THE ANCIENT ECONOMY by Finley, M. I - 1973

University of California Press. Very Good. 1973. Softcover. 0520024362 . foxing to top of textblock. ; Sather Classical Lectures 43; 222 pages; "Technical progress, economic growth, productivity, even efficiency have not been significant goals since the beginning of time, " declares M. I. Finley in his classic work. The states of the ancient Mediterranean world had no recognizable real-property market, never fought a commercially inspired war, witnessed no drive to capital formation, and assigned the management of many substantial enterprises to slaves and ex-slaves. In short, to study the economies of the ancient world, one must begin by discarding many premises that seemed self-evident before Finley showed that they were useless or misleading. These sagacious, fertile, and occasionally combative essays are just as electrifying today as when Finley first wrote them. .