Provides case studies that approach historical evidence in new ways to reconstruct how freed people were integrated in Roman society.

Argues that freed slaves exerted a profound influence on the transformation of Roman values under the Principate.

How did freed slaves reinvent themselves after the shackles of slavery had been lifted? How were they reintegrated into society, and what was their social position and status? What contributions did they make to the society that had once - sometimes brutally - repressed them? This collection builds on recent dynamic work on Roman freedmen, the contributors drawing upon a rich and varied body of evidence - visual, literary, epigraphic and archaeological - to elucidate the impact of freed slaves on Roman society and culture amid the shadow of their former servitude. The contributions span the period between the first century BC and the early third century AD and survey the territories of the Roman Republic and Empire, while focusing on Italy and Rome.

Freedmen occupied a complex and often problematic place in Roman society between slaves on the one hand and freeborn citizens on the other. Playing an extremely important role in the economic life of the Roman world, they were also a key instrument for replenishing and even increasing the size of the citizen body. This book presents an original synthesis, for the first time covering both Republic and Empire in a single volume. While providing up-to-date discussions of most significant aspects of the phenomenon, the book also offers a new understanding of the practice of manumission, its role in the organisation of slave labour and the Roman economy, as well as the deep-seated ideological concerns to which it gave rise. It locates the freedman in a broader social and economic context, explaining the remarkable popularity of manumission in the Roman world.

How were freed people represented in the Roman world? This volume presents new research about the integration of freed persons into Roman society. It addresses the challenge of studying Roman freed persons on the basis of highly fragmentary sources whose contents have been fundamentally shaped by the forces of domination. Even though freed persons were defined through a common legal status and shared the experience of enslavement and manumission, many different interactions could derive from these commonalities in different periods and localities across the empire. Drawing on literary, epigraphic, and archaeological evidence, this book provides cases studies that test the various ways in which juridical categories and normative discourses shaped the social and cultural landscape in which freed people lived. By approaching the literary and epigraphic representations of freed persons in new ways, it nuances the impact of power asymmetries and social strategies on the cultural practices and lived experiences of freed persons.

Arguably the most formidable of powers the world has ever seen, the Roman Empire in its prime stretched from Spain to Iraq and from Germany to Egypt, encompassing all the territory in between. By AD 117, it had engulfed almost fifty countries we know today, marrying a fascinating range of cultures and traditions. This illustrated book explores the diverse peoples of the Roman Empire: how they viewed themselves and others as Romans and examining their enduring legacy today, from the languages we speak, to the legal systems we live by, the towns and cities we live in, and even to our table manners

A lively and comprehensive overview of Roman slavery, ideal for introductory-level students of the ancient Mediterranean world.