Imperialism, Cultural Politics, and Polybius [Hardcover]

The essays in this volume address central problems in the development of Roman imperialism in the third and second century BC. Published in honour of the distinguished Oxford academic Peter Derow, they follow some of his main interests: the author Polybius, the characteristics of Roman power and imperial ambition, and the mechanisms used by Rome in creating and sustaining an empire in the east. Written by a distinguished group of international historians, all of whom were taught by Derow, the volume constitutes a new and distinctive contribution to the history of this centrally important period, as well as a major advance in the study of Polybius as a writer. In addition, the volume looks at the way Rome absorbed religions from the east, and at Hellenistic artistic culture. It also sheds new light on the important region of Illyria on the Adriatic Coast, which played a key part in Rome's rise to power. Archaeological, epigraphic, and textual evidence are brought together to create a sustained argument for Rome's determined and systematic pursuit of power.

List of Contributors
List of Figures
List of Abbreviations
Introduction
Part I: Author, Text, and Influence
1. Polybius among the Romans: Life in the Cyclops' Cave,Andrew Erskine
2. Polybius and Herodotus,Brian McGing
3. Polybius, Thucydides, and the First Punic War,Tim Rood
4. Thucydides, Polybius, and Human Nature,Georgina Longley
5. The Language of Polybius since Foucault and Dubuisson,David Langslow
Part II: Mechanisms of Imperialism
6. Deditio in Fidem: The Ptolemaic Conquest of Asia Minor,Andrew Meadows
7. Old and New in Roman Foreign Affairs: the case of 197,David Potter
8. Amelius Paullus Sees Greece: Travel, Vision,and Power in Polybius,Amy Russell
9. Decem Legati: a Flexible Institution, Rigidly Perceived,Liv Mariah Yarrow
10. Kings and l“™