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City Government in Hellenistic and Roman Asia Minor examines the social and administrative transformation of Greek society within the early Roman empire, assessing the extent to which the numerous changes in Greek cities during the imperial period ought to be attributed to Roman influence. The topic is crucial to our understanding of the foundations of Roman imperial power because Greek speakers comprised the empire's second largest population group and played a vital role in its administration, culture, and social life. This book elucidates the transformation of Greek society in this period from a local point of view, mostly through the study of local sources such as inscriptions and coins. By providing information on public activities, education, family connections, and individual careers, it shows the extent of and geographical variation in Greek provincial reaction to the changes accompanying the establishment of Roman rule. In general, new local administrative and social developments during the period were most heavily influenced by traditional pre-Roman practices, while innovations were few and of limited importance. Concentrating on the province of Asia, one of the most urbanized Greek-speaking provinces of Rome, this work demonstrates that Greek local administration remained diverse under the Romans, while at the same time local Greek nobility gradually merged with the Roman ruling class into one imperial elite. This conclusion interprets the interference of Roman authorities in local administration as a form of interaction between different segments of the imperial elite, rejecting the old explanation of such interference as a display of Roman control over subjects. ... Read more

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A paperback edition of a title from the BEGINNING HISTORY series first published in hardback in 1989. Examines ancient Greek cities, their buildings and the lifestyles of their inhabitants. Illustrated with full colour artwork and photographs. ... Read more

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Jones begins by describing the movement whereby Greek politcal institutions swept over the Near Eastern lands conquered by Alexander.He then goes on to trace the adaptation of the city to its new environment, the Hellenistic kingdom and the Roman empire.The city's internal political life, how it was transformed from an autonomous community to a seat of local government, and the manifold services it provided its citizens are also described. Finally, an attempt is made to assess the contribution of the city to the civilization of the regions where it prevailed. ... Read more

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The city for the Greeks and Romans was of paramount importance for their political, religious and social life, and this book provides a study of both the differing concepts and developments of the city in the Greek and Roman world. For example, the Greek concept of the "polis" as essentially a community, whose physical attributes - well-built houses, walls, docks - were of secondary importance, gradually shifted. As cities grew, especially under the Hellenistic kings and their Roman successors, fine public buildings, sumptuous houses, and impressive civic amenities became the hallmark of urban life. Drawing on archaeology, literary and epigraphic evidence, professional and technical literature, as well as on descriptions of cities and their monuments from travellers and geographers, the author analyzes the evolution of town planning. ... Read more

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Perfect introduction to Greek urbanism
This is a wonderful book which describes the way Ancient Greeks planned and built their cities, fortresses, harbours, etc. It explains the cultural roots of Greek architecture and the importance of the public buildings,especially the agora. The drawings and plans (there are plenty of them) areexcellent and the bibliography is a good guide if you want to know moreabout the subject. ... Read more

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In ancient cities, 'daily bread' was a subject of prayer. Grain-harvests could be fickle, but a regular supply was a matter of survival. Food-shortage could lead to social unrest, and long-term solutions required all kinds of political an institutional resources from the authorities. Yet feeding the city was not just a problem. It was an opportunity for the political management of the poor, for competitive display among the elite, and for making money. The essays in this volume present cities and societies which responded to these challenges in very different ways, from the agro-towns in which the citizens commuted to their fields to the market-supplied towns in which an urban proletariat worked for their bread. The articles debate the food supply through all its aspects, economic, demographic, political and institutional to give a new perspective on this debate at the heart of our understandings of ancient society. ... Read more

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importance of the structuralist approach in imagery
The Bérard's school brought structuralism into the study of imagery. But this book also studied categories of greek thought which are very often neglected,and revealed their presence in the athenian everyday life.Thisbook was sold at the Louvre in Paris and received a tremendous success.It's impossible to find in Europe.I can only encourage every classicalarchaeologist to read this book, and the pubhlisher to print a new edition.A classical schoolbook! ... Read more

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This book is an English translation of the French work La Religion Grecque. Its purpose is to consider how religious beliefs and cultic rituals were given expression in ancient Greece. The chapters cover first ritual and then myth, rooting the account in the practices of the classical city while also taking seriously the world of the imagination. For this edition the bibliography has been substantially revised to meet the needs of a mainly student, English-speaking readership. The book is enriched throughout by illustrations, and by quotations from original sources. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Religion in the Ancient Greek City
Like so many other books of its kind, this is a fine introductory book into ancient Greek religion, focused on the polis, the city. The book is divided into four parts; "Introduction: How should we study Greek civic religion?", "Cult-practices", "Systems for representing the divine" and "Envoi". In addition there are some appendixes on classical Greek temples, and in addition to all this, the book is illustrated throughout with both photos of temples, ancient Greek art and other objects from the old Greece. The book as mentioned serves excellently as an introduction to the subject, and also has a rather extensive bibliography I found useful for further studies. Read in conjunction with for example Robert Garland's "Religion and the Greeks", these two books will lay a fairly solid foundation for anyone interested in the subject.

The book's rather extensive focus on rituals and how the religious calendar guided the Greeks through the year is very skilfully done and harbours much of interest. Interestingly, it also mentions Sparta from time to time, which was bound to please someone of my political leanings. It seems the Männerbunde were as highly eulogized that the authors write on page 74; "Sparta, however, was, as often, exceptional. Only warriors killed in battle and women who died in childbed were entitled to the honour of a named gravestone". Now, that is the European Tradition at its best!

Another passage on page 174 I found very interesting; "Here, then, are all the marks of a perversion and inversion of normal sacrifice and its functions: wild nature opposed to the cultured space of the city, the hunting of wild beasts as opposed to the killing of domestic animals, transgressions of the rituals of slaughter and distribution, absence of the fire and cooking that would have transformed the raw meat into cultivated food. To indulge in Dionysiac sacrifice, that is to say, was a way of turning oneself into a savage and thereby rejecting civic sacrifice and the values it expressed. By overstepping the boundary separating men from the beasts Dionysiac orgiastic worship provided an alternative means of exploring the human condition, beyond the limits set by the Promethean model of sacrifice."

The book touches on so many subjects despite its relatively short length, I must recommend this highly for all the Indo-European-maniacs out there. 5 stars, without a doubt.

A superior, insightful introduction to ancient Greek religion
Religion in the Ancient Greek City by Louise Bruit Zaidman and Pauline Schmitt Pantel offers readers what is probably the best introduction to Greek polytheism available.Originally published in France, it bears the marks of that country's historical tradition, that is, it is often theoretical and anthropological in its nature.This, however, only adds to its effectiveness by providing poignant insight and historical context to the information dealt with.The English translation has been slightly modified in that certain elements have been rearranged from the French version to make the readership more fluid, and it is.

Zaidman and Pantel pepper the text with helpful quotations from the original Greek sources as well as images of relevant artifacts to further the reader's understanding.The book begins by putting the reader in the correct mindset with which to study ancient polytheism, which is to leave modern definitions of religion and piety at the door and begin to see objectively a truly foreign culture.Next they delve into Greek rituals and mystery cults, and finally into the mind of the ancient Greek in how they saw and understood their deities.Athens is the dominant focus, though a few other cities do get a moderate amount of attention, and Classical Greece is really the period of concern.The chapters are split into subsections that are easy to comprehend.This being an introduction, it does not go in depth into any single element, but it does give a wealth of knowledge to equip the reader to capably research further.The bibliography, likewise, is extensive.

Excelent Information
This book has a lot of good and useful informatin. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in Greek Religion ... Read more

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Athens, Greece: Guide to the International City is a high quality information guide which includes the history, facts, geography, demographics, and other key information related to the international city of Athens, Greece. ... Read more

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The book has no illustrations or index. It may have numerous typos or missing text. However, purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original rare book from the publisher's website (GeneralBooksClub.com). You can also preview excerpts of the book there. Purchasers are also entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Original Publisher: Toronto J. Campbell; Publication date: 1875; Subjects: Middle East; Palestine; ... Read more

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Octavian founded Nikopolis in 31 BC to commemorate his naval defeat of Antony and Cleopatra at Actium. He then compelled the inhabitants of neighbouring cities to relocate and populate his `City of Victory'. These papers focus on recent excavations, in Nikopolis and in the surrounding regions, to examine the impact of this forced relocation. The evidence indicates that the neighbouring settlements were much less deserted than had been assumed and a rereading of Strabo, the principal contemporary source, supports this. Other papers examine the Actian Tropaeum, the most important construction in Nikopolis which celebrated Actium, settlement patterns, epigraphy, pottery surveys and the distribution of cults. ... Read more

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This digital document is an article from Utopian Studies, published by Society for Utopian Studies on March 22, 2008. The length of the article is 1560 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Annette Lucia Giesecke. The Epic City: Urbanism, Utopia, and the Garden in Ancient Greece and Rome.(Book review)
Author: Roger Paden
Publication: Utopian Studies (Magazine/Journal)
Date: March 22, 2008
Publisher: Society for Utopian Studies
Volume: 19Issue: 2Page: 333(4)

Article Type: Book review

Distributed by Gale, a part of Cengage Learning ... Read more

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S.H. Foulkes was the founder of the group analytic school of group psychotherapy. This volume represents an introduction both to his work, and to the developments based on it. Amongst the subjects covered are the nature of the therapeutic process in the light of recent research in child development, the relationship of group analysis to psychoanalysis and the school of Lacan, and research into the results of group therapy. Included are the first three annual S.H. Foulkes lectures which explore his life, the historical significance of his work, and his advances in psychoanalysis, particularly in the realm of narcissism. Other papers explore the influence of Foulkes's ideas in Europe, showing how the systems of Jung and Freud can be integrated with group analysis. The book includes a clear and illuminating exposition of Foulkes's theories by Malcolm Pines. ... Read more