this volume brings together essays that i have published on athenian law over the past two decades. As a whole, I believe the essays contribute not only to our understanding of Athenian Law, but also to the study of the constitutional history of democratic Athens, the nature of the Athenian economy, and the position of women in Athenian society. The essays are also unified in terms of their method. In contrast to much recent work that emphasizes questions of procedure, these essays turn our attention to the substantive aspects of Athenian Law. This approach places greater stress on careful philological analysis of key terms in statutes as well as a more sophisticated awareness of legal issues. Many modern scholars give the Athenian legal system low marks and compare it unfavorably with Roman Law. These essays aim in part to show that the Athenians were more sophisticated in legal matters than many have assumed. On the other hand, one should not exaggerate the level of development attained by Athenian Law. Several of the essays therefore warn against importing anachronistic ideas (e.g., Roman ideas about real security, the notion of corporation, the concept of rape, and the modern distinction between larceny and embezzlement) into the study of Athenian Law.

But these essays do not concentrate exclusively on the minutiae of individual statutes or on narrow technical questions. Many of the essays attempt to place Athenian laws in their broader political, economic, and social context.