Death and Disease in the Ancient City

ISBN-13: 9780415214278 / Angielski / Twarda / 2000 / 206 str.

Valerie M. Hope; Wirann Marshall

Opis

Human frailty and mortality influence the structure and functioning of all societies; therefore questions of how the ancients coped with their own mortality, how they sought to classify and control the causes of death, and how they treated the dying and the dead, are central to any understanding of antiquity. This volume draws upon recent research in archaeology, ancient history, and the history of medicine to evaluate all these issues. It addresses a range of topics including views of ancient disease causation; public and private health measures; how the natural and urban environment affected the well-being of the individual; how the city was organized to protect the health and safety of the living; and how the living sought protection from the polluting influence of both the diseased and the dead. The work unites the study of death and disease in antiquity, providing insights into how these factors shaped the ancient city. It should appeal not only to classical scholars and students, but to all those interested in the history of death and dying.

Recenzje

'This is an ambitious and stimulating collection of essays built around a strong central theme. – Rachel hall Sternberg, The College of Wooster

'For the interplay of religious dread and mundane practical concerns, as well as for issues of prestige and disgrace and other matters of wide concern, there are useful conclusions and insights and a host of well digested and fascinating data.' – Mortality

Spis treści

CONTRIBUTORS, ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS, ABBREVIATIONS, 1 INTRODUCTION, 2 DEATH AND DISEASE IN CYRENE, 3 SICKNESS IN THE BODY POLITIC, 4 POLIS NOSOUSA, 5 DEATH AND EPIDEMIC DISEASE IN CLASSICAL ATHENS, 6 MEDICAL THOUGHTS ON URBAN POLLUTION, 7 TOWNS AND MARSHES IN THE ANCIENT WORLD*, 8 ON THE MARGINS OF THE CITY OF ROME, 9 CONTEMPT AND RESPECT, 10 DEALING WITH THE DEAD, 11 DEATH-POLLUTION AND FUNERALS IN THE CITY OF ROME, BIBLIOGRAPHY, INDEX

O autorze

Eireann Marshall, Valerie M. Hope