YA?Arranged by broad subject areas, this superior resource presents a comprehensive overview of Greek civilization. In addition to large-scale topics such as geography and the military, there is also much focus on what life was like for an individual of that era. The table of contents effectively serves as an outline to the broad themes; numerous subtopics are clearly defined under appropriate headings throughout. However, it is necessary to use the index to search for a specific detail and there may be several pages listed on one topic. The maps and diagrams are excellent; they are clear black-line drawings on a large scale that usually focus on a single topic. Although it is less thorough than the Oxford Classical Dictionary (Oxford, 1996), this title is a fine addition to reference or circulating collections.?Claudia Moore, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VA
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
A follow-up to
Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome (Facts On File, 1994) by the same authors, both professional archaeologists, this work adds to the publisher's ever-growing line of reasonably priced ready-reference works on history. According to the introduction, "the aim of this book is to present information relating to Greek history from the Minoan period to the Roman conquest"--a period from about 3000 B.C. to A.D. 30. Arranged thematically into 10 chapters with titles such as "Economy, Trade and Transport" and "Religion and Mythology," the work is then subdivided by topics pertinent to the chapter, with further subdivisions as needed. Each chapter ends with a list of bibliographic references, giving only author, year of publication, and often brief notes or specific page numbers. Complete bibliographic information for all sources cited in the work appears in a bibliography at the end of the volume. The bibliography includes book chapters and journal articles as well as monographic trade and university press publications, many of which were published in the 1990s. An index, which is a necessity in a work arranged like this, concludes the volume. The work is illustrated with some 100 photographs, 60 drawings, and 15 maps.
The thematic arrangement of this volume makes it very useful for anyone desiring a brief overview of a specific aspect of Greek life all in one place. The chapter "Military Affairs," for example, is divided into topics such as armies, soldiers, and training. In the section on soldiers are paragraph-length entries such as Peltasts (lightly armed infantry), Helots (serfs in the territory ruled by Sparta), and Archers. The section on battle tactics includes Phalanx, Hoplites, and other topics. The arrangement makes for some repetition. Hoplites, a heavily armed infantry, also appears under Soldiers, although discussed from a somewhat different perspective.
There is some overlap between this volume and another recently published Facts On File work, Encyclopedia of the Ancient Greek World by David Sacks [RBB N 1 95], particularly in biographical information and in mythology. Sacks' work, however, is arranged alphabetically, and coverage of certain topics is distinct enough to warrant having both works. The article Pottery in Sacks' volume is about 3 pages, while in the present work, discussion of pottery takes up some 10 pages. On the other hand, Sacks devotes more than 2 pages to an entry on homosexuality, while the present work covers it in less than half a page. Interestingly, Sacks' bibliography cites several primary sources, while the Adkins' volume does not. This work does, however, have an extremely useful 11-page table of place-names, first giving the anglicized version, then the ancient Greek version, then the modern place-name, and, finally, the country. For example, Troy is listed as Troy/Illium first, then Ilion for the ancient Greek version, and, finally, Hisarlik and Turkey for the final columns.
This will be a useful work for high-school, public, and academic libraries. Even libraries already owning the three-volume (also thematically arranged) Civilization of the Ancient Mediterranean: Greece and Rome [RBB Je 15 88] should consider this work, which will have a higher ready-reference value along with more recent scholarship.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
