Imperialism, Cultural Politics, and Polybius

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.

Christopher Smith is Professor of Ancient History at the University of St Andrews and Director of the British School at Rome. He has written on early Roman history and archaeology, and on Roman historiography more generally.


Liv Mariah Yarrow is Associate Professor and Chair of the Classics Department at Brooklyn College, CUNY. She has published on Late Hellenistic Historiography and Roman Numismatics.