Ancient Antioch
From the Seleucid Era to the Islamic Conquest

This book offers a new narrative of the great ancient city Antioch's origins, growth, and significance.

Andrea U. De Giorgi (Author)

9781107576711, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 11 July 2018

244 pages, 57 b/w illus. 15 maps
25.4 x 17.9 x 1.4 cm, 0.49 kg

'De Giorgi's book is a brilliant and innovative study; a perspective from the context of the city that should absolutely be read and taken into account when talking about Antioch.' Balbina Bäbler, Plekos

From late fourth century BC Seleucid enclave to capital of the Roman east, Antioch on the Orontes was one of the greatest cities of antiquity and served as a hinge between east and west. This book draws on a century of archaeological fieldwork to offer a new narrative of Antioch's origins and growth, as well as its resilience, civic pride, and economic opportunism. Situating the urban nucleus in the context of the rural landscape, this book integrates hitherto divorced cultural basins, including the Amuq Valley and the Massif Calcaire. It also brings into focus the archaeological data, thus proposing a concrete interpretative framework that, grounded in the monuments of Antioch, enables the reader to move beyond text-based reconstructions of the city's history. Finally, it considers the interaction between the environment and the people of the city who shaped this region and forged a distinct identity within the broader Greco-Roman world.

1. Archaeologists and the Sanjak
2. Foundation and growth of the city
3. The plain of Antioch and the Amuq Valley
4. The highlands of Antioch
5. The archaeology of the Western Antiochene: from the Orontes Delta to Daphne
6. The people of Antioch.

Subject Areas: History of religion [HRAX], Classical Greek & Roman archaeology [HDDK], Ancient history: to c 500 CE [HBLA], Middle Eastern history [HBJF1]