The Children of Athena: Greek writers and thinkers in the Age of Rome, 150 BC-AD 400

During the rule of Rome, Greek-speaking writers and thinkers preserved and advanced the intellectual legacy of Classical Greece, creating a vibrant tradition of intellectual inquiry that shaped the Middle Ages and beyond.

Format: Hardback
Length: 400 pages
Publication date: 09 November 2023
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

In 146 BC, the mighty Roman Republic conquered Greece, marking the end of an era. However, the flame of Greek intellectual heritage did not fade away. Sixty years later, Athens and other Greek city-states rose in rebellion against Rome, led by the ruthless general Lucius Cornelius Sulla. In his quest for dominance, Sulla unleashed his wrath upon the city of Athens, destroying the revered Academy where Aristotle had studied. It seemed like the end of an era, but the traditions of Greek cultural life would endure.

Across the eastern Mediterranean world and beyond, the lives and work of a distinguished array of philosophers, rhetoricians, historians, doctors, scientists, geographers, and theologians would continue to flourish during the centuries of Roman rule. Figures like Galen, the polymathic physician who revolutionized medicine; Dioscorides, the soldier-botanist who compiled the world's first pharmacopeia; Ptolemy, the Alexandrian geographer and astronomer who created the Ptolemaic system of astronomy; and Plotinus, the Neoplatonic philosopher who explored the depths of the human soul, would leave an indelible mark on the intellectual landscape.

Charles Freeman's captivating accounts of these luminaries are interwoven with interludes that provide context and counterpoint to a sequence of unjustly neglected and profoundly influential lives. This is the story of a vibrant, constantly evolving tradition of intellectual inquiry that spans more than five hundred years, from the second century BC to the start of the fifth century AD. It is a tale of resilience, creativity, and the enduring power of human intellect, shaping the intellectual landscape of the Middle Ages and far beyond.

The Children of Athena is a testament to the enduring legacy of Greek culture and the profound impact it has had on the world. It reminds us that even in the face of adversity, the flame of knowledge and wisdom can never be extinguished.

Weight: 646g
Dimension: 163 x 244 x 38 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781803281957