The more things change: economic institutions and maritime trade in the Archaic Western Mediterranean

2018-04-10In this dissertation, I argue against the conventional view that economic activity during the Archaic Period of Greek history (8th c. to the early 5th c. BCE) was a product of broader social and political developments. Instead it constituted an essential element in the transformation of the Greek world. To do so, I examine the contemporary literary sources (the Homeric epics and the poetry of Hesiod and Theognis) as well as the material record (shipwrecks, ceramics). On the basis of the literary evidence, I contend that we can see the outlines of an ideological struggle between the traditional landed nobility and an emerging class of free, landholding farmers that centered on establishing norms for economic activity favorable to the respective groups. Meanwhile, the archaeological evidence demonstrates the existence and growth of sophisticated distribution networks that were capable of responding to specific regional consumer demands, as well as communicating consumer preferences to producers who in turn altered their production strategies in response to those demands. Ultimately, these conditions presented opportunities for the acquisition of wealth by previously marginalized groups, who then leveraged their newfound wealth to bring about changes to the prevailing power structure. Consequently, no examination of archaic Greek history would be complete without a fuller appreciation of the powerful impact of expanding maritime trade in the broader transformation of Greek society during the Archaic Period