Tilling the Hateful Earth
Agricultural Production and Trade in the Late Antique East
ISBN13: 9780199565283ISBN10: 0199565287
Hardback,
360 pages
Sep 2009,
In Stock
Price:
$150.00 (06)See more from the series
Description
This book explores the agrarian landscape and economy of the eastern Mediterranean from modern Israel to Turkey. This region experienced a surge in population between the fifth and sixth centuries AD that raised the population to levels often only regained in the late twentieth century. Cities expanded and the eastern lands reached a pinnacle of cultural expression and economic prosperity in the century before the arrival of Islam. Behind all this lay the ability of Roman farmers to feed themselves by producing a reliable surplus of food. Michael Decker describes precisely how this was done: how plants critical to survival were grown and how new plants were introduced. He also catalogues the range of intensive farming methods used and the rise of cash-crop farming based on olive oil and wine that was traded throughout Europe, western Asia, and parts of Africa.Features
- Fills a critical gap in our knowledge of the late antique world
- Provides a unique insight into the environmental context of the period immediately before the rise of Islam
- Interdisciplinary approach offers a complete picture of the available evidence
About the Author(s)
Michael Decker is Maroulis Professor of Byzantine History and Orthodox Religion at the University of South Florida.
