersist(manifest))
     }
   }
 }
diff --git a/stamina-json/src/test/scala/stamina/json/JsonPersisterSpec.scala b/stamina-json/src/test/scala/stamina/json/JsonPersisterSpec.scala
index a643018..f62ac84 100644
--- a/stamina-json/src/test/scala/stamina/json/JsonPersisterSpec.scala
+++ b/stamina-json/src/test/scala/stamina/json/JsonPersisterSpec.scala
@@ -23,19 +23,19 @@ class JsonPersisterSpec extends StaminaJsonSpec {
   "V1 persisters produced by SprayJsonPersister" should {
     "correctly persist and unpersist domain events " in {
       import v1CartCreatedPersister._
-      unpersist(persist(v1CartCreated)) should equal(v1CartCreated)
+      unpersist(currentManifest, persist(v1CartCreated)) should equal(v1CartCreated)
     }
   }
 
   "V2 persisters with migrators produced by SprayJsonPersister" should {
     "correctly persist and unpersist domain events " in {
       import v2CartCreatedPersister._
-      unpersist(persist(v2CartCreated)) should equal(v2CartCreated)
+      unpersist(currentManifest, persist(v2CartCreated)) should equal(v2CartCreated)
     }
 
     "correctly migrate and unpersist V1 domain events" in {
       val v1Persisted = v1CartCreatedPersister.persist(v1CartCreated)
-      val v2Unpersisted = v2CartCreatedPersister.unpersist(v1Persisted)
+      val v2Unpersisted = v2CartCreatedPersister.unpersist(v1CartCreatedPersister.currentManifest, v1Persisted)
 
       v2Unpersisted.cart.items.map(_.price).toSet should equal(Set(1000))
     }
@@ -44,15 +44,15 @@ class JsonPersisterSpec extends StaminaJsonSpec {
   "V3 persisters with migrators produced by SprayJsonPersister" should {
     "correctly persist and unpersist domain events " in {
       import v3CartCreatedPersister._
-      unpersist(persist(v3CartCreated)) should equal(v3CartCreated)
+      unpersist(currentManifest, persist(v3CartCreated)) should equal(v3CartCreated)
     }
 
     "correctly migrate and unpersist V1 domain events" in {
       val v1Persisted = v1CartCreatedPersister.persist(v1CartCreated)
       val v2Persisted = v2CartCreatedPersister.persist(v2CartCreated)
 
-      val v1Unpersisted = v3CartCreatedPersister.unpersist(v1Persisted)
-      val v2Unpersisted = v3CartCreatedPersister.unpersist(v2Persisted)
+      val v1Unpersisted = v3CartCreatedPersister.unpersist(v1CartCreatedPersister.currentManifest, v1Persisted)
+      val v2Unpersisted = v3CartCreatedPersister.unpersist(v2CartCreatedPersister.currentManifest, v2Persisted)
 
       v1Unpersisted.cart.items.map(_.price).toSet should equal(Set(1000))
       v2Unpersisted.timestamp should (be > 0L and be < System.currentTimeMillis)
diff --git a/stamina-testkit/src/main/scala/stamina/testkit/StaminaTestKit.scala b/stamina-testkit/src/main/scala/stamina/testkit/StaminaTestKit.scala
index 7036aec..03ad14f 100644
--- a/stamina-testkit/src/main/scala/stamina/testkit/StaminaTestKit.scala
+++ b/stamina-testkit/src/main/scala/stamina/testkit/StaminaTestKit.scala
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ trait StaminaTestKit { self: org.scalatest.WordSpecLike ⇒
       val serialized = persisters.persist(sample.persistable)
       byteStringFromResource(serialized.key, version, sample.sampleId) match {
         case Success(binary) ⇒
-          persisters.unpersist(binary) should equal(sample.persistable)
+          persisters.unpersist(Persisted(Manifest(serialized.key, version), binary)) should equal(sample.persistable)
         case Failure(_: java.io.FileNotFoundException) if version == latestVersion ⇒
           val writtenToPath = saveByteArrayToTargetSerializationDirectory(serialized.bytes.toArray, serialized.key, version, sample.sampleId)
           fail(s"You appear to have added a new serialization sample to the stamina persisters' test.\n" +
@@ -67,7 +67,7 @@ trait StaminaTestKit { self: org.scalatest.WordSpecLike ⇒
       }
     }
 
-    private def byteStringFromResource(key: String, version: Int, sampleId: String): Try[Persisted] = {
+    private def byteStringFromResource(key: String, version: Int, sampleId: String): Try[Array[Byte]] = {
       import scala.io.Source
       val resourceName = s"/$serializedObjectsPackage/${filename(key, version, sampleId)}"
 
@@ -75,8 +75,6 @@ trait StaminaTestKit { self: org.scalatest.WordSpecLike ⇒
         .map(Success(_)).getOrElse(Failure(new java.io.FileNotFoundException(resourceName)))
         .map(Source.fromInputStream(_).mkString)
         .flatMap(base64.Decode(_))
-        .map(akka.util.ByteString(_))
-        .map(Persisted(key, version, _))
     }
 
     private def saveByteArrayToTargetSerializationDirectory(bytes: Array[Byte], key: String, version: Int, sampleId: String) = {
diff --git a/stamina-testkit/src/test/scala/stamina/testkit/ScalatestTestGenerationSpec.scala b/stamina-testkit/src/test/scala/stamina/testkit/ScalatestTestGenerationSpec.scala
index 7996c07..5905e35 100644
--- a/stamina-testkit/src/test/scala/stamina/testkit/ScalatestTestGenerationSpec.scala
+++ b/stamina-testkit/src/test/scala/stamina/testkit/ScalatestTestGenerationSpec.scala
@@ -12,8 +12,8 @@ class ScalatestTestGenerationSpec extends StaminaTestKitSpec {
   import TestDomain._
 
   case class ItemPersister(override val key: String) extends Persister[Item, V1](key) {
-    def persist(t: Item): Persisted = Persisted(key, currentVersion, ByteString())
-    def unpersist(p: Persisted): Item = item1
+    def persist(t: Item): Array[Byte] = Array[Byte]()
+    def unpersist(manifest: Manifest, p: Array[Byte]): Item = item1
   }
 
   "A spec generated by StaminaTestKit" should {