Lords of Asia Minor
An Introduction to the Lydians
by Annick Payne and Jorit Wintjes
The Lydians, speakers of an ancient Indo-European language, dominated Western Asia Minor under the Mermnad dynasty in the 7th and 6th centuries BC. The final Mermnad king of Lydia, Croesus, is still cited today as the epitome of incredible riches. Apart from the figure of Croesus, the Lydians are well known because they are famously credited with the invention of coinage, and because of the prominence of Lydian tales in Graeco-Roman literature, in particular in the writings of the Greek historian Herodotus. These, in turn, inspired many later accounts and artistic representations, including Friedrich Hebbel’s tragedy ‘Gyges und sein Ring’ and Alexander Zemlinky’s opera ‘King Candaules’. First-hand information on the Lydians stems mainly from archaeological research, as the available corpus of native Lydian texts is limited in size and genre, while later sources may show bias and distance to events recorded. This volume combines current historical, linguistic, and archaeological research to discuss the following topics: Lydian history and archaeology; language and writing; money, religion, and burial customs; concluding with the perception of Lydia throughout history. The book offers an up-to-date introduction to the Lydians, with extensive bibliographical references for further study. It is aimed at a wide audience, including general readers and scholars. A particular focus lies on the re-interpretation of the available text sources, taking into account recent advances made in neighboring academic fields in the study of ancient Anatolian civilizations.
- By (author) Annick Payne
- By (author) Jorit Wintjes
"The authors have produced what is surely the most current and comprehensive introduction to the Lydians that is available." --H. Craig Melchert, Bryn Mawr Classical Review 2017.03.30
—
Other Titles in this Series
Digitalisierte Vergangenheit
Datenbanken und Multimedia von der Antike bis zur fruhen Neuzeit
Volume 5
Discere et militare
Studien zu Antike, Militar und Universitat. Festschrift fur Burkhard Meissner zum 60. Geburtstag
Volume 172
Die fruhen romischen Annalisten
Untersuchungen zur Geschichtsschreibung des 2. Jahrhunderts v. Chr.
Volume 2
Amministrare e comunicare nell’Egitto tolemaico
La funzione delle copie (antigrapha) nella documentazione papirologica
Volume 149
Livius, Dionysios, Augustus, Machiavelli
Ein diskursanalytischer Vergleich der romischen Fruhgeschichte bei Livius und Dionysios von Halikarnassos und die Rezeption ihrer livianischen Darstellung im Werk des Niccolo Machiavelli
Volume 88
Macht und Ohnmacht
Religiose, soziale und okonomische Spannungsfelder in fruhen Gesellschaften
Volume 75
Studien zur lex rivi Hiberiensis
Zur Rechtsdurchsetzung innerhalb einer Bewasserungsgemeinschaft im 2. Jh. n. Chr.
Rostovtzeffs Briefwechsel mit deutschsprachigen Altertumswissenschaftlern
Einleitung, Edition und Kommentar
Volume 6
Rule as En-Actment
On the Lower Court of Justice at Luneburg Town Hall and the Archetype of Sacral Legitimation of Rulership
Volume 79
Vectigalia nervos esse rei publicae
Die indirekten Steuern in der Romischen Kaiserzeit von Augustus bis Diokletian
Volume 26
Teichos
Vom endneolithischen Wehrdorf zum spatosmanischen Tambouri: 5000 Jahre Festungswesen in Attika
Volume 151
Similar Books
Ḫattušaš utnē išḫameški
Hittite and Other Ancient Near Eastern Studies Presented to Piotr Taracha on the Occasion of His 65th Birthday
Punning in Odd or Elegant Constructions in Jeremiah
The Convergence of Linguistics, Rhetoric, and Textuality in the Hebrew Text of Jeremiah
Shame in the Worlds of the Hebrew Bible and Akkadian Texts
A Linguistic Study and Its Implications
Volume 33
Telling Contexts
Archaeological and Textual Studies in Honor of Elizabeth Bloch-Smith and Mark S. Smith
Die Entwicklung erdbebensicherer Bautechniken in der Frühen und Mittleren Eisenzeit in Ostanatolien
Volume 11
Kultur – Kontakt – Kultur
Beiträge anlässlich der 66. Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale in Frankfurt/Main und Mainz, 25.–29. Juli 2022
Volume 35
Sprachwissenschaftliche und kulturhistorische Reflexionen
Festschrift zu Ehren von Jörg Klinger
Volume 31
A Numismatic History of Barikot
Catalogue and Analysis of the Coin Finds from the Excavations at Bir-koṭ-ghwaṇḍai (Barikot), Swat, Pakistan (1984-2022) Pakistan (1984-2022). With a contribution by Luca M. Olivieri
Volume 69
Alexander the Great and the Campaign of Gaugamela
New Research on Topography and Chronology. IAMNI 1 (Italian Archaeological Mission to Northern Iraq)
Volume 53
Archaeology of Eastern Anatolia II: From Prehistoric Times to the End of the Iron Ages
Proceedings of the 2nd Archaeology of Eastern Anatolia Colloquium, 23-25 April 2021, Online (Arkeolojihaber Youtube Channel)
Volume 43
Ash-sharq: Bulletin of the Ancient Near East No 9 1-2 2025
Archaeological, Historical and Societal Studies
Assyria and the West
A Fresh Look at the Unshakeable Pillars of Late Bronze and Iron Age Chronology in the Eastern Mediterranean World
Autocratic Rule in Antiquity
Proceedings of the 14th Melammu Workshop, Krakow, 46 October 2021
Volume 12
Boğazköy Tablets in the Museum of Anatolian Civilisations (Bo 95–Bo 3993)
Anadolu Medeniyetleri Müzesinde Bulunan Boğazköy Tabletleri (Bo 95–Bo 3993)
Volume 3
Bridging the Gap: Disciplines, Times, and Spaces in Dialogue – Volume 2
Sessions 3, 7 and 8 from the Conference Broadening Horizons 6 Held at the Freie Universität Berlin, 24–28 June 2019
Ceramic Finds in Context (Roman to Early Islamic Times)
Final Publications from the Danish-German Jerash Northwest Quarter Project VII
Volume 13
Conceptualisation as a Biocognitive Phenomenon and Part of the Faculty of Language
Cross-linguistic Evidence from the Preposition Category
