Sicily from Aeneas to Augustus

Sicily occupies a crucial position in the Mediterranean world. It is at the heart of many cross-currents of trade, people, and ideology that flowed unceasingly through the ancient period. The island was home to many people, most of them not native to it: Phoenicians, Greeks, and then Romans settled there, and sought ways of expressing their hybrid identities. The Sicilians, no less than their invaders, were concerned with their image and their contribution to the age. In this volume ideas of identity, image and acculturation are the central themes. The contributions combine detailed investigation of the archaeological finds in which the island abounds, with an examination of the understudied tradition of history and literature on or about the island. The book provides a chronological account of the island's history, interwoven with a series of discussions of Sicilian identity: to show Sicily as a centre of affairs from the Iron Age to the Augustan Empire within the context of a fundamentally regional ancient world. The book includes a chronology and guides for further reading.

This remarkable book is the product of a conference on Sicilian history and archaeology held at St. Andrews in June 1998 ! There is an excellent consistency on the high quality of each contributor's work ! There are a few recent books that present a survey of Sicilian history combined with interesting and cutting-edge methodology. Sicily from Aeneas to Augustus is an excellent choice to supplement both graduate and undergraduate classes on the ancient Mediterranean world in general and Sicily in particular. It also serves as a good introductory volume on historical theory in ancient history." Offers an impressive nexus of approaches in archaeology and history. very welcome addition to ancient Sicilian history. On the whole, it does succeed in providing some new historical and archaeological approaches, and will certainly play a part in helping to change attitudes and attract more scholarly attention! it provides valuable insights into intercultural contact in the ancient Mediterranean." A very welcome attempt to bring Sicilian studies in from the chilly periphery and to draw aspects of Sicilian history into one of the current hot topics - identity. This remarkable book is the product of a conference on Sicilian history and archaeology held at St. Andrews in June 1998 ! There is an excellent consistency on the high quality of each contributor's work ! There are a few recent books that present a survey of Sicilian history combined with interesting and cutting-edge methodology. Sicily from Aeneas to Augustus is an excellent choice to supplement both graduate and undergraduate classes on the ancient Mediterranean world in general and Sicily in particular. It also serves as a good introductory volume on historical theory in ancient history." Offers an impressive nexus of approaches in archaeology and history. very welcome addition to ancient Sicilian history. On the whole, it does succeed in providing some new historical and archaeological approaches, and will certainly play a part in helping to change attitudes and attract more scholarly attention! it provides valuable insights into intercultural contact in the ancient Mediterranean." A very welcome attempt to bring Sicilian studies in from the chilly periphery and to draw aspects of Sicilian history into one of the current hot topics - identity.

Christopher J. Smith is Professor of Ancient History at the University of St Andrews. Dr John Serrati is Teaching Fellow in Ancient History at the University of St Andrews.