An Environmental History Of Ancient Greece And Rome (hardback Or Cased Book)

In ancient Greece and Rome an ambiguous relationship developed between man and nature, and this decisively determined the manner in which they treated the environment. On the one hand, nature was conceived as a space characterized and inhabited by divine powers, which deserved appropriate respect. On the other, a rationalist view emerged, according to which humans were to subdue nature using their technologies and to dispose of its resources. This book systematically describes the ways in which the Greeks and Romans intervened in the environment and thus traces the history of the tension between the exploitation of resources and the protection of nature, from early Greece to the period of late antiquity. At the same time it analyses the comprehensive opening up of the Mediterranean and the northern frontier regions, both for settlement and for economic activity. The book's level and approach make it highly accessible to students and non-specialists. Cover 1 AN ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY OF ANCIENT GREECE AND ROME 3 Title 5 Copyright 6 Contents 7 Figures 10 Preface 13 Introduction 15 TERMINOLOGY 17 MODERN ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY: THEORETICAL APPROACHES AND PERIODISATION 24 ANCIENT ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY: A REVIEW 27 THE GOAL OF THIS BOOK 29 PART I: Greece 31 CHAPTER 1: The geographic space 33 THE ‘POLIS’ AND THE ‘CHORA’: THE CITY AND ITS COUNTRYSIDE 35 THE ERA OF COLONISATION 36 THE HELLENISTIC KINGDOMS 37 CLIMATE, COASTLINES AND ESTUARIES 39 CHAPTER 2: People and nature 43 CHAPTER 3: Agriculture 47 CHAPTER 4: Forests and timber 51 CHAPTER 5: Gardens 56 CHAPTER 6: Animals 59 CHAPTER 7: Food 63 BASIC FOODS 63 THE SYMBOLISM OF FOOD: BEANS AND FISH 65 CHAPTER 8: Fire and water 68 MYTHOLOGY 68 SCIENCE: THE FOUR ELEMENTS 70 HYDRAULIC ENGINEERING AND WATER POISONING 71 CHAPTER 9: Earthquakes and volcanoes 73 EARTHQUAKES 73 VOLCANOES 74 CHAPTER 10: Mining 76 PART II: Rome 81 CHAPTER 11: The geographic space 83 ROME AND ITALY 83 THE ROMAN EMPIRE 84 THE ROMAN ROADS 85 CHAPTER 12: People and nature 90 CHAPTER 13: Agriculture 93 CHAPTER 14: Forests and timber 99 CHAPTER 15: Gardens 104 CHAPTER 16: Animals 109 CHAPTER 17: Food 112 CHAPTER 18: Fire and water 117 FIRES IN ROME 117 THE WATER SUPPLY AND SEWAGE SYSTEM OF ROME 120 HYDRAULIC ENGINEERING, WATER POISONING AND LEAD PROBLEMS 125 CHAPTER 19: Earthquakes and volcanoes 128 EARTHQUAKES 128 THE ERUPTION OF VESUVIUS 129 CHAPTER 20: Mining 135 CHAPTER 21: Urban problems and rural villa construction 138 HOUSING AND URBAN SANITATION IN ROME 138 RURAL VILLA CONSTRUCTION IN ITALY 142 CHAPTER 22: The environment in Roman Britain 146 THE GEOGRAPHIC SPACE 146 AGRICULTURE, FORESTRY AND INDUSTRY 149 MILITARY CAMPS, CITIES AND VILLAS 152 Conclusion 155 Chronology 157 Greece 157 Rome 157 Further reading 158 INTRODUCTION 158 THE GEOGRAPHIC SPACE 158 PEOPLE AND NATURE 159 AGRICULTURE 159 FORESTS AND TIMBER 159 GARDENS 159 ANIMALS 159 FOOD 160 FIRE AND WATER 160 EARTHQUAKES AND VOLCANOES 160 MINING 160 URBAN PROBLEMS AND RURAL VILLA CONSTRUCTION 161 THE ENVIRONMENT IN ROMAN BRITAIN 161 Sources 162 COLLECTIONS OF SOURCES 162 ANCIENT AUTHORS 162 Bibliography 166 INTRODUCTION 166 Terminology 166 Modern environmental history: theoretical approaches and periodisation 167 Ancient environmental history: a review 168 GREECE 169 1. THE GEOGRAPHIC SPACE 169 The era of colonisation 169 The Hellenistic kingdoms 170 Climate, coastlines and estuaries 170 2. PEOPLE AND NATURE 172 3. AGRICULTURE 173 4. FORESTS AND TIMBER 174 5. GARDENS 175 6. ANIMALS 176 7. FOOD 176 8. FIRE AND WATER 177 9. EARTHQUAKES AND VOLCANOES 178 10. MINING 178 ROME 179 11. THE GEOGRAPHIC SPACE 179 The Roman roads 179 12. PEOPLE AND NATURE 180 13. AGRICULTURE 181 14. FORESTS AND TIMBER 182 15. GARDENS 183 16. ANIMALS 184 17. FOOD 185 18. FIRE AND WATER 186 19. EARTHQUAKES AND VOLCANOES 188 20. MINING 189 21. URBAN PROBLEMS AND RURAL VILLA CONSTRUCTION 190 22. THE ENVIRONMENT IN ROMAN BRITAIN 191 Index 194 Lively and accessible account of the relationship between man and nature in Graeco-Roman antiquity. Describes the ways in which the Greeks and Romans intervened in the environment and thus traces the history of tension between the exploitation of resources and the protection of nature.