Money in Ptolemaic Egypt
From the Macedonian Conquest to the End of the Third Century BC
- 378 pages
- 14 hours of reading
The book investigates the transformative effects of coined money introduced by Alexander the Great on Egypt's economy and society, particularly its role in shaping the Ptolemaic state. It details the gradual spread of coinage from Alexandria into rural areas, culminating in aggressive monetization under Ptolemy II. By analyzing numismatic and papyrological evidence, the author reconstructs a rural monetary economy characterized by high demand for coinage amidst limited supply, revealing a complex interplay of credit and banking that supported a more monetized society than previously understood.