Read more
The Oxford Handbook of Pre-Roman Italy provides a comprehensive account of the many peoples who lived on the Italian peninsula during the last millennium BCE. Written by more than fifty authors, the book describes the diversity of these indigenous cultures, their languages, interactions, and reciprocal influences. It gives emphasis to Greek colonization, the rise of aristocracies, technological innovations, and the spread of literacy, which provided the urban texture that shaped the history of the Italian peninsula.
List of contents
- Acknowledgments
- List of Contributors
- Abbreviations
- Notes on the Text
- Map of Pre-Roman Italy
- INTRODUCTION
- Italy's Crucial Millennium
- Marco Maiuro
- PART I. STRUCTURES: BACKGROUND AND ACTORS
- 1. The Peoples and Landscapes of Protohistoric and Classical Italy
- Peter Attema and Jan Sevink
- 2. Urbanization and the Urban Model in Pre-Roman Italy
- Stéphane Bourdin
- 3. Alphabets, Orthography, and Literacy
- Rex Wallace
- 4. Religions and Religiosity in Italy
- Olivier de Cazanove and Emmanuel Dupraz
- 5. Demography
- Elio Lo Cascio
- 6. Laws and Legal Systems
- Elena Tassi Scandone
- 7. Italy and Italies
- William V. Harris
- 8. The Greeks
- Clemente Marconi
- 9. The Phoenicians in Italy
- Giuseppe Garbati
- 10. The Lucani
- Maurizio Gualtieri
- 11. Apulia
- Enzo Lippolis
- 12. The Samnites
- Adriano La Regina
- 13. Latium and the Latini
- Daniele Federico Maras
- 14. The Romans
- Gabriele Cifani
- 15. The Faliscans and the Capenates
- Maria Cristina Biella
- 16. The Etruscans
- Carmen Esposito and Simon Stoddart
- 17. The Umbrians
- Petra Amann
- 18. The Veneti
- Loredana Capuis
- 19. The Celts of Italy
- Paola Piana Agostinetti
- 20. The Ligurians and Other Alpine Peoples
- Bianca Maria Giannattasio
- 21. The Raeti and Other Northeastern Alpine Peoples
- Franco Marzatico
- PART II. HISTORIES
- 22. A New Start, 1000--630 BCE
- Anna Maria Bietti Sestieri and Claudio Giardino
- 23. The Long Sixth Century, 630--474 BCE
- Christopher Smith
- 24. Instability and Change, 474--270 BCE
- Daniele Miano
- 25. Italy in a Global Context, 270--49 BCE
- Federico Santangelo
- PART III. CONNECTIONS, EXCHANGES, MEDIATORS
- 26. Magistrates and Political Institutions
- Adriano Maggiani
- 27. Family Structures
- Enrico Benelli
- 28. The Banquet
- Mauro Menichetti
- 29. Spectacles and Games Prior to the Emergence of "Roman Drama"
- Gesine Manuwald
- 30. The Sabellian Languages: Linguistic vs. Ethnic Identities
- Paolo Poccetti
- 31. Etruscan, Between Isolation and Linguistic Exchanges
- Enrico Benelli
- 32. Latin and its Spread in Italy in Pre-Roman Times
- Gilles van Heems
- 33. Defining Sacred Space in Ancient Italy
- Ingrid Edlund-Berry
- 34. Private Spaces in Pre-Roman Italy
- Maurizio Harari
- 35. Italy and its Islands
- Stefania De Vido
- 36. The Battle of Sentinum: A Pan-Italic War
- Nathan Rosenstein
- 37. Italic Mercenaries in the Pre-Roman Period
- Gianluca Tagliamonte
- 38. Coins and Civic Identities
- Annalisa Polosa
- 39. The Many Facets of Black-Gloss Pottery
- Roman Roth
- 40. The Lure of the East: Luxury Goods
- Anthony Tuck
- 41. Amber in Italy: Provenance and Meaning
- Larissa Bonfante
- 42. Exchange Networks with the West
- Franco De Angelis
- 43. Greek Vases in Pre-Roman Italy
- Athena Tsingarida
- 44. Etruscan and Italic Offerings in Greek Sanctuaries
- Alessandro Naso
- 45. Merchants and Traders on Hellenistic Delos
- Gary Reger
- 46. The Italic Herakles/Hercle/Hercules
- Shirley J. Schwarz
- 47. Salvation and Bliss: Bacchus and Demeter
- Cornelia Isler-Kerényi
- 48. Italic Sacred Stories and Greek Connections
- Nancy T. de Grummond
- 49. Bodies in Pieces in Central Italy: Votives
- Massimiliano Papini
- Glossary
- Index
About the author
Marco Maiuro is Professor of Roman History at Sapienza, University of Rome, and an Ordinary Member of the Academia Europea; he specializes in and has published extensively on the social and economic history of the Mediterranean.
Jane Botsford Johnson is a professional editor and translator, specializing in ancient Mediterranean history. She is a general trustee of the Archaeological Institute of America.
Summary
The Oxford Handbook of Pre-Roman Italy gives a comprehensive account of the peoples who lived on the Italian peninsula during the last millennium BCE. Most people have heard of the Etruscans, but there were many other fascinating civilizations, including the Celts and the Samnites, who inhabited the region at this time. This was an age that began with the rise of urbanism, was marked by the flourishing of diverse and politically sophisticated communities, and ended with the political and cultural unification of the peninsula under Roman rule. The region did not have a single overarching identity, but rather was characterized by a constantly changing pattern of intercultural exchange and communication.
Written by more than fifty authors, this book describes the diversity of these indigenous cultures, their languages, interactions, and reciprocal influences. It gives special emphasis to Greek colonization, the rise of aristocracies, technological innovations, and the spread of literacy, which provided the urban texture that shaped the history of the peninsula in this period. In addition to offering in-depth treatments of the peoples and cultures, it also focuses on the events and factors that played a mediating role in Italy's history.
