The Economies of Hellenistic Societies, Third to First Centuries BC

The contributors to this volume define the distinctive economic features of the Hellenistic Age and the ways in which they have had an enduring effect on global cultural patterns. Case studies look at management and institutions; human mobility and natural resources; the role of different agents - temples and cities, as well as rulers - in enhancing resources and circulating wealth; the levers exerted by monopolies and by disparate status groups, including slaves. An introductory essay summarizes the operational elements that drove the engines of these economies.