Quantifying the Roman Economy Methods and Problems

by Bowman, Alan; Wilson, Andrew

• ISBN13: 9780199679294
• ISBN10: 0199679290
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2013-07-24
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Author Biography

Alan Bowman is Camden Professor Emeritus of Ancient History and Principal of Brasenose College, Oxford. His research interests focus on papyrology, the Vindolanda Writing tablets, and the social and economic history of Ptolemaic and Roman Egypt and the Roman Empire.

Andrew Wilson is Professor of the Archaeology of the Roman Empire and Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, and Chairman of the Society for Libyan Studies. He has directed excavations in Italy, Tunisia, and Libya, and is the author of numerous articles on ancient water supply, ancient technology, economy, and trade.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction. Quantifying the Roman economy: integration, growth, decline?, Alan Bowman & Andrew Wilson
I. Urbanization
2. Urbanization as a proxy of demographic and economic growth, Elio Lo Cascio
3. Response to Elio Lo Cascio, Roger Bagnall
II. Field survey and demography
4. Archaeology, demography, and Roman economic growth, Willem Jongman
5. Peopling the countryside: Roman demography in the Albegna Valley and Jerba, Elizabeth Fentress
6. Peopling ancient landscapes: potential and problems, David Mattingly
III. Agriculture
7. Quantifying Egyptian agriculture, Alan Bowman
8. Response to Alan Bowman, Roger Bagnall
IV. Trade
9. Approaches to quantifying Roman trade, Andrew Wilson
10. Approaches to quantifying Roman trade: response, Michael Fulford
11. A comment on Andrew Wilson: 'Approaches to quantifying Roman trade', William Harris
V. Coinage
12. Coinage and metal supply, Bruce Hitchner
13. Roman silver coinage: mints, metallurgy, and production, Matthew Ponting
14. Some numismatic approaches to quantifying the Roman economy, Chris Howgego
VI. Prices, earnings and standards of living
15. Earnings and costs: living standards and the Roman economy, Dominic Rathbone
16. How prosperous were the Romans?, Bob Allen
17. New ways of studying incomes in the Roman economy, Walter Scheidel