Handbook of Ancient Afro-Eurasian Economies. Volume 1: Contexts
Ed. by Reden, Sitta
In coop. with Dwivedi, Mamta / Fabian, Lara / Leese-Messing, Kathrin / Morris, Lauren / Weaverdyck, Eli J. S.
DE GRUYTER OLDENBOURG
- eBook (PDF)
- Publication Date: December 2019
- Copyright year: 2020
- ISBN: 978-3-11-060774-1
Aims and Scope
The
notion of the “Silk Road” that the German geographer Ferdinand von
Richthofen invented in the 19th century has lost attraction to scholars
in light of large amounts of new evidence and new approaches. The
handbook suggests new conceptual and methodological tools for
researching ancient economic exchange in a global perspective with a
strong focus on recent debates on the nature of pre-modern empires.The
interdisciplinary team of Chinese, Indian and Graeco-Roman historians,
archaeologists and anthropologists that has written this handbook
compares different forms of economic development in agrarian and steppe
regions in a period of accelerated empire formation during 300 BCE and
300 CE. It investigates inter-imperial zones and networks of exchange
which were crucial for ancient Eurasian connections.Volume I provides a
comparative history of the most important empires forming in Northern
Africa, Europe and Asia between 300 BCE and 300 CE. It surveys a wide
range of evidence that can be brought to bear on economic development in
the these empires, and takes stock of the ways academic traditions have
shaped different understandings of economic and imperial development as
well as Silk-Road exchange in Russia, China, India and Western
Graeco-Roman history.
In collaboration with:
Lara Fabian and Eli J. S. Weaverdyck. Edited by:
Sitta von Reden
-
Language:
English
-
Publisher:
De Gruyter Oldenbourg
-
Copyright year:
2022
- Pages
-
Front matter:
15
-
Main content:
843
The second volume of the Handbook describes different extractive
economies in the world regions that have been outlined in the first
volume. A wide range of economic actors – from kings and armies to
cities and producers – are discussed within different imperial settings
as well as the tools, which enabled and constrained economic outcomes. A
central focus are nodes of consumption that are visible in the
archaeological and textual records of royal capitals, cities, religious
centers, and armies that were stationed, in some cases permanently, in
imperial frontier zones. Complementary to the multipolar concentrations
of consumption are the fiscal-tributary structures of the empires
vis-à-vis other institutions that had the capacity to extract, mobilize,
and concentrate resources and wealth. Larger volumes of state-issued
coinage in various metals show the new role of coinage in taxation,
local economic activities, and social practices, even where textual
evidence is absent. Given the overwhelming importance of agriculture,
the volume also analyses forms of agrarian development, especially
around cities and in imperial frontier zones. Special consideration is
given to road- and water-management systems for which there is now
sufficient archaeological and documentary evidence to enable
cross-disciplinary comparative research.
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