The Seleukid Royal Economy : The Finances and Financial Administration of the Seleukid Empire

The Seleukid empire, the principal successor-state of the empire of Alexander the Great, endured for over 200 years and extended from the Mediterranean Sea to the borders of India at its peak. This wide-ranging study of the economy of the empire reveals how the rulers exploited their lands and subjects, undertook the building of cities, introduced coinage, financed their armies and administration and managed their finances. Cover 1 Half-title 3 Title 5 Copyright 6 Contents 7 Figures 10 Tables 11 Preface 13 Abbreviations 15 Introduction 19 PART I Preliminaries 23 CHAPTER 1 Sources and methods 25 1. CLASSICAL LITERATURE 25 2. PS.-ARISTOTLE'S OIKONOMIKA, BOOK 2 25 3. GREEK INSCRIPTIONS, PAPYRI, PARCHMENT AND OSTRAKA 26 4. LOCAL LANGUAGE SOURCES 27 a. The Babylonian Astronomical Diaries 27 b. The Persepolis Texts 28 c. Legal and administrative cuneiform tablets from Babylonia 29 d. Other documents 29 5. ARCHAEOLOGY 30 a. Settlement surveys 30 b. Site excavations 33 c. Clay sealings from Mesopotamia 33 6. NUMISMATICS 34 a. Coin catalogues 34 b. Die studies 34 c. Coin hoards 36 CHAPTER 2 Historical summary 37 a. Seleukos I (311 281 bc) 37 b. Antiochos I (281 261 bc) 38 c. Antiochos II (261 246 bc) 39 d. Seleukos II (246 225 bc) 40 e. Seleukos III (225 223 bc) 42 f. Antiochos III (223 187 bc) 42 g. Seleukos IV (187 175 bc) 43 h. Antiochos IV (175 164 bc) 44 i. The later kings (164 64 bc) 44 CHAPTER 3 The posing of a problem 47 PART II The underlying economy 51 CHAPTER 4 Geography and population 53 1. MESOPOTAMIA 54 2. THE UPPER SATRAPIES 58 3. NORTHERN SYRIA AND KILIKIA 62 4. ASIA MINOR 64 5. KOILE SYRIA 67 6. A DIFFERENT APPROACH TO POPULATION 69 a. Achaemenid tribute 69 b. The population of Egypt 72 7. TOTAL POPULATION 74 CHAPTER 5 Production and exchange 77 1. AGRICULTURE 77 a. Types of farming 77 b. Produce 78 2. ANIMAL HUSBANDRY 81 3. NATURAL RESOURCES 82 a. Precious metals 82 b. Other metals 83 c. Wood 84 d. Salt 85 e. Water 86 f. Special products 86 4. INDUSTRY 87 a. Production for basic needs 87 b. Production for export 87 5. TRADE 88 a. Local trade 88 b. Intra-regional trade 91 c. Inter-regional trade 92 d. Long-distance trade 94 6. PRICES 96 a. The evidence of the Babylonian Astronomical Diaries 97 b. Comparative prices 102 c. An assessment of Mesopotamian commodity price levels 103 CHAPTER 6 The granting of land 105 1. LAND OWNERSHIP 105 2. THE NEW CITIES 107 a. City locations 108 b. City sizes 110 c. City viability 112 d. Seleukos as a founder compared to Alexander 114 e. Model of city creation 115 f. Economic motive 117 3. LAND GRANTS TO INDIVIDUALS 117 a. Usufruct and outright concession 117 b. Aristodikides (Document 2) 119 c. Laodike (Document 3) 120 d. Mnesimachos (Document 5) 121 e. Ptolemaios (Document 4) 122 f. The case of Diotimos' land 122 g. Advantage to a city 123 h. Advantage to the king 124 4. THE TREATMENT OF TEMPLES 125 a. Temples as economic units 125 b. The Babylonian temples 126 c. Baitokaike (Document 15) 128 d. The question of the laoi 129 5. CONCLUSIONS ON THE GRANTING OF LAND 130 PART III The royal economy 133 CHAPTER 7 Ps.-Aristotle’s Oikonomika, Book 2 135 1. TEXT AND TRANSLATION (BOOK 2, SECTION 1) 136 a. Introduction 136 b. The royal economy 137 c. The satrapal economy 140 d. Summary of satrapal revenues 145 e. Order of importance 145 f. The continuation 146 2. INTENDED AUDIENCE 147 3. DATE OF THE WORK 147 4. CONCLUSIONS ON THE OIKONOMIKA, BOOK 2 153 CHAPTER 8 Revenue 155 1. REVENUE FROM LAND 155 a. The Mnesimachos inscription (Document 5) 155 b. The ekphorion 157 c. The dekate 160 d. The Laodike dossier (Document 3) 162 e. Mnesimachos, again 163 f. An interim conclusion on royal land 164 g. Kleroi 165 h. City land 166 i. Temple land 169 j. Scope of taxation on agriculture 169 k. Rates of tribute and taxation of cities and temples 169 l. Summary of revenue from land 170 2. REVENUE FROM NATURAL RESOURCES 170 a. Mines 171 b. Forests 171 c. Salt 172 d. Water 174 e. Other natural resources 174 f. Pasture land 175 g. Urban properties 175 3. REVENUE FROM MARKET CENTRES 175 a. The case of Uruk 175 b. The case of Seleukeia-Tigris 177 c. Ports of cities 178 4. REVENUE FROM TRAVEL AND TRANSPORT BY LAND AND FROM SALES 178 a. Tolls and sales taxes 178 b. Religious festivals 180 5. REVENUE FROM ANIMALS 181 6. REVENUE FROM HEAD TAXES 182 7. CASE STUDY SELEUKID JUDAEA 184 a. Antiochos III's letter concerning Jerusalem (Document 12) 184 b. Taxation in the reign of Seleukos IV 186 c. The tax-farming concessions of Antiochos IV 186 d. Demetrios I's letter to Jonathan (Document 13, with slight differences in 1 Macc. 10.25 45) 187 e. Demetrios II's letter to Jonathan (Document 14) 189 8. EXTRAORDINARY REVENUE 189 a. Indemnities 190 b. Plunder 191 c. Other sources of revenue 193 d. Conclusions on extraordinary revenue 193 9. REVENUE IN SILVER OR COMMODITIES? 194 a. The Jewish tribute 194 b. Rural Asia Minor 194 c. Urban areas 195 d. The royal properties 195 e. Evidence from Baktria 196 10. CONCLUSIONS ON REVENUE 197 CHAPTER 9 The handling of surpluses 199 1. EVIDENCE FROM THE ACHAEMENID EMPIRE 199 a. Surplus, exchange and price in the Persepolis Fortification Texts 199 b. Other Achaemenid evidence 202 2. EVIDENCE FROM HELLENISTIC TEXTS 203 a. Antigonos' letter to Teos regarding the synoikism with Lebedos (Document 1) 203 b. Eumenes and the mercenary agreement 203 c. Demetrios I and the Jews 204 d. The Laodike letter to Iasos (Document 6) 205 e. Other texts 206 3. CONCLUSIONS ON THE HANDLING OF SURPLUSES 206 CHAPTER 10 Expenditure 207 1. MILITARY EXPENSES 207 a. The army 208 b. The navy 215 c. Garrisons 217 d. Total armed forces 219 e. Rates of pay 219 f. Period of pay 221 g. Method of payment 221 h. Total cost of the armed forces 223 2. COST OF THE PROVINCIAL ADMINISTRATION 223 3. COST OF THE KING AND HIS COURT 225 4. EXTRAORDINARY EXPENDITURE 225 a. Benefactions 225 b. City- and colony-building 227 c. Tax exemptions 228 d. Indemnities 228 e. Productivity improvements 228 5. CONCLUSIONS ON EXPENDITURE 229 CHAPTER 11 Coinage 231 1. MINTS 232 2. COINAGE ISSUES 234 3. COIN CATEGORIES 236 a. Gold 236 b. Silver tetradrachms 238 c. Small silver 240 d. Bronze 241 e. Minting profit 243 4. COINAGE CIRCULATION 244 a. Analysis of coin hoards 244 b. Gold 246 c. Large silver 246 i. Mesopotamia 246 ii. Northern Syria and Kilikia 249 iii. Upper Satrapies 250 iv. Asia Minor 251 v. Koile Syria 251 d. Small silver 252 e. Bronze 253 f. Summary of coinage circulation 253 5. 'PEACETIME' AND 'WARTIME' COINAGE 254 a. The case of the Antioch mint of Antiochos IV 255 b. The case of the mint at Seleukeia-Kalykadnos 256 c. The case of the Mesopotamian mints of Antiochos IV and Seleukos IV 257 6. THE SPECIAL ISSUES 261 a. The Seleukid 'Alexanders' 261 b. The lion staters 261 c. The Ptolemaic-standard coinage 262 7. CONCLUSIONS ON COINAGE 263 CHAPTER 12 A model for the Seleukid economy 265 1. POPULATION 265 2. ROYAL REVENUE 266 a. Revenue examples 266 b. Revenue rates 266 c. Total revenue 269 3. PRODUCTION 269 a. Agricultural production 269 b. Consumption 271 c. Price 275 d. The value of agricultural production 275 e. Taxation of agricultural production 275 f. Other productive activities 276 4. ROYAL EXPENDITURE AND SURPLUS 277 5. COINAGE 278 6. CONCLUSIONS ON THE MODEL 280 CHAPTER 13 Financial administration 281 1. ACHAEMENID PRACTICE 282 2. THE CHANGE WITH ALEXANDER 284 3. THE PERIOD OF THE SUCCESSORS 285 4. SELEUKID FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATORS 287 5. THE DIOIKETES, THE OIKONOMOS AND THE EPITON PROSODON 287 a. The Ptolemaios dossier (Document 4) 287 b. The case of Eumenes 291 c. The Boulagoras inscription (SEG 1.366) 291 d. The Laodike letter to Iasos (Document 6) 292 e. The Apollonia-Salbake decree (Document 7) 292 f. Other references to dioiketai 293 g. The epiton prosodon 294 h. The oikonomos in the Laodike dossier (Document 3) 295 i. The Sardeis land conveyance (Document 11) 295 j. The stele of the Apollon Pleurenos temple 295 k. Economic texts from second-century bc Ai Khanoum 296 l. The Mnesimachos inscription (Document 5) 296 m. The functions of the dioiketes and oikonomos 298 6. THE EKLOGISTES AND THE LOGEUTES 299 a. The Achaios decree (Document 8) 299 b. The Apollonia-Salbake decree (Document 7) 300 c. The Baktrian parchment 300 7. OTHER FINANCIAL OFFICIALS 302 a. Mint officials 302 b. The epistates 302 c. The gazophulax 302 d. The agoranomos 303 e. The bibliophulax 303 f. The chreophulax 304 g. Officials in Babylonia 304 h. Financial administrators of temples 305 i. Financial administrators of the armed forces 306 8. COMPARISON WITH ACHAEMENID PRACTICE 307 9. A NEED TO REINTERPRET SOME TEXTS 308 a. The Laodike dossier (Document 3) 308 b. Other texts 310 10. ANTIOCHOS I AS FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATOR 311 11. CONCLUSIONS ON FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATION 312 General conclusions 315 1. THE SOLVING OF A PROBLEM 315 2. THE NATURE OF THE SELEUKID ROYAL ECONOMY 316 APPENDIX 1 Coin hoards lists 322 1. LARGE SILVER 322 2. SMALL SILVER 325 3. GOLD 326 APPENDIX 2 Documents and translations 328 DOCUMENT 1. ANTIGONOS’ LETTER TO TEOS REGARDING THE SYNOIKISM WITH LEBEDOS 328 Summary §1–9 328 Summary §10, lines 72–80 329 Summary §10, lines 85–94 329 Summary §12 330 DOCUMENT 2. THE ARISTODIKIDES DOSSIER 330 DOCUMENT 3. THE LAODIKE DOSSIER 333 DOCUMENT 4. THE PTOLEMAIOS DOSSIER 336 Text A 336 Text B 336 Text C 336 Text D (Bertrand) 337 Text E 337 Text F 337 Text G 338 Text H 338 Text I 338 DOCUMENT 5. THE MNESIMACHOS INSCRIPTION 338 Column I 338 Column II 340 DOCUMENT 6. THE LAODIKE LETTER TO IASOS 341 DOCUMENT 7. THE APOLLONIA-SALBAKE DECREE 342 DOCUMENT 8. THE ACHAIOS DECREE 343 DOCUMENT 9. THE LETTER OF ANTIOCHOS III TO THE SARDIANS 344 DOCUMENT 10. THE LETTERS OF ANTIOCHOS AND ZEUXIS TO HERAKLEIA-LATMOS 344 N I 345 N II 345 N III 345 N IV 346 DOCUMENT 11. THE SARDEIS LAND CONVEYANCE 346 DOCUMENT 12. ANTIOCHOS III ’S LETTER CONCERNING JERUSALEM 346 DOCUMENT 13. DEMETRIOS I ’S LETTER TO JONATHAN 348 DOCUMENT 14. DEMETRIOS II ’S LETTER TO JONATHAN 348 DOCUMENT 15. THE BAITOKAIKE GRANT 349 References 350 Index 368 Cover......Page 1 Half-title......Page 3 Title......Page 5 Copyright......Page 6 Contents......Page 7 Figures......Page 10 Tables......Page 11 Preface......Page 13 Abbreviations......Page 15 Introduction......Page 19 PART I Preliminaries......Page 23 2. PS.-ARISTOTLE'S OIKONOMIKA, BOOK 2......Page 25 3. GREEK INSCRIPTIONS, PAPYRI, PARCHMENT AND OSTRAKA......Page 26 a. The Babylonian Astronomical Diaries......Page 27 b. The Persepolis Texts......Page 28 d. Other documents......Page 29 a. Settlement surveys......Page 30 c. Clay sealings from Mesopotamia......Page 33 b. Die studies......Page 34 c. Coin hoards......Page 36 a. Seleukos I (311 281 bc)......Page 37 b. Antiochos I (281 261 bc)......Page 38 c. Antiochos II (261 246 bc)......Page 39 d. Seleukos II (246 225 bc)......Page 40 f. Antiochos III (223 187 bc)......Page 42 g. Seleukos IV (187 175 bc)......Page 43 i. The later kings (164 64 bc)......Page 44 CHAPTER 3 The posing of a problem......Page 47 PART II The underlying economy......Page 51 CHAPTER 4 Geography and population......Page 53 1. MESOPOTAMIA......Page 54 2. THE UPPER SATRAPIES......Page 58 3. NORTHERN SYRIA AND KILIKIA......Page 62 4. ASIA MINOR......Page 64 5. KOILE SYRIA......Page 67 a. Achaemenid tribute......Page 69 b. The population of Egypt......Page 72 7. TOTAL POPULATION......Page 74 a. Types of farming......Page 77 b. Produce......Page 78 2. ANIMAL HUSBANDRY......Page 81 a. Precious metals......Page 82 b. Other metals......Page 83 c. Wood......Page 84 d. Salt......Page 85 f. Special products......Page 86 b. Production for export......Page 87 a. Local trade......Page 88 b. Intra-regional trade......Page 91 c. Inter-regional trade......Page 92 d. Long-distance trade......Page 94 6. PRICES......Page 96 a. The evidence of the Babylonian Astronomical Diaries......Page 97 b. Comparative prices......Page 102 c. An assessment of Mesopotamian commodity price levels......Page 103 1. LAND OWNERSHIP......Page 105 2. THE NEW CITIES......Page 107 a. City locations......Page 108 b. City sizes......Page 110 c. City viability......Page 112 d. Seleukos as a founder compared to Alexander......Page 114 e. Model of city creation......Page 115 a. Usufruct and outright concession......Page 117 b. Aristodikides (Document 2)......Page 119 c. Laodike (Document 3)......Page 120 d. Mnesimachos (Document 5)......Page 121 f. The case of Diotimos' land......Page 122 g. Advantage to a city......Page 123 h. Advantage to the king......Page 124 a. Temples as economic units......Page 125 b. The Babylonian temples......Page 126 c. Baitokaike (Document 15)......Page 128 d. The question of the laoi......Page 129 5. CONCLUSIONS ON THE GRANTING OF LAND......Page 130 PART III The royal economy......Page 133 CHAPTER 7 Ps.-Aristotle’s Oikonomika, Book 2......Page 135 a. Introduction......Page 136 b. The royal economy......Page 137 c. The satrapal economy......Page 140 e. Order of importance......Page 145 f. The continuation......Page 146 3. DATE OF THE WORK......Page 147 4. CONCLUSIONS ON THE OIKONOMIKA, BOOK 2......Page 153 a. The Mnesimachos inscription (Document 5)......Page 155 b. The ekphorion......Page 157 c. The dekate......Page 160 d. The Laodike dossier (Document 3)......Page 162 e. Mnesimachos, again......Page 163 f. An interim conclusion on royal land......Page 164 g. Kleroi......Page 165 h. City land......Page 166 k. Rates of tribute and taxation of cities and temples......Page 169 2. REVENUE FROM NATURAL RESOURCES......Page 170 b. Forests......Page 171 c. Salt......Page 172 e. Other natural resources......Page 174 a. The case of Uruk......Page 175 b. The case of Seleukeia-Tigris......Page 177 a. Tolls and sales taxes......Page 178 b. Religious festivals......Page 180 5. REVENUE FROM ANIMALS......Page 181 6. REVENUE FROM HEAD TAXES......Page 182 a. Antiochos III's letter concerning Jerusalem (Document 12)......Page 184 c. The tax-farming concessions of Antiochos IV......Page 186 d. Demetrios I's letter to Jonathan (Document 13, with slight differences in 1 Macc. 10.25 45)......Page 187 8. EXTRAORDINARY REVENUE......Page 189 a. Indemnities......Page 190 b. Plunder......Page 191 d. Conclusions on extraordinary revenue......Page 193 b. Rural Asia Minor......Page 194 d. The royal properties......Page 195 e. Evidence from Baktria......Page 196 10. CONCLUSIONS ON REVENUE......Page 197 a. Surplus, exchange and price in the Persepolis Fortification Texts......Page 199 b. Other Achaemenid evidence......Page 202 b. Eumenes and the mercenary agreement......Page 203 c. Demetrios I and the Jews......Page 204 d. The Laodike letter to Iasos (Document 6)......Page 205 3. CONCLUSIONS ON THE HANDLING OF SURPLUSES......Page 206 1. MILITARY EXPENSES......Page 207 a. The army......Page 208 b. The navy......Page 215 c. Garrisons......Page 217 e. Rates of pay......Page 219 g. Method of payment......Page 221 2. COST OF THE PROVINCIAL ADMINISTRATION......Page 223 a. Benefactions......Page 225 b. City- and colony-building......Page 227 e. Productivity improvements......Page 228 5. CONCLUSIONS ON EXPENDITURE......Page 229 CHAPTER 11 Coinage......Page 231 1. MINTS......Page 232 2. COINAGE ISSUES......Page 234 a. Gold......Page 236 b. Silver tetradrachms......Page 238 c. Small silver......Page 240 d. Bronze......Page 241 e. Minting profit......Page 243 a. Analysis of coin hoards......Page 244 i. Mesopotamia......Page 246 ii. Northern Syria and Kilikia......Page 249 iii. Upper Satrapies......Page 250 v. Koile Syria......Page 251 d. Small silver......Page 252 f. Summary of coinage circulation......Page 253 5. 'PEACETIME' AND 'WARTIME' COINAGE......Page 254 a. The case of the Antioch mint of Antiochos IV......Page 255 b. The case of the mint at Seleukeia-Kalykadnos......Page 256 c. The case of the Mesopotamian mints of Antiochos IV and Seleukos IV......Page 257 b. The lion staters......Page 261 c. The Ptolemaic-standard coinage......Page 262 7. CONCLUSIONS ON COINAGE......Page 263 1. POPULATION......Page 265 b. Revenue rates......Page 266 a. Agricultural production......Page 269 b. Consumption......Page 271 e. Taxation of agricultural production......Page 275 f. Other productive activities......Page 276 4. ROYAL EXPENDITURE AND SURPLUS......Page 277 5. COINAGE......Page 278 6. CONCLUSIONS ON THE MODEL......Page 280 CHAPTER 13 Financial administration......Page 281 1. ACHAEMENID PRACTICE......Page 282 2. THE CHANGE WITH ALEXANDER......Page 284 3. THE PERIOD OF THE SUCCESSORS......Page 285 a. The Ptolemaios dossier (Document 4)......Page 287 c. The Boulagoras inscription (SEG 1.366)......Page 291 e. The Apollonia-Salbake decree (Document 7)......Page 292 f. Other references to dioiketai......Page 293 g. The epiton prosodon......Page 294 j. The stele of the Apollon Pleurenos temple......Page 295 l. The Mnesimachos inscription (Document 5)......Page 296 m. The functions of the dioiketes and oikonomos......Page 298 a. The Achaios decree (Document 8)......Page 299 c. The Baktrian parchment......Page 300 c. The gazophulax......Page 302 e. The bibliophulax......Page 303 g. Officials in Babylonia......Page 304 h. Financial administrators of temples......Page 305 i. Financial administrators of the armed forces......Page 306 8. COMPARISON WITH ACHAEMENID PRACTICE......Page 307 a. The Laodike dossier (Document 3)......Page 308 b. Other texts......Page 310 10. ANTIOCHOS I AS FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATOR......Page 311 11. CONCLUSIONS ON FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATION......Page 312 1. THE SOLVING OF A PROBLEM......Page 315 2. THE NATURE OF THE SELEUKID ROYAL ECONOMY......Page 316 1. LARGE SILVER......Page 322 2. SMALL SILVER......Page 325 3. GOLD......Page 326 Summary §1–9......Page 328 Summary §10, lines 85–94......Page 329 DOCUMENT 2. THE ARISTODIKIDES DOSSIER......Page 330 DOCUMENT 3. THE LAODIKE DOSSIER......Page 333 Text C......Page 336 Text F......Page 337 Column I......Page 338 Column II......Page 340 DOCUMENT 6. THE LAODIKE LETTER TO IASOS......Page 341 DOCUMENT 7. THE APOLLONIA-SALBAKE DECREE......Page 342 DOCUMENT 8. THE ACHAIOS DECREE......Page 343 DOCUMENT 10. THE LETTERS OF ANTIOCHOS AND ZEUXIS TO HERAKLEIA-LATMOS......Page 344 N III......Page 345 DOCUMENT 12. ANTIOCHOS III ’S LETTER CONCERNING JERUSALEM......Page 346 DOCUMENT 14. DEMETRIOS II ’S LETTER TO JONATHAN......Page 348 DOCUMENT 15. THE BAITOKAIKE GRANT......Page 349 References......Page 350 Index......Page 368 "The Seleukid empire, the principal successor-state of the empire of Alexander the Great, endured for over two hundred years and stretched, at its peak, from the Mediterranean to the borders of India. This book provides a wide-ranging study of the empire's economy and the methods used by the Seleukid kings to monetise and manage it so as to extract tribute, rent and taxes as efficiently as possible. It uses a variety of Greek literary sources and inscriptions, cuneiform texts and archaeological, numismatic and comparative evidence to explore in detail the manner of exploitation of their lands and subjects by the Seleukid kings, their city-building activity, the financing of their armies and administration, the use they made of coinage and their methods of financial management. The book adopts a highly original numerical approach throughout, which leads to a quantified model of the economy of an ancient state."--BOOK JACKET. The Seleukid empire, the principal successor-state of the empire of Alexander the Great, endured for over 200 years and stretched, at its peak, from the Mediterranean to the borders of India. This book provides a wide-ranging study of the empire's economy and the methods used by the Seleukid kings to monetise and manage it so as to extract tribute, rent and taxes as efficiently as possible. It uses a variety of Greek literary sources and inscriptions, cuneiform texts, archaeological, numismatic and comparative evidence to explore in detail the manner of exploitation of their lands and subjects by the Seleukid kings, their city-building activity, the financing of their armies and administration, the use they made of coinage and their methods of financial management. The book adopts a highly original, numerical approach throughout, which leads to a quantified model of the economy of an ancient state. This book examines the royal economy of the Seleukid Empire, the principal successor-state to the empire of Alexander the Greek. This wide-ranging economic study shows how rulers exploited resources to finance their administrations. Adopting a highly original numerical approach, the book presents a quantified model of the Seleukid royal economy

explores The Economy Of The Seleukid Empire And Provides A Quantified Model Of The Royal Economy.