古代斯巴达的土地占有稳定性研究

古代斯巴达的土地占有在较长时间内保持了比较平均和公正的格局。究其原因在于,古代斯巴达土地制度中包括了稳定性因素和不稳定性因素。稳定性因素包括限制土地买卖和馈赠,控制家庭规模和继承人数量的婚姻生育制度等,不稳定性因素主要有土地一经授出不再收回、土地的可继承性和继承时的析产继承等。在早期,稳定性因素较好地发挥了特殊的历史作用。但是,稳定性因素本身存在诸多的缺陷,并不能保证土地占有的长期稳定,随着历史环境的变化,自公元前4世纪,斯巴达土地开始迅速向少数人手中集中。     

Spartan dependence on Laurion lead

This article presents contextual evidence for the interpretation of lead isotope analysis (LIA) of artefacts from the Archaic Greek Mediterranean. In particular, I make a response to Wood’s suggestion in Archaeometry (2022, first view, ‘Other ways to examine the finances behind the birth of Classical Greece’) that the end of the production of lead votive figurines in Sparta might have been caused by Athenian restrictions to Laurion lead exports, drawing on new LIA of the Spartan lead votives and wider considerations concerning the trade, cost and volume of lead in the 7th to 5th century bce Mediterranean.     

The Origin of Alliances: From Sparta to the EU’s Solidarity Clause

Abstract

According to the International Relations theory known as Realism, interstate interactions, whether ancient or modern, are motivated by the pursuit of hegemony of individual states, which act as monolithic groups in articulating their foreign policy decisions. The application of Realism to the study of Spartan foreign policy in the third century BC shows the validity of this theory in explaining certain aspects of ancient interstate interactions, as illustrated by the two alliances discussed in this article. The first, earlier alliance, between King of Macedonia Antigonos Gonatas and Sparta and some Peloponnesian cities, was made in response to the threat posed by King Pyrrhus of Epirus who was set on conquering them. The later alliance, between Sparta and other states, was made to stop the ambitions of King Antigonos Gonatas who controlled many cities of the Peloponnese and sought to conquer the whole of Greece. In forging such alliances, according to the Realist view, the states acted as large monolithic groups, yet a broader assessment of the available evidence shows the presence of smaller, subtler networks of individuals, which were paramount in articulating important foreign policy decisions. The comparison of Spartan decision making with the activation in 2009 of the EU’s Solidarity Clause, included in Article 222 of The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), indicates that the activation of this clause too required the consensus of several European governing bodies. By bringing to light the critical role played by smaller networks of power in foreign policy decision making in the ancient and the current-day EU alliances, this article exposes both the merits and the limits of the Realist international relations theory.     

Breccia verde di Sparta,an elusive decorative stone used in antiquity

Breccia verde di Sparta is the traditional name given by the Roman marmorarii of the 19th century to a brecciated volcanic rock whose unknown precise provenance has been determined here for the first time through exploration of the broader area of Psefí (south of Krokees, province of Sparta, Peloponnese, Greece). This location was well known in antiquity and in modern times for having been exploited by the Romans for an important green porphyry named lapis lacedaemonius, nowadays also known as porfido verde antico. This breccia has been seldom used in Roman times for opera sectilia; in contrast, it appears more frequently reused in medieval floors; it is also frequently present in historical lithotecs formed in the 19th and 20th centuries. To fully characterise it and determine its relationships with green porphyry, breccia verde di Sparta samples from the newly discovered source have been thoroughly studied minero-petrographically and geochemically, and their complex genesis has been reconstructed. It appears that after extrusion the original brecciated basaltic andesite underwent extensive hydrothermal low-grade metamorphism, with a complete alteration of the igneous assemblage and minerals that preserved only part of the clinopyroxene phenocrysts. Alteration was accompanied by crystallisation of abundant epidote and chlorite, which imparted its predominant green colour to the rock. These breccias intruded in the lithoclases of the porphyry.     

斯巴达元老院研究

斯巴达元老院起源于荷马时代的长老会议,在莱库古改革时期经过了巨大的调整。调整后的元老院由28名长老和两名国王组成。长老通过选举的方法产生,是具有丰富行政经验和较高道德水准的年满60岁的男性公民。长老与国王共同拥有向公民大会提出议案,并否决公民大会决定的权利。元老院主要负责死刑、剥夺公民权、没收财产等国内重大的政治事务,但元老院并不拥有至高无上的权力。