Beyond Self-Sufficiency
Households, City-States and Markets in the Ancient Greek World
Durham, 2nd-5th July 2011
The Department of Classics and Ancient History, Durham University, will be
holding an international conference on 2nd-5th July 2011, Beyond Self-
Sufficiency: Households, City-States and Markets in the Ancient Greek
World.
This conference will draw on the expertise of scholars working in a
variety of disciplines, including archaeology, numismatics, epigraphy and
history to examine a controversial topic of Greek economic history: the
issue of self-sufficiency. Many scholars still subscribe to the view held
by Hasebroek and Finley that the Greeks, from the level of individual
households to entire city-states, aimed at self-sufficiency and minimal
participation in markets. However, the validity of this view has not been
rigorously tested from a variety of methodological approaches. By
examining this problem from a number of angles, this conference represents
a major step towards clarifying one of the central problems in Greek
economic history.
A limited number of places are available for participants, so it is
recommended that those who wish to attend contact the organisers as soon
as possible; the conference fees are as follows:
Standard: £10 daily rate/ £40 full conference
Concession: £8 daily rate/ £30 full conference
Please direct your enquiries to:
Mark Woolmer (mark.woolmer TA durham.ac.uk)
or
David Lewis (d.m.lewis TA durham.ac.uk)
Programme:
Saturday 2nd July
(1) 5pm-6pm E.M. Harris (Durham University)
Markets in the Ancient Greek World: A Typology
(2) 6pm-7pm J.K. Davies (Liverpool University)
Markets and Market-places in Ancient Greece
Sunday 3rd July
(3) 9am-10am C. Pébarthe (University of Bordeaux)
Beyond The Ancient Economy, ancient economics
(4) 10am-11am P. Acton (independent scholar)
The Household Mode of Production: Political Ideology or Economic
Rationality?
(5) 11:30-12:30 B. Ault (SUNY Buffalo)
Households and Self-Sufficiency
(6) 12:30-1:30 B. Tsakirgis (Vanderbilt University)
Whole Cloth: Exploring the Question of Self-Sufficiency through the
evidence for Textile Manufacture and Purchase in Greek Houses
(7) 3-4pm J.H. Kroll (Oxford University)
Changes in Athenian Weights Standards and Their Implications for Athenian
Trade
(8) 4-5pm S. Psoma (University of Athens)
Weight-Standards in Coinage outside Athens and Trade between Poleis
Monday 4th July
(9) 9-10am M. Lawall (University of Manitoba)
Transport Amphoras as Evidence for Motivation and Market Behaviour in the
Economies of Classical and Hellenistic Greece
(10) 10-11am C. Tzochev (independent scholar)
The Export of Thasian Amphoras and Markets in the Black Sea Region
(11) 11:30-12:30 T. Panagou (University of Athens)
Patterns of Amphora Stamp Distribution. Tracking Down Export Tendencies
(12) 12:30-1:30 M. Woolmer (Durham University)
Honours and Rewards for Merchants
(13) 3-4pm D. Lewis (Durham University)
The market for slaves from the Persian Empire in the fifth and fourth
century Aegean
(14) 4-5pm G. Kron (University of Victoria)
Classical Athenian Trade in comparative perspective: Literary and
archaeological evidence, demand and infrastructure
Tuesday 5th July
(15) 9am-10am A. Bresson (University of Chicago)
Markets and the Role of the State
(16) 10-11am P. Van Alfen (American Numismatic Society)
An Overview of Commodities in Long-Distance Trade c. 500-300 BCE