Supervisors info:
Σοφία Ανέζιρη, Επίκουρη Καθηγήτρια Αρχαίας Ιστορίας, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, ΕΚΠΑ
Σελήνη Ψώμα, Αναπληρώτρια Καθηγήτρια Αρχαίας Ιστορίας, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, ΕΚΠΑ
Κωνσταντίνος Μπουραζέλης, Καθηγητής Αρχαίας Ιστορίας, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, ΕΚΠΑ
Summary:
It is a fact that Delos was an ideal environment for the systematic presence and action of organized trade associations. In particular, during 166-88 BC, when a special status of ateleia was granted to the island, we observe an unprecedented influx of foreign merchants, who, recognizing the new economic prospects, arrived from every corner of the Hellenistic world aiming to establish and organize new business. Many of them brought their own religions, built temples for their gods and founded associations of religious, national and commercial orientation. The main source of study for these unions, which are commonly known as «koina of merchants, shippers and warehousemen», is a corpus of 42 inscriptions, mainly of honorary or votive content. This category of associations, has not received attention from modern bibliography, despite the rich epigraphic material of the island and despite the fact that the importance of associations and other similar networks of the Greco-Roman world were thoroughly investigated previously.
Firstly, we briefly analyze the political and economic context of the Hellenistic Delos, trying to answer the following primary questions: why in Delos? What were the causes that led to this unprecedented commercial mobility and made the holy island of Apollo one of the most important and cosmopolitan ports of the Hellenistic world? How exactly is the importance of Delos as a trade center confirmed?
Consequently, we attempt to integrate Delos' commercial networks into the wider context of ancient Greek-Roman associations in order to answer the following key questions: what exactly do we define as an association? What does the term "commercial koinon" mean? What exactly do we know about such commercial networks in the Hellenistic era? What conclusions can we draw from Delos' commercial world?
In the course of our study, we examine Delos' trade associations, based on their location of origin (Phoenicia/Syria, Egypt, Italy).Therefore, the phenomenon is approached through three different "national" versions of commercial networking. Issues related to the nature, character and internal organization of these associations are being explored, with particular emphasis on various aspects of their religious, economic and social life. Also, their relationship with the island's space, as well as their interaction with the wider delian society is clarified. Finally, we try to answer the following question: what was the role of these networks and what was their significance?
Keywords:
Hellenistic Delos, ancient Greek-Roman associations, traders, organised trade networks
