Strategies of Remembering in Greece Under Rome (100 BC - 100 AD)

Athens became part of the Roman province of Achaea in the first century AD, but the region's cultural and religious legacy endured. Despite the loss of self-rule, the area remained economically vibrant, with buildings, statues, and lavish tombs constructed. Actors used strategies of remembering in city building, funerary culture, festivals, associations, honorific practices, Greek literature, and political ideology to shape their interactions and build the present.

\n Format: Paperback / softback
\n Length: 285 pages
\n Publication date: 12 December 2017
\n Publisher: Sidestone Press
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Athens, an independent city-state, formed a friendship alliance with Rome in the early 1st century BC. However, by the end of the 1st century AD, Athens had been incorporated into the Roman province of Achaea. This integration marked the end of Greek self-rule and the beginning of Roman rule in the region. While the rest of Achaea had been ruled by the governor of Macedonia since 146 BC, the numerous defections of Greek cities during the 1st century BC indicated that Roman rule was not yet considered inevitable. Despite the loss of self-rule, this period was not characterized by decline. Attica and the Peloponnese, as cultural and religious centers of the Mediterranean, retained their significance. Communities and individuals in these regions actively engaged with the increasing presence of Roman rule and its representatives. The archaeological and epigraphic records demonstrate the continued economic vitality of the region, with buildings, statues, and lavish tombs still being constructed. It is important to challenge the traditional narratives of weakness on Roman Greece and to highlight how acts of remembering were employed as resources in this complex political situation. The legacy of Greece played a significant role in shaping Greek and Roman responses to the changing relationship. Both parties looked to the past for inspiration, but their approaches differed widely. Sulla, for instance, modeled himself after the tyrant-slayers Harmodius and Aristogeiton, while Athenian ephebes drew upon the sea-battles of the Persian Wars to cultivate their bravery. This interdisciplinary volume explores strategies of remembering in various aspects of city building, funerary culture, festivals and associations, honorific practices, Greek literature, and political ideology. The diversity of these strategies highlights the complexity and multifaceted nature of the Roman-Greek relationship.

\n Weight: 550g\n
Dimension: 212 x 280 x 10 (mm)\n
ISBN-13: 9789088904806\n \n