The Pastoral Economy in the Roman Period

The Syrian writer of mimes, Publilius Syrus, was no yokel. Most of his lines were penned for the urbanite. In the aphorism above, however, he caught the favour of rural life well. Rural life was communal life; shared goals and shared duties were the prerequisite for success. Farming was not an occupation for individualists: without the guarantee of security for both person and crop, or assistance at harvest time and in the home, it was a thankless business.1 Epictetus, too, could furnish his listeners with a country dweller’s wisdom: livestock had each their own worth; even today, horses and cattle are still regarded as the most desirable possessions. These maxims encapsulate much ancient wisdom on farming.

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