Foreword
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements
Chapter 1: Introduction
A. Athens, the Manufacturing City
B. Original Sources
i. Ancient Literature
ii. Archaeology and Epigraphy
C. Methodology
i. Embeddedness and Empirical Analysis
ii. Theories of Firm Size
iii. The Theory of Competitive Advantage
iv. Competitive Advantage and Industry Structure
v. Applying the Competitive Advantage Framework
Chapter 2: Industry Formation
A. Early Manufacturing
B. Homer and the Households of the Rich
C. Hesiod and the Peasant Economy
D. Empirical Evidence
i. Metalworking
ii. Leatherwork
iii. Cosmetics and Perfumes
iv. Textiles
E. Supply and Demand in a Competitive Market
Chapter 3: The Pottery Industry
A. The Evidence
i. Original Texts
ii. Pots
iii. Potteries and Kilns
iv. Stamps and Graffiti
v. Vase Paintings
B. Industry and Workshop Size
C. Labour Force
i. The Process of Making Pots
ii. Staffing Needs
iii. Justifying a Full-Time Team
D. Bases for Differentiation
E. Subsequent Changes in Competitive Dynamics and Industry Structure
F. Summary
Chapter 4: Mining, Metals and Armour
A. Mining
B. Ore Processing
C. General Metalworking
D. Jewellery and Ornaments
E. Coinage
F. Bronze Armour
G. Shield Manufacture
H. Knives
I. Summary
Chapter 5: Textiles, Clothing and Footwear
A. Textiles and Clothing
i. Spinning and Weaving
ii. Scouring and Finishing
B. Footwear
i. Tanning
ii. Shoemaking
C. Summary
Chapter 6: Woodworking
A. Furniture
B. General and Specialised Woodworking Segments
C. Boat Building
i. The Trireme: Development and Configuration
ii. Responsibility for Building Triremes
iii. Manufacturing: the Hull
iv. Manufacturing: Components
v. Shipbuilding and Supplying Industries
D. Summary
Chapter 7: Construction Industries
A. Public Buildings
B. Monumental Statues
C. Private Housing and Infrastructure
D. Summary
Chapter 8: Food, Drink and Personal Care
A. Agricultural Products
i. The Athenian Diet
ii. Processing
iii. Food Service
B. Cosmetics, Perfumes and Medicines
C. Summary
Chapter 9: Athens' Manufacturers
A. Citizen Investors
B. Citizen Craftsmen
C. Women
D. Foreign Residents
E. Slaves
Coda
Athenian Currency
Appendix: Quantifying Manufacturing Participation
A. Supply Analysis
B. Demand Analysis
Secondary Sources
Photo Credits
Index

About the Author

Peter Acton has a degree in Classis from Oxford University, an MBA from Stanford Business School, and Ph.D. in Ancient History, University of Melbourne. He was a Vice President of The Boston Consulting Group from 1986 to 1999.

Reviews

"Peter Acton's book revolutionizes the current views on the ancient Athenian economy. Against old orthodoxies, it proves that just like the towns of medieval and early modern word and despite the inevitable differences in institutional framework, Athens was an 'industrious city.' The Weberian model of the 'ancient consumer city' is dead and should definitely be replaced by that of the 'manufacturing city." --Alain Bresson, University of Chicago
"Only highly fragmentary information has survived concerning any aspect of Athenian manufacturing, and almost all of this scanty evidence is preserved merely in passing in works devoted to cultural and/or literary aspects of Athenian high culture, or in material remains lacking context. This void has precluded-until now-any serious scholarly investigation of Athenian manufacturing. Acton's efforts to place the fragmentary ancient evidence within a matrix of
considerations developed by modern business analysts and consultants, supplemented by insights from modern craft activities, augmented by comparative evidence skillfully selected and honed by the author, here generates a new, and persuasive, paradigm relating to Athenian manufacturing. It is a
pioneering academic advance." --Edward Cohen, University of Pennsylvania
"Poiesis is a remarkable book, which gives us not just the first detailed look at classical Athenian manufacturing in more than a century, but also a whole new way for thinking about ancient industry. Drawing important lessons from his own extensive experience as a business consultant, Peter Acton has made a major contribution to the ongoing debates about the structure and performance of the ancient Greek economy." --Ian Morris, Stanford University