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John Boardman
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The Greeks Overseas: The Early Colonies and Trade Paperback – July 1, 1999

by John Boardman (Author)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 16 ratings
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“A masterly summary.”―The Times Literary Supplement

The spread of Greek civilization through Europe and into Africa and the Near East began long before the classical period, long after Troy, Mycenae, and Knossos had fallen. This study gives an archaeologist’s view of one of the most important periods of European history, describing how, out of a time of reduced population and comparative penury, the Greeks set their sails north, south, east, and west to plant trading posts and colonies, to reap whatever harvest of materials and expertise the barbarian could offer, and to disseminate the benefits of their own rapidly developing and brilliant civilization.

The book vividly demonstrates the value of archaeology to the historical record and indicates how much the arts and culture of classical Greece already owed to foreign influences. 332 black-and-white illustrations
Previous page
  1. Print length
    304 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Thames & Hudson
  4. Publication date
    July 1, 1999
  5. Dimensions
    6.4 x 0.9 x 9.5 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0500281092
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0500281093
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"A delight."
― Biblical Archaeologist

About the Author

John Boardman, Lincoln Professor Emeritus of Classical Archaeology and Art at Oxford University, has written widely on the art and archaeology of ancient Greece. His previous books include The Greeks Overseas, The History of Greek Vases, The World of Ancient Art, and others.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Thames & Hudson; 4th edition (July 1, 1999)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0500281092
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0500281093
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.52 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.4 x 0.9 x 9.5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 16 ratings

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John Boardman

John Boardman

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Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
16 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Darkmom
5.0 out of 5 stars The Ancient Greeks Travelling and Trading
Reviewed in the United States on June 22, 2016
Verified Purchase
Very readable and covering a good range of material with some interesting conclusions.
Extremely happy with this book!
2 people found this helpful
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Angela Hussein
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic reference
Reviewed in the United States on September 8, 2005
This book is the best reference work I have ever used for research. The bibliography cannot be improved upon and the text provides the most up-to-date summary on this fascinating subject. Another reviewer said the book was dull. It is not meant to be a history book on the colonies. For this type of thing, try Dunbabin's "The first western Greeks." This book is an archaeological reference, not a overview of classical history of the colonies, although it does refer to history where relevant. I have had this book for four years and have used it countless times. Boardman's work is always outstanding.
7 people found this helpful
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Patricia A Lawrence
5.0 out of 5 stars A great book improved yet again
Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2000
I have read and owned every edition of "The Greeks Overseas" since the first little Pelican paperback. It is the single, first and last, indispensable book for students of Archaic Greece, whether studying primarily history or archaeology or art. I consider it prerequisite to his other books on Archaic art and on the diffusion of Greek civilization. Professor Boardman has given us more than any other scholar of his generation, all of it of enduring value. The latest edition of the basic "Greek Art" is also worthy of reading by everyone from adolescents to mature scholars. A new edition of a Boardman book is not merely a new cover and an up-dated bibliography (though that, of course, is provided).
16 people found this helpful
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garvin anders
3.0 out of 5 stars Very informative, very dry, very full of lists of artifacts.
Reviewed in the United States on December 6, 2022
Verified Purchase
The writer is an incredibly skilled art historian and he clearly loves art history as he dives into fulsome descriptions of various artifacts found in different digs across the Mediterranean. I do wish he had spent more time discussing the social, economic and political set up of the different colonies but he clearly didn't want to look at anything he couldn't provide physical proof for which is understandable!

The writing is clearly meant for academic audiences and not the general population and is very dry but not to technical I thought so a high school graduate should be able to follow it. That said unless you're intensively interested in the subject matter or enjoy details on archeological artifacts and their context, this may not be your book.

Side note: DnD bros, if you're looking for inspiration for things to fill out a treasure hoard, this book may be of use to you!
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Top reviews from other countries

Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Informative
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 22, 2021
Verified Purchase
Essential reading for those interested in ancient Greece.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on April 20, 2016
Verified Purchase
Good condition
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David Hartley
4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 11, 2015
Verified Purchase
A great book I am enjoying a good read
One person found this helpful
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Nick T.
1.0 out of 5 stars Saying dated, is an understatement.
Reviewed in Canada on August 21, 2019
Verified Purchase
Very disappointing book. I call this politically motivated, and here is why. The author says that he discounts ancient Greek sources, which are very essential in my opinion. If he bothered to check the records he would know that Greeks
had alphabet, which is in use today for not less that 7000years. Egypt's roots are Greek, the hieroglyph on the oldest pyramid names Minos as their king. Needless to say that Egyptian hieroglyphs were just clumsy attempt
at copy of Linear writing systems (A and B). Ventris, who studied both Linear systems proved that the language on the tablets was Greek. Back to Egypt, 50 cities along river Nile were Greek cities, hence their Greek names till today.
Author talks about an influx of others into the Greek territories. Let me remind the author that recently discovered remains of 50 prehistoric individuals on the Island of Crete were compared to the living people in the area and the results confirmed that the DNA of these people did not change for more than 5000 years. Also, the only people with ability to use ships were the Greeks, known as the Sea People. Ancient Ptolemaic maps of modern day Germany name 148 localities with Greek names (book by K. Karmirantzos talks about it). Minoan ruins and the remains of one ship were recently found in the heart of Germany, they were dated roughly at 2000years BC. Author constantly says pre-Greeks, there were no pre-Greeks, the findings in the cave of Petralona (works started around 1965) found number of remains in the cave with the oldest (male who was 1.52m tall was dated by Japanese specialist at 700,000years, and the number of remains outside the cave dated at 10,3mln years (these people were 1.2m tall) , were not Neanderthals or other primitives, they were early humans. Their DNA was tested and found to be in sink with current Greeks. Also, he constantly diferrenciates between the Greeks and the Minoans as if they were unrelated people. Minoans were Greeks from the Crete. The name Minoans just refers to the period in the history of Crete when Crete was ruled by the kings referred to as Minos. Greeks started to colonize Mediterranean before 6,000BC, which is as soon as the World started to recover from the last cataclysm, and not as they insist 600-800BC. Originally Italy (which is also a Greek name) was called Tirinia and Etruscans were nothing but the Greeks. GB and Ireland were colonized as soon as ice melted away, one example would be the ruins of the Temple of Demeter from 1800BC on one of the Island in the Irish Sea. North American continent was confirmed to be visited regularly (every 30 years) where Minoans were smelting copper in the Great lakes basin. South America was accessed from Pacific Ocean. I am not even gonna bother with Asia, which was also colonized as earliear than 6000BC. Oh yes, remains of a 10,000year old ship were recently discovered on Crete.
Some people say that 130,000 year old ship making tools were found on the Island as well.
I am going to close by saying that the author has to know these facts.
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