Conceptions of the Watery World in Greco-Roman Antiquity

Georgia L. Irby (College of William and Mary, USA)

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English

Bloomsbury Academic
29 December 2022

Ancient history: to c 500 CE; Classical Greek & Roman archaeology; Water supply & treatment

This book explores ancient efforts to explain the scientific, philosophical, and spiritual aspects of water. From the ancient point of view, we investigate many questions including: How does water help shape the world? What is the nature of the ocean? What causes watery weather, including superstorms and snow? How does water affect health, as a vector of disease or of healing? What is the nature of deep-sea-creatures (including sea monsters)? What spiritual forces can protect those who must travel on water? This first complete study of water in the ancient imagination makes a major contribution to classics, geography, hydrology and the history of science alike.

Water is an essential resource that affects every aspect of human life, and its metamorphic properties gave license to the ancient imagination to perceive watery phenomena as the product of visible and invisible forces. As such, it was a source of great curiosity for the Greeks and Romans who sought to control the natural world by understanding it, and who, despite technological limitations, asked interesting questions about the origins and characteristics of water and its influences on land, weather, and living creatures, both real and imagined.

By: Georgia L. Irby (College of William and Mary USA)
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 154mm, Width: 232mm, Spine: 20mm
Weight: 460g
ISBN: 9781350239449
ISBN 10: 1350239445
Pages: 296
Publication Date: 29 December 2022
Audience: College/higher education , Primary
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Georgia L. Irby is Professor of Classical Studies at William and Mary, USA. Her many books include Military Religion in Roman Britain (1999), Greek Science of the Hellenistic Era: A Sourcebook (edited with Paul Keyser, 2002), Encyclopedia of Ancient Natural Scientists: The Greek Tradition and its Many Heirs (edited with Paul Keyser, 2008), A New Latin Primer (with Mary C. English, 2015) and A Companion to Science, Technology and Medicine in Ancient Greece and Rome (2 volumes, 2016).

Reviews for Conceptions of the Watery World in Greco-Roman Antiquity

Conceptions of the Watery-World in Greco-Roman Antiquity together with Using and Conquering the Watery-World in Greco-Roman Antiquity aim to be a definitive resource on all things ‘watery’ in the ancient Mediterranean. The sheer scope and level of detail makes these works incredibly useful for scholars of water in the ancient environment, while the careful discussion of water in its context is relevant for anyone with a broader interest in the natural environment ... If you need anything to do with water in Graeco-Roman antiquity, chances are you can find it in these two volumes! * The Classical Review *