Economic and Political Interaction on the Edges of the Ancient Empires

This workshop aims to attract all those in Topoi (and beyond) interested in discussing and reflecting on diverse aspects of economic and political interaction in the ancient world, but choosing a specific focus to keep ourselves from wandering. Our concept is that by allowing ample time for both the invited participant speakers and those interested to pose questions and discuss some of the issues related to this theme, we can gain an idea of how one can develop certain approaches.

The workshop is organised with three days of papers and discussions centring on trade, trade networks, identities, etc., but concentrating specifically on contacts in the peripheral zones of ancient empires. We begin with a broad treatment of empires, states, and early trade from the 4th Millennium BC through the end of the Roman Empire. From there, we go on to discussions of models, themes, case studies, geographical issues, and theoretical approaches.

The workshop is meant to offer a platform for discussing and reflecting on the factors characterizing or distinguishing aspects of the ancient economies but narrowing down the focus to the question of the fringes (which necessarily allows room for issues relating to overall activity where relevant). Obviously, questions relating to the formation and transformation of economic space are central, but the discussions should hardly be restricted to this theme, as we must also accommodate identities and specialisation, etc. In principle, the relevance of networking, core-periphery relations and globalisation (insofar as this latter term can be viewed as justifiable) would have their place, but the nature of, e.g., borders may prove to be more important in determining behaviour. Thus one can go into depth or propose alternative paths to explore. For example, some types of interaction might have evolved so much that they are not really comparable, while other types might offer fundamental insights into the ancient world. And both issues are of considerable importance for understanding the ancient world – and how to approach it. Developments in identity, technology, skills and material culture are among the subjects discussed here.

The workshop is prefaced with an evening lecture (in German) on June 25 at 6:00 PM by M. Weszeli on water transport in Mesopotamia, illustrating one aspect of connections in these economies.

To facilitate our planning, please send a note to arianna.zischow@topoi.org by June 20, 2014, if you plan to attend the workshop.

Program