review of ADAMS, Land Transport

Colin Adams, Land Transport in Roman Egypt. A Study of Economics and Administration in a Roman Province. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007. Pp. xiv, 331. ISBN 10: 0-19-920397-0. ISBN 13: 978-0-19-920397-0. $110.00.


Reviewed by Wim Broekaert, Ghent University (Wim.Broekaert@UGent.be)
Word count: 1555 words

Table of Contents

P.A.Brunt once described transport as 'the greatest failure of ancient technology'.1 Yet, in his penetrating study, Colin Adams (CA) convincingly argues that land transportation in Egypt was anything but a failure, and with good reason: requisition of animals used for the transportation of tax-grain played a vital part in the supply of Rome and Alexandria. Moreover, local trade in the desert depended heavily on the presence of professional transporters and the smooth functioning of numerous caravans. To prove this point, CA collects all ostraca and papyrological testimonies concerning the organisation of land transportation, analyses them with great scholarship and ultimately offers the reader a coherent and solid reconstruction of the various ways in which the Egyptians tried to bring goods to their destination.
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ADAMS, Land Transport in Roman Egypt published

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Colin ADAMS, Land transport in Roman Egypt : a study of economics and administration in a Roman province

Description

* The first major treatment of this topic
* Enhances our understanding of a central feature of the ancient economy
* Uses the particular evidence of Greek papyri to explore themes of broad relevance to the study of the Roman empire

The papyri of Egypt offer a rich and complex picture of this important Roman province and provide an unparalleled insight into how a Roman province actually worked. They also afford a valuable window into ancient economic behaviour and everyday life. This study is the first systematic treatment of the role of land transport within the economic life of Roman Egypt, an everyday economic activity at the centre of the economy not only of Egypt but of the Roman world. Colin Adams studies the economics of animal ownership, the role of transport in the commercial and agricultural economies of Egypt, and how the Roman state used provincial resources to meet its own transport demands. He reveals a complex relationship between private individual and state in their use of transport resources, a dynamic and rational economy, and the economic and administrative behaviour imposed when an imperial power made demands upon a province.

Readership: Classicists and ancient historians, especially those interested in Graeco-Roman Egypt, the Roman Empire, or the ancient economy.

Authors, editors, and contributors


Colin Adams, Lecturer in Ancient History, University of Liverpool