The Oxford Classical Dictionary

Simon Hornblower, Antony Spawforth | 4.62 | 324 ratings and reviews

Ranked #14 in Dictionaries, Ranked #79 in Encyclopedias

For almost half a century, the Oxford Classical Dictionary has been the unrivaled one-volume reference work on the Greco-Roman world. Whether one is interested in literature or art, philosophy or law, mythology or science, intimate details of daily life or broad cultural and historical trends, the OCD is the first place to turn for clear, authoritative information on ancient culture.
This newly revised and completely up-to-date third edition of this historic reference adequately reflects the recent expansion in the scholarship and scope of classical studies. Here, in over six thousand entries ranging from long articles to brief identifications, readers can find information on virtually any topic of interestathletics, bee-keeping, botany, magic, Roman law, religious rites, postal service, slavery, navigation, and the reckoning of time. The Dictionary profiles every major figure of Greece and Rome-and lesser known figures not found in other references-from Homer and Virgil, to Plato and Aristotle, to Julius Caesar and Alexander the Great. Readers will find entries on mythological and legendary figures, on major cities, famous buildings, and important geographical landmarks, and on legal, rhetorical, literary, and political terms and concepts, as well as extensive thematic articles that offer superb coverage of topics of interest to both scholars and general readers, exploring everything from medicine and mathematics to music, law, and marriage.
With contributions and guidance from some of the finest classical scholars in the world, the Oxford Classical Dictionary has no equal in any language. It is the definitive summation of classical scholarship as it stands today.
The Dictionary covers:
politics, government, economy - from political figures to systems, terms and practices, histories of major states and empires, economic theory, agriculture, artisans and industry, trade and markets
religion and mythology - deities and mythological creatures, beliefs and rituals, sanctuaries and sacred buildings, astrology and magic
law and philosophy - from biographies of lawgivers and lawyers to legal terms and procedures, from major and minor philosophers to philosophical schools, terms, and concepts
science and geography - scientists and scientific theory and practice, doctors and medicine, climate and landscape, natural disasters, regions and islands, cities and settlements, communications
languages, literature, art, and architecture - languages and dialects, writers and literary terms and genres, orators and rhetorical theory and practice, drama and performance, art, painters and sculptors, architects, buildings and materials
archaeology and historical writing - amphorae and pottery, shipwrecks and cemeteries, historians, and Greek and Roman historiography
military history - generals, arms and armour, famous battles, attitudes to warfare
social history, sex, and gender - women and the family, kinship, peasants and slaves, attitudes to sexuality less

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