This work examines the iron metallurgy of Aegean Thrace as a culturally generated activity. The methodology used combines archaeological evidence from recent excavations, analytical data from optical and chemical analyses of industrial waste and iron artefacts, and documentary and iconographic evidence. The aims of the work are to establish the level of effectiveness in iron technology as it was practised in Aegean Thrace from Classical to Roman times, to understand indigenous involvement in iron production and to interpret the social context of iron technology. The long-term aim is to determine whether there are aspects of technological, economic, artistic or symbolic uses of iron which are reflected in culturally distinct groups living within the same area (in this case, Thracian versus Greek or Roman). Finally, an attempt is made to provide a theoretical and methodological model for the archaeological and archaeometallurgical study of interaction between ancient technology and society.

Účelem práce je shrnout archeologické a literární prameny o zpracování železa ve starověkém Řecku a zhodnotit je. Zabývá se otázkou, kdy a odkud se objevily v Řecku železné předměty, a dělí dobu železnou v Řecku do několikaepoch, ze kterých pocházejí šperky, zbraně, mince, předměty denní potřeby, votivní předměty ze železa, kterého se používalo i ve stavebnictví. Písemné památky dosvědčují také znalost technologie kovářství, začátků hutnictví aproblematiky výroby litiny. Autor věnuje také pozornost 24 zmínkám o železu v Homérově Iliadě.

Publisher Description

“Remarkable . . . [The author’s] crystalline prose, his vivacious storytelling and his lucid historical insights combine here to provide a first-rate history.” —Publishers Weekly Sparta has often been described as the original Utopia—a remarkably evolved society whose warrior heroes were forbidden any other trade, profession, or business. As a people, the Spartans were the living exemplars of such core values as duty, discipline, the nobility of arms in a cause worth dying for, sacrificing the individual for the greater good of the community (illustrated by their role in the battle of Thermopylae), and the triumph over seemingly insuperable obstacles—qualities often believed today to signify the ultimate heroism. In this book, distinguished scholar and historian Paul Cartledge, long considered the leading international authority on ancient Sparta, traces the evolution of Spartan society—the culture and the people as well as the tremendous influence they had on their world and even ours. He details the lives of such illustrious and myth-making figures as Lycurgus, King Leonidas, Helen of Troy (and Sparta), and Lysander, and explains how the Spartans, while placing a high value on masculine ideals, nevertheless allowed women an unusually dominant and powerful role—unlike Athenian culture, with which the Spartans are so often compared. In resurrecting this culture and society, Cartledge delves into ancient texts and archeological sources and includes illustrations depicting original Spartan artifacts and drawings, as well as examples of representational paintings from the Renaissance onward—including J.L. David’s famously brooding Leonidas. “A pleasure for anyone interested in the ancient world.” —Kirkus Reviews “[An] engaging narrative . . . In his panorama of the real Sparta, Cartledge cloaks his erudition with an ease and enthusiasm that will excite readers from page one.” —Booklist “Our greatest living expert on Sparta.” —Tom Holland, prize-winning author of Rubicon: The Last Years of the Roman Republic

Examining every aspect of the culture from antiquity to the founding of Constantinople in the early Byzantine era, this thoroughly cross-referenced and fully indexed work is written by an international group of scholars. This Encyclopedia is derived from the more broadly focused Encyclopedia of Greece and the Hellenic Tradition, the highly praised two-volume work. Newly edited by Nigel Wilson, this single-volume reference provides a comprehensive and authoritative guide to the political, cultural, and social life of the people and to the places, ideas, periods, and events that defined ancient Greece.