The Scribes of Rome
A Cultural and Social History of the Scribae

How social and political underdogs, yet literate professionals at the heart of the Roman state, exploited their expertise and influence.

Benjamin Hartmann (Author)

9781108713740, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 16 September 2021

250 pages, 8 b/w illus. 1 table
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.3 cm, 0.343 kg

In a society in which only a fraction of the population was literate and numerate, being one of the few specialists in reading, writing and reckoning meant the possession of an invaluable asset. The fact that the Roman state heavily relied on these professional scribes in financial and legal administration led to their holding a unique position and status. By gathering and analysing the available source material on the Roman scribae, Benjamin Hartmann traces the history of Rome's public scribes from the early Republic to the Later Roman Empire. He tells the story of men of low social origin, who, by means of their specialised knowledge, found themselves at the heart of the Roman polity, in close proximity to the powerful and responsible for the written arcana of the state – a story of knowledge and power, corruption and contested social mobility.

1. Imagining the Roman scriba
2. The human archive
3. The attendant
4. The pro?teer
5. The parvenu
6. The Roman scriba reimagined
Appendix The Roman scribae
Bibliography
General index
Index locorum.

Subject Areas: Ancient history: to c 500 CE [HBLA], European history [HBJD], History [HB]