Geography in Classical Antiquity
What were the limits of knowledge of the physical world in Greek and Roman antiquity? How far did travellers get and what did they know about far-away regions? How did they describe foreign countries and peoples? How did they measure the earth, and distances and heights on it? Ideas about the physical and cultural world are a key aspect of ancient history, but until now there has been no up-to-date modern overview of the subject. This book explores the beginnings and development of geographical ideas in Classical antiquity and demonstrates technical methods for describing landscape, topographies and ethnographies. The survey relies on a variety of sources: philosophical and scientific texts but also poems and travelogues; papyrological remains and visual monuments.
What people are saying - Write a review
We haven't found any reviews in the usual places.
Other editions - View all
Aegean Africa Alexander Alexander’s Argonautica Aristagoras Asia astronomical Augustus authors Avienus Black Sea Book Brodersen calculations century bce chapter classical climate coast conquests continents described descriptive geography Dicaearchus distances earth east edge Egypt Empire Ephorus Eratosthenes ethnographic Europe example FGrHist genre geographical information geographical knowledge gęs globe graphic Greece Greek Greek and Roman Gulf hardback Hecataeus Hellenistic Herodotus Hipparchus historiographic horizons ical ideas India inhabited world islands itineraries journey land later latitude Libya literary maps Massalia measured Mediterranean Megasthenes Mela modern mountain myths nations northern Ocean offered oikoumenę paperback periodos periploi periplous Persian Persian Empire Pillars of Heracles places Plin poetic poetry political Polybius Posidonius Ptolemy Pytheas records regions remote river Rome Romm routes sailing scientific Scylax of Caryanda Scythians sections shape Sicily specific stadia Strabo survey texts throughout antiquity tion topographic toponyms tradition voyage zones