Mercury's Wings

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This volume of essays is the first dedicated to ancient communications, marking a significant milestone in the field. Previous studies have largely focused on communication within the Roman Empire, but this collection features 18 essays that highlight the broader importance and potential of the topic. Contributors from diverse disciplines, including art history, Assyriology, Classics, and Egyptology, explore communication not just as a means of information exchange, but also as a tool for religion, commerce, and culture. The essays cover various communication purposes, such as propaganda, celebration, profit, and administration, addressing networks and types of communication, as well as religious and imperial interactions. The geographical and temporal scope spans the Near East, Greece, and Rome over approximately 2,000 years, from the second millennium BCE to the rise of Christianity in the late Roman Empire. The essays are evenly divided among the Near East, Greece, Greece and Rome together, and the Roman Empire with its Persian and Indian rivals. Topics range from cultural history, such as Greek music and Roman art, to economic history in Mesopotamia and Rome, and traditional historical themes like diplomacy and war in the Mediterranean. Each essay incorporates recent developments in communication theory, enriching the understanding of ancient modes of communication.