Publisher's Synopsis
Textiles have always been among the most popular goods of mankind. Considering their significance in the ancient Mediterranean and the ancient Near East alike, as well as their value as key economic assets, textiles hold significant potential for the understanding of the ancient economy. Making them the subject of more detailed economic analyses in their own right is a central objective of the present volume. Because it is not possible to analyze distributional patterns or the channels of distribution for ancient textiles exclusively on the basis of either written sources or archaeological findings, this volume brings together different source material, disciplines, and methodological approaches, including modern Economics, to analyze the textiles that were traded, trade-routes, markets for buying and selling, and the formation and operation of institutions that ensured the smooth functioning of processes of textile exchange.
