Ancient History: Evidence And Models

In this study of Greek and Roman history, the author addresses the limitations imposed by the available evidence, stressing the fact that there is much that the modern scholar cannot learn by consulting the ancient sources. With emphasis on the fundamental importance of asking the right questions, he challenges the special status accorded to classical texts and exposes the flaws in the traditional approach to ancient history. He even goes on to suggest alternative methods for re-constructing history.

Ancient History: Evidence and Models

Moses I. Finley

Elisabeth Sifton Books/Penguin Books

"Technical progress, economic growth, productivity, even efficiency have not been significant goals since the beginning of time," declares M. I. Finley in his classic work. The states of the ancient Mediterranean world had no recognizable real-property market, never fought a commercially inspired war, witnessed no drive to capital formation, and assigned the management of many substantial enterprises to slaves and ex-slaves. In short, to study the economies of the ancient world, one must begin by discarding many premises that seemed self-evident before Finley showed that they were useless or misleading. Available again, with a new foreword by Ian Morris, these sagacious, fertile, and occasionally combative essays are just as electrifying today as when Finley first wrote them.

The Ancient Economy

Business & Money

Economics

Penguin Books, Ltd.

A definitive survey of the Olympic games, from 776 B.C. to A.D. 261, this scholarly, yet immensely readable account of Olympic athletes in ancient times takes a highly realistic view of these fabled contests. Transporting readers back to the eighth century b.c., Professor M. I. Finley and Dr. H. W. Pleket draw upon their extensive knowledge of the ancient world to explain in absorbing detail the various sporting events and their historical, social, and religious context. They also detail the similarities and differences between ancient and modern games.Through their examination of ancient documents, the authors conclude that today's audiences would be astonished by the brutality exhibited in many of the Olympic events. The ferocity of boxing and wrestling matches, for example, is unparalleled in modern games. No event today could match the spectacle or excitement of the four-horse chariot races in which thirty to forty teams competed. Of special interest were the demands made by the victors, who expected, insisted upon, and procured material rewards for their victories, regardless of class or personal fortune.Richly illustrated with rare artwork, this authoritative account of one thousand years of early Olympic history will appeal not only to classical scholars but to all those interested in sports and athletic events.

The Olympic Games: The first thousand years

Politics & Social Sciences

H. W. Pleket

Philosophy

Clarke, Irwin & Company

<p>Price clipped dust jacket has a torn corner, pencilled underlining and notes until page 26. Orders received by 3pm Sent from the UK that weekday.</p>

Ancient Sicily to the Arab conquest

History

Europe

Chatto&Windus

Early Greece: The bronze and archaic ages (Ancient culture and society)

Slavery in Classical Antiquity

Heffer

<p>Slaves have been exploited in most societies throughout human history. There have, however, been only five genuine slave societies, and of these, two were in antiquity: classical Greece and classical Italy. Here distinguished historian Sir Moses Finley examines those two not in isolation, but in comparison. In this thought-provoking study of slavery in ancient Greece and Italy, Sir Moses Finley discusses how slave societies came into being and considers the moral, social, and economic underpinnings that allowed them to prosper. His comparison of ancient slave societies with their relatively modern counterparts in the New World opens a new perspective on the history of slavery. Sir Moses' inquiry sheds light on the complex ways in which ideological interests affect historical interpretation.</p>

Ancient Slavery and Modern Ideology

Ancient Civilizations

Markus Weiner Publishers

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Books by Moses I. Finley