
Collapse or Survival
Micro-dynamics of crisis and endurance in the ancient central Mediterranean
Oxbow Books (Publisher)
Published on 30. September 2019
Book
Hardback
208 pages
978-1-78925-100-5 (ISBN)
Description
In the present-day world order, political disintegration, the faltering of economic systems, the controversial and yet dramatic consequences of global warming and pollution, and the spread of poverty and social disruption in Western countries have rendered 'collapse' one of the hottest topics in the humanities and social sciences. In the frenetic run for identifying the global causes and large-scale consequences of collapse, however, instances of crisis taking place at the micro-scale are not always explored by scholars addressing these issues in present and past societies, while the 'voices' of the marginal/non-elite subjects that might be the main victims of collapse are often silenced in ancient history and archaeology.
Within this framework Collapse or Survival explores localised phenomena of crisis, unrest and survival in the ancient Mediterranean, with a focus on the first millennium BC. In a time span characterised by unprecedented high levels of dynamism, mobility and social change throughout that region, the area selected for analysis represents a unique convergence point where states rise and fall, long-distance trade networks develop and disintegrate, and patterns of human mobility catalyse cultural change at different rates. The central Mediterranean also comprises a wealth of recently excavated and highly contextualised material evidence, casting new light on the agency of individuals and groups who endeavoured to cope with crisis situations in different geographical and temporal settings.
Contributors provide novel definitions of 'collapse' and reconsider notions of crisis and social change by taking a broader perspective that is not necessarily centred on elites. Individual chapters analyse how both high-status and non-elite social agents responded to socio-political rupture, unrest, depopulation, economic crisis, the disintegration of kinship systems, interruption in long-term trade networks, and destruction in war.
Within this framework Collapse or Survival explores localised phenomena of crisis, unrest and survival in the ancient Mediterranean, with a focus on the first millennium BC. In a time span characterised by unprecedented high levels of dynamism, mobility and social change throughout that region, the area selected for analysis represents a unique convergence point where states rise and fall, long-distance trade networks develop and disintegrate, and patterns of human mobility catalyse cultural change at different rates. The central Mediterranean also comprises a wealth of recently excavated and highly contextualised material evidence, casting new light on the agency of individuals and groups who endeavoured to cope with crisis situations in different geographical and temporal settings.
Contributors provide novel definitions of 'collapse' and reconsider notions of crisis and social change by taking a broader perspective that is not necessarily centred on elites. Individual chapters analyse how both high-status and non-elite social agents responded to socio-political rupture, unrest, depopulation, economic crisis, the disintegration of kinship systems, interruption in long-term trade networks, and destruction in war.
Reviews / Votes
...very thought-provoking, as publications edited by Perego and Scopacasa usually are. [...] by focusing on the bearing of collapse on groups other than the elite, the contributions expand our understanding and allow for more nuanced interpretations. * Ancient West & East *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
b/w
Dimensions
Height: 240 mm
Width: 170 mm
ISBN-13
978-1-78925-100-5 (9781789251005)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Perego Elisa Perego | Scopacasa Rafael Scopacasa | Amicone Silvia Amicone
Collapse or Survival
Micro-dynamics of crisis and endurance in the ancient central Mediterranean
E-Book
12/2019
Oxbow Books
€32.99
Available for download

Perego Elisa Perego | Scopacasa Rafael Scopacasa | Amicone Silvia Amicone
Collapse or Survival
Micro-dynamics of crisis and endurance in the ancient central Mediterranean
E-Book
12/2019
OXBOW BOOKS
€32.99
Available for download
Persons
Elisa Perego is an Honorary Research Associate at the Institute of Archaeology, University College London, where she completed her PhD in 2012. Her research interests focus on social marginality and social change in the ancient Mediterranean. Rafael Scopacasa teaches Ancient History at Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, and is an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Exeter, where he got his PhD in 2010. His research interests focus on bringing together historical, epigraphic and archaeological evidence as a means of constructing alternative histories, especially of pre-Imperial Italy. Silvia Amicone is a Research Fellow at the University of Tuebingen. She recently completed doctoral research at the Institute of Archaeology, University College London. She specialises in analysing pottery technology in contexts of intense socio-cultural innovation, particularly at the dawn of metal age.
Content
List of figures
List of tables
List of contributors
Preface and acknowledgments
Introduction. Collapse or survival? Crisis and social change in the
ancient central Mediterranean
Elisa Perego, Rafael Scopacasa and Silvia Amicone
1. Micro-dynamics of crisis following disaster events in late Bronze and
Iron Age northern Italy
Elisa Perego and Rafael Scopacasa
2. Taphonomic approaches to funerary evidence in times of collapse
and crisis
Veronica Tamorri
3. Back to Manfria: Continuity or disruption in the countryside of
Gela in the fourth century BC
Claudia Lambrugo, Lars Heinze and Silvia Amicone
4. Beyond the graves: Crisis and continuity in
the Hellenistic funerary contexts from the Calvario cemetery (Tarquinia)
Vera Zanoni
5. Crisis and decline in Morgantina under Roman rule: A reassessment
Monika Truemper
6. 'What on earth became of them all?' Continuity and change in
Macedonian society after the Roman conquest
Frank Daubner
Finale. Micro-collapse and marginality: Looking to the future
Elisa Perego and Rafael Scopacasa
Index
List of tables
List of contributors
Preface and acknowledgments
Introduction. Collapse or survival? Crisis and social change in the
ancient central Mediterranean
Elisa Perego, Rafael Scopacasa and Silvia Amicone
1. Micro-dynamics of crisis following disaster events in late Bronze and
Iron Age northern Italy
Elisa Perego and Rafael Scopacasa
2. Taphonomic approaches to funerary evidence in times of collapse
and crisis
Veronica Tamorri
3. Back to Manfria: Continuity or disruption in the countryside of
Gela in the fourth century BC
Claudia Lambrugo, Lars Heinze and Silvia Amicone
4. Beyond the graves: Crisis and continuity in
the Hellenistic funerary contexts from the Calvario cemetery (Tarquinia)
Vera Zanoni
5. Crisis and decline in Morgantina under Roman rule: A reassessment
Monika Truemper
6. 'What on earth became of them all?' Continuity and change in
Macedonian society after the Roman conquest
Frank Daubner
Finale. Micro-collapse and marginality: Looking to the future
Elisa Perego and Rafael Scopacasa
Index