Egypt, Greece and Rome: Civilizations of the Ancient Mediterranean (Paperback)

by Charles Freeman (Author) "In his celebrated study The Classical Heritage and its Beneficiaries, R. R. Bolgar looked back to Edwardian England as a time when study of the..." (more)
Key Phrases: concilium plebis, ooo hoplites, magister militum, Near East, Black Sea, Asia Minor (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal
With this volume, Freeman (The Ancient Greeks, Oxford Univ., 1996) has written a useful introduction to three significant ancient civilizations of the Mediterranean littoral. While some may question the inclusion of Egyptian civilization in a volume largely surveying classical civilization, the author persuasively presents Egypt and the ancient Near East as strong influences, if not precursors, of classical civilization. Although most recent volumes of the ancient world have been anthologies (e.g., The Oxford History of the Classical World, Oxford Univ., 1986), with different specialists responsible for contributing chapters, Freeman elected to consult various specialists in ancient history when composing his work but assumes sole responsibility for the final presentation. Acknowledging that ancient studies are not free of controversies, the author unfortunately does not feel that a survey volume of this type is the right forum in which to air them. Still, this work is a useful introduction to the ancient Mediterranean civilizations. Highly recommended for public and academic libraries.?Robert J. Andrews, Duluth P.L., Minn.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review
This is the second edition of what was an excellent book in its first edition, and is now stronger and even more useful ... If you did not add the first edition to your school or college library, I recommend that you do so. If you did, the second edition should still beckon you to include it. The Journal of Classics Teaching When Deborah James reviewed the first edition of this book for JACT in 1997 she said "it beats with the pulse of modern scholarship on the ancient Mediterranean" and drew attention among other merits to the way in which the presentation of the great civilizations in this book enabled the reader to view events in context. This remains one of the great strengths of the book, and with this strength there goes the author's ability to write with skill, precision and vividness for a wide audience. The Journal of Classics Teaching

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Product Details

• Paperback: 736 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 2 edition (April 29, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0199263647
• ISBN-13: 978-0199263646
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #111,321 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the book I have been looking for, February 20, 2002

By	Don Steiny (Santa Cruz, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Egypt, Greece, and Rome: Civilizations of the Ancient Mediterranean (Paperback)

Over the last few years I have gotten interested in the sources of the ideas of our current world. For instance, when reading about Jefferson, Adams and people that founded the US I find they are fluent in Latin and Greek and read the classics extensively.

I have read the Histories, the Pelloponesian Wars, much of Plutarch and survey books I could find and though I found the stories interesting I have been groping for some context. I felt like one of the blind men and the elephant, only apprehending the little piece I was in contact with and not having any idea what a whole elephant is like.

I came across this book by looking through ...(this very place) and it looked like it would give me an overall structure. The book succeeded beyond my expectations. Starting with Egypt and ending with the Byzantine Empire it covers the myriad civilizations around the Mediterranean during that period. It puts Solon and Dracon into their context. It explains how the Etruscians related to the Greek civilization, and then to Roman. It discusses the Phoenecians, the Latins, the Gauls, the Celts and all the various people that interacted with the Romans as their empire expanded and then the Germans, Huns and other that became important as their empire declined.

Much of what we know about the ancient world is relatively new because excavations are ongoing and techniques are improving. Besides that our thinking aout the ancient world is evolving as well. This book trys to understand the period it covers not just from the point of view of the wealthy, literate folks that wrote the classics, but from the point of view of craftsmen, farmers and slaves as well.

This is definately the book I had been looking for to get me started learning about the influence the past has had on the present. I may not know yet what the elephant of ancient history smells like because I have not been that close, but I have a pretty good idea what it looks like thanks to this book.

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb history, September 18, 2002

By	magellan (Santa Clara, CA) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

This review is from: Egypt, Greece, and Rome: Civilizations of the Ancient Mediterranean (Paperback)

This is a great book to get an integrated view of the ancient world. I looked at many different books before reading this one, having previously devoured a number of more specialized books about the ancient world over the years, but wanting something more in the way of an overall perspective and context. This book is great for that.

I was mainly interested in the sections covering pre-Classical Period Greece, from 1500 down to the Golden Age (about 500 BC), but the other areas of coverage are superb also. Freeman also has an especially nice touch and fluency with the Greek history, and I wasn't surprised to find a separate book on Greek history by him next to this one on the bookshelf. There were also several gaps in my historical knowledge that this book plugged. For example, his section on the Etruscans, which I only had very fragmentary and superficial knowledge of, was also excellent.

The book benefits from much recent scholarship, and the author points out in the introduction that one of the main differences between a modern book on ancient history and older ones is the degree to which ancient civilizations like Greece can be placed much more securely in the context of their times, showing them not as isolated cultural entities, but as arising from the interplay of much more cosmopolitan influences as they interacted with, and were influenced by, their contacts, peaceable or otherwise, with neighboring or competing cultures. This is another one of the great scholarly strengths of the book.

I also found the author's deft touch and writing style a big plus, and although by necessity this is not a short book, it rarely got tedious or boring. That is notable by itself in a work of this size and nature. Overall, it counts as the best overall book on the history of the ancient world, and one of the most consistently interesting history books, I've ever read.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent introduction to an enormous subject, February 5, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Egypt, Greece, and Rome: Civilizations of the Ancient Mediterranean (Hardcover)

Many histories of this period respond to the lack of known detail about what happened by spending all their time droning on about social history. I wanted an narrative introduction to Greek and Roman history and this is it. The addition of Egypt is a welcome bonus. If you don't know your Marathon from your Issus, your Pompey from Ptolomy then this is the book for you. It serves as the ideal jumping off point to examine the particular areas that really spark your interest.