Preface

When Al Bertrand asked me to edit this Companion to Ancient History, I hesitated. It seemed rather a large task. Now that I have finished it, I realize that I was naive - it was a far larger task than I had initially imagined. One of the things that has made it manageable has been the enthusiasm and goodwill of the contributors, and to them all I am especially grateful.

Sadly, one of the contributors to this volume, Peter Derow, died not long after completing his piece on what Ancient History meant to him. Peter was not only my doctoral supervisor but a good friend. This volume is dedicated to his memory and that of his own tutor, George Forrest, both of whom through their teaching of Ancient History inspired many, a number of whom are contributors to this book.

This Companion may have been a substantial undertaking, but it has been fun to do, and I have learnt a lot from reading through all the contributions. It aims to provide a series of accessible introductions to key topics in the study of Ancient History: forms of evidence, problems and approaches, and major themes in current research. Rather than offering definitive overviews, however, these are intended to reflect the vitality and excitement of scholarship at the front line. The potential subject matter is vast, so a certain selectivity has been necessary. While the focus is on the history of Greece and Rome, I have also been concerned that these are not viewed in isolation but are seen in the broader context.

Staff at Blackwell have all been enormously helpful, in particular Al Bertrand, whose great contribution to Classics in general is evident from Blackwell’s growing list of Classics and Ancient History books. Kyle Hall kindly translated the section by Andrea Giardina which appears in Chapter One. My own chapter is well away from my usual territory, and I must thank Robert Anderson for generously taking a look at it with the eyes of a historian of the nineteenth century. This book has moved round the Celtic fringe, begun at the National University of Ireland Galway and completed at the University of Edinburgh; I am grateful to colleagues at both institutions for their help.

Most of all I am indebted to my wife Michelle, not only for all her support and encouragement, but also for her knack of asking the right question.

Andrew Erskine Edinburgh