Robert Buck's history examines the archaeological record, takes a fresh look at what the ancients said about the Boeotians and at the references of classicists of more recent times, retells the legends, and reconstructs the history of the region from the heroic Bronze Age to the Pelopponesian War.

Over the past 20 years, Boeotia has been the focus of intensive archaeological investigation that has resulted in some extraordinary epigraphical finds. The most spectacular discoveries are presented for the first time in this volume: dozens of inscribed sherds from the Theban shrine of Heracles; Archaic temple accounts; numerous Classical, Hellenistic and Roman epitaphs; a Plataean casualty list; a dedication by the legendary king Croesus. Other essays revisit older epigraphical finds from Aulis, Chaironeia, Lebadeia, Thisbe, and Megara, radically reassessing their chronology and political and legal implications. The integration of old and new evidence allows for a thorough reconsideration of wider historical questions, such as ethnic identities, and the emergence, rise, dissolution, and resuscitation of the famous Boeotian koinon. Contributors include: Vassilios Aravantinos, Hans Beck, Margherita Bonanno, Claire Grenet, Yannis Kalliontzis, Denis Knoepfler, Angelos P. Matthaiou, Emily Mackil, Christel Müller, Nikolaos Papazarkadas, Isabelle Pernin, Robert Pitt, Adrian Robu, and Albert Schachter.

The aim of this research is to illustrate a possible way of dealing with a regional landscape and its long-term settlement history based on the integration of archaeological data applying a GIS based approach to the social dimension of the landscape. The large province area (ca 2,500 sqkm) of Boeotia (Central Greece) is examined by means of GIS (Geographical Information System), processing data from different archaeological, historical and environmental sources. The methodology established, dealing jointly with material culture and the environment, follows a critical comparative regional approach and opts for both region and micro-regions as the analytical unit. It aims mainly to assess landscape characters and the interface between human and social actions and landscape by critically assessing, first of all, the available archaeological record constituted by diverse, variegate and often incoherent data sets. The main periods of interest are the historical periods from Archaic to Late Roman, while earlier (Neolithic to Geometric) and later periods are taken into account for the analysis and understanding of diachronical processes which took place at the microregional and regional levels. Contents: Part I. Research framework and methodology: Regional approaches to landscape studies; The GIS datasets: collection, recording and management; The physical landscape datasets; The archaeological/cultural datasets and the research methodology. Part II . The Boeotian landscape: The Boeotian landscape: topography and environment; The Boeotian landscape: state of archaeological research; The chorai/regions of Boeotia; Central Helicon: Koroneiake; Northern Helicon: Levadeia; Chaironeia valley: Chaironeiake; The Copais area: Orchomenos; The Northern mountains of the Copais: Hyettia; The Copais area: Copai and the North-East bay; The Copais area: Akraiphiai; The Copais area: Haliartia; Eastern Helicon: Thespike; Three small chorai to the Gulf of Corinth: Siphai, Thisbe, Chorseiai; The upper Asopos basin: Parasopia and Plataea; The Theban plain and the area of the lakes: Thebais; The area of Anthedon and the Skroponeri bay: Anthedonia; The Tanagra plain and Eastern Boeotia; Socio-political and cultural landscapes of ancient Boeotia; Concluding remarks. Appendix I. Analytical description of the archaeological landscape components and activity loci; Appendix II. The geographical sub-regions of Boeotia; Appendix III. List of units of archaeological evidence and their attribution to archaeological landscape components.

The riveting, definitive account of the ancient Greek city of Thebes, by the acclaimed author of The Spartans—now in paperback Among the extensive writing available about the history of ancient Greece, there is precious little about the city-state of Thebes. At one point the most powerful city in ancient Greece, Thebes has been long overshadowed by its better-known rivals, Athens and Sparta. In Thebes: The Forgotten City of Ancient Greece, acclaimed classicist and historian Paul Cartledge brings the city vividly to life and argues that it is central to our understanding of the ancient Greeks’ achievements—whether politically or culturally—and thus to the wider politico-cultural traditions of western Europe, the Americas, and indeed the world. From its role as an ancient political power, to its destruction at the hands of Alexander the Great as punishment for a failed revolt, to its eventual restoration by Alexander’s successor, Cartledge deftly chronicles the rise and fall of the ancient city. He recounts the history with deep clarity and mastery for the subject and makes clear both the di?erences and the interconnections between the Thebes of myth and the Thebes of history. Written in clear prose and illustrated with images in two color inserts, Thebes is a gripping read for students of ancient history and those looking to experience the real city behind the myths of Cadmus, Hercules, and Oedipus.

The Greek Bronze Age, roughly 3000 to 1000 BCE, witnessed the flourishing of the Minoan and Mycenean civilizations, the earliest expansion of trade in the Aegean and wider Mediterranean Sea, the development of artistic techniques in a variety of media, and the evolution of early Greek religious practices and mythology. The period also witnessed a violent conflict in Asia Minor between warring peoples in the region, a conflict commonly believed to be the historical basis for Homer's Trojan War. The Oxford Handbook of the Bronze Age Aegean provides a detailed survey of these fascinating aspects of the period, and many others, in sixty-six newly commissioned articles. Divided into four sections, the handbook begins with Background and Definitions, which contains articles establishing the discipline in its historical, geographical, and chronological settings and in its relation to other disciplines. The second section, Chronology and Geography, contains articles examining the Bronze Age Aegean by chronological period (Early Bronze Age, Middle Bronze Age, Late Bronze Age). Each of the periods are further subdivided geographically, so that individual articles are concerned with Mainland Greece during the Early Bronze Age, Crete during the Early Bronze Age, the Cycladic Islands during the Early Bronze Age, and the same for the Middle Bronze Age, followed by the Late Bronze Age. The third section, Thematic and Specific Topics, includes articles examining thematic topics that cannot be done justice in a strictly chronological/geographical treatment, including religion, state and society, trade, warfare, pottery, writing, and burial customs, as well as specific events, such as the eruption of Santorini and the Trojan War. The fourth section, Specific Sites and Areas, contains articles examining the most important regions and sites in the Bronze Age Aegean, including Mycenae, Tiryns, Pylos, Knossos, Kommos, Rhodes, the northern Aegean, and the Uluburun shipwreck, as well as adjacent areas such as the Levant, Egypt, and the western Mediterranean. Containing new work by an international team of experts, The Oxford Handbook of the Bronze Age Aegean represents the most comprehensive, authoritative, and up-to-date single-volume survey of the field. It will be indispensable for scholars and advanced students alike.

A Companion that examines together two pivotal periods of Greek archaeology and offers a rich analysis of early Greek culture A Companion to the Archaeology of Early Greece and the Mediterranean offers an original and inclusive review of two key periods of Greek archaeology, which are typically treated separately—the Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age. It presents an in-depth exploration of the society and material culture of Greece and the Mediterranean, from the 14th to the early 7th centuries BC. The two-volume companion sets Aegean developments within their broader geographic and cultural context, and presents the wide-ranging interactions with the Mediterranean. The companion bridges the gap that typically exists between Prehistoric and Classical Archaeology and examines material culture and social practice across Greece and the Mediterranean. A number of specialists examine the environment and demography, and analyze a range of textual and archaeological evidence to shed light on socio-political and cultural developments. The companion also emphasizes regionalism in the archaeology of early Greece and examines the responses of different regions to major phenomena such as state formation, literacy, migration and colonization. Comprehensive in scope, this important companion: Outlines major developments in the two key phases of early Greece, the Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age Includes studies of the geography, chronology and demography of early Greece Explores the development of early Greek state and society and examines economy, religion, art and material culture Sets Aegean developments within their Mediterranean context Written for students, and scholars interested in the material culture of the era, ACompanion to the Archaeology of Early Greece and the Mediterranean offers a comprehensive and authoritative guide that bridges the gap between the Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age. 2020 CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title Winner!

The region of Boiotia was one of the most powerful regions in Greece between the Peloponnesian War and the rise of Macedonian power under Philip II and Alexander the Great. Its influence stretched across most of the Greek mainland and, at times, across the Aegean; its fourth-century leaders were of legendary ability. But the Boiotian hegemony over Greece was short lived, and less than four decades after the Boiotians defeated the Spartans at the battle of Leuktra in 371 B.C., Alexander the Great destroyed Thebes, Boiotia's largest city, and left the fabric of Boiotian power in tatters. Boiotia in the Fourth Century B.C. works from the premise that the traditional picture of hegemony and great men tells only a partial story, one that is limited in the diversity of historical experience. The breadth of essays in this volume is designed to give a picture of the current state of scholarship and to provide a series of in-depth studies of particular evidence, experience, and events. These studies present exciting new perspectives based on recent archaeological work and the discovery of new material evidence. And rather than turning away from the region following the famous Macedonian victory at Chaironeia in 338 B.C., or the destruction of Thebes three years later, the scholars cover the entire span of the century, and the questions posed are as diverse as the experiences of the Boiotians: How free were Boiotian communities, and how do we explain their demographic resilience among the catastrophes? Is the exercise of power visible in the material evidence, and how did Boiotians fare outside the region? How did experience of widespread displacement and exile shape Boiotian interactivity at the end of the century? By posing these and other questions, the book offers a new historical vision of the region in the period during which it was of greatest consequence to the wider Greek world. Contributors: Samuel D. Gartland, John Ma, Robin Osborne, Nikolaos Papazarkadas, P. J. Rhodes, Thom Russell, Albert Schachter, Michael Scott, Anthony Snodgrass.

The Boeotia Survey in Greece is widely recognised as a milestone in Mediterranean landscape archaeology in the sophistication and rigour of its methodologies, and in the scale of the 25-year investigation. This first volume of the project's publication deals with the landscape that formed part of the territory of the ancient city of Thespiai. This landscape acted as the laboratory in which the project refined its methodology: the entire territory was traversed systematically by survey teams, and artefacts were collected not only from every archaeological site located but also as 'off-site' material indicative of land use practices such as manuring. The methodology made possible the construction of detailed period and density maps of rural activity, throwing unprecedented light on the interaction of the city with its hinterland particularly in its period of maximum size between the 5th century BC and the 6th century AD, as well as providing an exemplar for Mediterranean landscape archaeology more generally.

A collection of papers - revised or previously unpublished - about the history, institutions, and literature of Boiotia, by a leading expert on the region.