Slavery Flashcards
Aristotle and slavery
Slaves were an ‘animate tool’
Slave society
slaves made up 20% of population of the ancient world
Slaves in Rome
At the end of the republic, slaves made up bout 1/3 of a 2 million population
Origins
War booty, piracy, Delos was important for the slave trade, in Rome, children of slave mothers are slaves regardless of fathers.
Work and conditions
They did all kinds of work
Slave and free would work together
State-owned slaves in Athens - police, clerks, road mendrs, executioners
Manumission
‘perculium’ could purchase slave’s freedom
This didn’t occur in Greece
According to Cicero, a prisoner of war could expect freedom within 6 years
Status
You could get highly educated town slaves
Economic significance
Involved in all areas of trade and craft. According to Erechtheum inscription, slave and free got the same wages. They were also important for agriculture.
Mygdonius
First century from Ravenna, Parthian captured and sold as a slave. He had freedom and citizenship