Polybius, Rome and the Hellenistic World Essays and Reflections

This volume contains nineteen important essays related to the Greek historian Polybius by Professor F.W. Walbank, the recognized authority on the subject. The essays deal with Polybius as a historian, with his views on Rome and with many historical topics for which he is the principal source. A substantial introduction provides a critical account of work done on Polybius during the last twenty-five years. The book will be of special importance to students of Republican Rome and the Hellenistic world and also to anyone interested in historiography.

This volume contains nineteen of the more important of Frank Walbank's essays on Polybius and is prefaced by a critical discussion of the main aspects of work done on that author. Several of these essays deal with specific historical problems for which Polybius is a major source. Five deal with Polybius as an historian and three with his attitude towards Rome; one of these raises the question of 'treason' in relation to Polybius and Josephus. Finally, two papers discuss Polybius' later fortunes - in England up to the time of John Dryden and in twentieth-century Italy in the work of Gaetano de Sanctis. Several of these essays originally appeared in journals and collections not always easily accessible, and all students of the ancient Mediterranean world will welcome their assembly within a single volume.

Preface; Acknowledgements; List of abbreviations; 1. Polybian studies, c. 1975–2000; Part I. Historical and Geographical Papers: 2. The geography of Polybius; 3. Egypt in Polybius; 4. The surrender of the Egyptian rebels in the Nile delta (Polybius xxii.17.1–7); 5. Two Hellenistic processions: a matter of self-definition; 6. Polybius and Macedonia; 7. Sea-power and the Antigonids; 8. HÊ TÔN HOLÔN ELPIS and the Antigonids; 9. Hellenes and Achaeans: 'Greek nationality' revisited; 10. The Achaean assemblies; Part II. Polybius as a Historian: 11. Timaeus' views on the past; 12. Polybius and the past; 13. The idea of decline in Polybius; 14. Polybius' perception of the one and the many; 15. Profit or amusement: some thoughts on the motives of Hellenistic historians; Part III. Polybius on Rome: 16. Supernatural paraphernalia in Polybius' Histories; 17. 'Treason' and Roman domination: two case-studies, Polybius and Josephus; 18. A Greek looks at Rome: Polybius VI revisited; Part IV. Transmission of Polybius: 19. Polybius, Mr Dryden and the Glorious Revolution; 20. Polybius through the eyes of Gaetano de Sanctis; Bibliography; Indexes.

This volume contains nineteen important essays related to the Greek historian Polybius and the topics about which he wrote by Professor F. W. Walbank, the recognized authority on that author. A substantial introduction provides a critical account of work done on Polybius during the last twenty-five years.

Frank Walbank is Professor Emeritus of Ancient History of the University of Liverpool and Honorary Fellow of Peterhouse, Cambridge. He is the author of numerous books and articles on Polybius and Hellenistic history.