Economy, ancient, approaches to
Morley, N
Date: 22 December 2021
Book chapter
Publisher
Oxford University Press (OUP)
Publisher DOI
Abstract
The Greeks and Romans did not develop a concept of ‘the economy’ or discuss economic
matters at any length; the study of the ancient economy therefore began only in the late 18th
century, in parallel with the developing study of contemporary economic development, and
was heavily influenced from the beginning by the question of the ...
The Greeks and Romans did not develop a concept of ‘the economy’ or discuss economic
matters at any length; the study of the ancient economy therefore began only in the late 18th
century, in parallel with the developing study of contemporary economic development, and
was heavily influenced from the beginning by the question of the relationship between
antiquity and modernity. The field has long been dominated by two different but closely
connected debates, about the nature and degree of development of the ancient economy
(was it ‘primitive’, or on the contrary proto-modern?), and about the correct theoretical and
methodological tools for studying it, with constant anxieties about the dangers of
anachronism. An especially important theme has been the changing weight placed on
material rather than literary evidence, as archaeologists have accumulated ever greater
information about economic activity, leading to calls in recent years to focus on ancient
economic performance rather than on the structures of culture and thought that supposedly
inhibited ancient development.
Classics, Ancient History, Religion and Theology
Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
Item views 0
Full item downloads 0