Coins, Bodies, Games, and Gold: The Politics of Meaning in Archaic Greece
The invention of coinage in ancient Greece provided an arena in which rival political groups struggled to imprint their views on the world. Here Leslie Kurke analyzes the ideological functions of Greek coinage as one of a number of symbolic practices that arise for the first time in the archaic period. By linking the imagery of metals and coinage to stories about oracles, prostitutes, Eastern tyrants, counterfeiting, retail trade, and games, she traces the rising egalitarian ideology of the...
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"Leslie Kurke's readings are always interesting, often simply brilliant. She does a superb job of presenting Herodotus as a locus for the preservation of the archaic debate. Highly innovative and well-documented, this book will be a model for future work in the broader field of historically grounded poetics."--Josiah Ober, Princeton University"Leslie Kurke has written an original and exciting work that will refine our understanding and pique our interest in ancient metals and money. This book raises gripping questions about important ancient practices and ideologies and offers a powerful argument for using both positivistic and theoretical approaches to ancient material. Coins, Bodies, Games, and Gold will give classicists much to ponder and argue about; cultural historians and comparatists in other fields, too, should read this book."--Deborah Boedecker, Center for Hellenic Studies and Brown UniversityChoiceAn excellent monograph on several aspects of the varied culture of ancient Greece. Scholars and graduate students will applaud her study. . . .
IllustrationsPrefaceAcknowledgmentsAbbreviationsIntroduction: Toward an Imaginary History of Coinage3Pt. 1DiscoursesCh. 1The Language of Metals41Ch. 2Tyrants and Transgression: Darius and Amasis65Ch. 3Counterfeiting and Gift Exchange: The Fate of Polykrates101Ch. 4Kroisos and the Oracular Economy130Pt. 2PracticesCh. 5The Hetaira and the Porne175Ch. 6Herodotus's Traffic in Women220Ch. 7Games People Play247Ch. 8Minting Citizens299Conclusion: Ideology, Objects, and Subjects332Bibliography337Index Locorum365General Index373
\ Journal of Economic Issues - L. Randall Wray\ Eminently engaging . . . This is an important, fascinating book that should not be ignored by any monetary theorist.\ \ \ \ \ American Historical Review - Sue Blundell\ Kurke's book is lucidly and coherently written. . . . Even if we cannot unreservedly sign up to Kurke's thesis, we still feel that we have learned a great deal in following its progress.\ \ \ ChoiceAn excellent monograph on several aspects of the varied culture of ancient Greece. Scholars and graduate students will applaud her study. . . .\ \ \ \ \ Journal of Economic IssuesEminently engaging . . . This is an important, fascinating book that should not be ignored by any monetary theorist.\ — L. Randall Wray\ \ \ \ \ American Historical ReviewKurke's book is lucidly and coherently written. . . . Even if we cannot unreservedly sign up to Kurke's thesis, we still feel that we have learned a great deal in following its progress.\ — Sue Blundell\ \
