The Hellenistic Far East : archaeology, language, and identity in Greek Central Asia / Rachel Mairs.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Mairs, Rachel, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Greeks--Asia, Central--Antiquities.

Greeks.

Excavations (Archaeology)--Asia, Central.

Excavations (Archaeology).

Asia, Central--Antiquities.

Asia, Central.

Ay Khānom (Afghanistan)--Antiquities.

Ay Khānom (Afghanistan).

Bactria--Antiquities.

Bactria.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (251 p.)

Place of Publication:

Oakland, California : University of California Press, 2014.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

In the aftermath of Alexander the Great's conquests in the late fourth century B.C., Greek garrisons and settlements were established across Central Asia, through Bactria (modern-day Afghanistan) and into India. Over the next three hundred years, these settlements evolved into multiethnic, multilingual communities as much Greek as they were indigenous. To explore the lives and identities of the inhabitants of the Graeco-Bactrian and Indo-Greek kingdoms, Rachel Mairs marshals a variety of evidence, from archaeology, to coins, to documentary and historical texts. Looking particularly at the great city of Ai Khanoum, the only extensively excavated Hellenistic period urban site in Central Asia, Mairs explores how these ancient people lived, communicated, and understood themselves. Significant and original, The Hellenistic Far East will highlight Bactrian studies as an important part of our understanding of the ancient world.

Contents:

Front matter

Contents

List of Illustrations

Acknowledgments

A Note on Abbreviations

Introduction

1. Administering Bactria: From Achaemenid Satrapy to Graeco-Bactrian State

2. Ai Khanoum

3. Self-Representation in the Inscriptions of Sōphytos (Arachosia) and Heliodoros (India)

4. Waiting for the Barbarians: The Fall of Greek Bactria

Conclusion

Appendix: Greek Documents

Bibliography

Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9780520292468

0520292464

9780520959545

052095954X

OCLC:

890089875