Made for AVITAE project

1. 1
2nd Lykeion of Arta
Activity 1 : Denmark, January 2015
“Τῴ καιρῴ ἐκείνῳ ἒν…”
Introduction
Entrepreneurship, although the term sounds modern, is not a contemporary
manifestation of human activity but as the scripts prove, it’s been a characteristic of
humanity since…. forever.
If we go back in Greek mythology, when people were trying through it to explain
physical phenomena or human behavior, we could undoubtedly refer to Prometheus
as the first innovator who ushered the way to entrepreneurship by stealing the fire
from Zeus. That way he offered the people the means to begin any kind of business
and become independent from divine influence and submission.
Rubens: Prometheus stealing the fire from heaven and bringing it to earth by petrus
The importance of entrepreneurship for the ancient Greeks is also proven by
having a god protector of it, Hermes, the God of Gain.

2. 2
Hermes of Praxiteles, the museum of Ancient Olympia
Very old times – the Bronze Age (3000-1100 BC)
The beginning of entrepreneurial activities can be traced in the depths of history.
In 3000 BC, for example, in Mesopotamia trading was really developed and the
traders of the time sought innovative ways for the transport of their goods. Though
the two rivers, Tigris and Euphrates, are navigable there aren’t fair winds to push the
ships upstream, so what they did was to tow the ships from the river banks. Even
better, the Armenian traders used light rafts floating on blown animal skins. On
every raft there was at least one donkey so when they reached their destination on
land, they would load their commodities on the animals and sell the materials their
rafts were made of.
Mesopotamian rafts
The information we get from excavation findings shows that there were distinct rules
governing trading, there were credit regulations, loans from bankers and
compensations in case of loss or damage. The famous Hammurabi Code gives a good
idea of the above. What’s more, testimonials show that in the same time and area
we have the appearance of the first “companies” or partnerships.

3. 3
At around the same time, contrary to the private initiative that characterized the
peoples of the Near East, in Egypt, trading was basically ruled by the Pharaohs.
There, the Nile apart from providing them all the goods that were indispensable for
the blooming of their economy (papyrus or linen are good examples) offered them a
very smooth means of transportation (fair winds both upstream and downstream).
So as early as in 2700 BC they constructed wooden riverboats to travel on the river.
An ancient Egyptian boat
Another people of the East that was distinct for their entrepreneurial and navigation
skills were the Phoenicians. They produced distinctive glass artifacts and scarlet
textiles made of a special shell, porphyry. They constructed robust ships, with which
they sailed around the world, founding later in their history, 8th century BC, an
important colony in Africa, Cartagena, and reached as far as the British Islands and
the Baltic Sea. Around 600 BC they probably achieved the circumnavigation of Africa
following the order of the Egyptian Pharaoh, Necho.
Phoenicians Glass translucent coloured glass
In these surroundings and between 3000 BC and 1100 BC we have the Greek
civilizations that their people emerged as skillful entrepreneurs at least in this
primitive form of conducting business. Namely, and following the time they came to
their prime, the Cycladic civilization that was developed in the islands of the Aegean
Sea was based on sea trading. They built ships worthy of travelling in open seas and

4. 4
they traded their artifacts made of marble, silver or other minerals with agricultural
products that they lacked. They dealt mainly with barter trade but also with transit
trade by transporting goods from other areas and selling them in turn to other
people.
Cycladic harpist, ca. 2800 B.C, 29.2 cm.; Parian or Naxian marble, British Museum
In the island of Crete we have the powerful Minoan civilization. They had
experienced craftsmen (as there was distinct division of labour) and they traded
their products (ceramics, textiles or metalwork) with the people in the Near East, the
Aegean and Egypt.
Minoan "Palace style," vessel (ca. 15th century BCE, Athens National Museum)
From the excavations in Crete we came up with three forms of writing: a) the Cretan
Hieroglyphics (2000-1700 BC) as it appears on the ceramic template of Faestos. It
probably refers to administrative or religious subjects but it has not been deciphered
yet. b) The Minoan Grammic A (1700-1450 BC) which we can read but not fully

5. 5
comprehend. The important thing is that it refers to products as wine, cereals and
figs, to people and animals. c) The Minoan Grammic B (1400 BC) which was fully
deciphered in 1952 by J.Chadwic and M.Ventris and which is of outmost importance
as again is a list of products as olive oil, honey, wine, aromatic substances, or sheep.
It also refers to fighters and chariots, and taxation registers that show a very well
organized administration system.
Another important feature is that this language is considered a Hellenic language
used also by a mainland civilization the Mycenaean. The Mycenaeans dominated the
Aegean sea, they colonized Cyprus and founded a strong Hellenic community in
Phoenicia. They gradually spread their influence to the west Mediterranean and
traded with Sicily, Sardinia and Spain. They also set their minds to acquire the metal
mines of the north (The Black Sea) so they set out on what we know as the Trojan
expedition to get control of the area.
The Mask of Agamemnon, Athens National Museum
Ancient Greece (1100-323 BC)
The time when the Trojan War took place is the period of time that Homer, years
later, describes in his epic poems. Using quite a lot of anachronisms he describes the
economy of his time (1100-750 BC) but also of the lost Mycenaean civilization. In his
works we have the first written accounts of state economy and early
entrepreneurship. A virtuous king is crucial for a prosperous state. “The people
prosper under his leadership, and the dark soil yields wheat and barley, the trees are
heavy with fruit, the ewes never fail to bear, and the sea is full of fish.” Odyssey XIX
111-114.
Economy was based on a strict agricultural system whose unit was the “oikos”- the
home. The ideal oikos was the autonomous one that could produce what they
needed. It was both a unit of production and consumption. Barter trade was limited

6. 6
and only when absolutely necessary. But they could get goods they lacked by other
methods as war looting, piracy or by exchanging gifts. The value of goods was
measured by oxen, slaves, women, metals or animal skins. There was taxation but
paid either as gifts or by exchanging goods. According to Hesiod the luckiest of all
people were farmers who had their own farms to cultivate, made their own tools
and catered for their family needs. For Homer the lowest social place was occupied
by land workers who were hired for their work.
Later in time, in the Archaic period (750-480 BC), we have the creation of better
structured communities, called city-states. This is the beginning of the economic,
political and cultural development of the Greek world. Economy now is based on
agriculture, small industry and commerce. The criterion of wealth was agricultural
produce. Subsequently, people were categorized according to their property so as to
be given political power.
A greek colony
The main kind of cultivations make up the Mediterranean triad : olive oil, wine (the
quality of both was exquisite and highly reputed) and cereals except for wheat or
barley which they imported. They had laws to ensure that wheat was sold in
affordable prices to all citizens, strict rules that forebode the exporting of these
products and generally political or diplomatical movements were generally made
bearing in mind this deficiency. Nevertheless, very often wheat traders would create
a false scarcity of the product so as to play speculative games for their gain. The
Athenian orator Lysias in one of his speeches turns against them.

7. 7
The greek city-states dominated commerce in the Mediterranean. These cities were
mainly coastal and Plato said that “they were crammed on the coasts like frogs in a
lake”. Examples of such prosperous cities were Athens, Corinth, Syracuse, Miletus. It
made sense, as for traders it was infinitely easier to promote their commodities
through the sea rather than the land. Thus, the Greeks would travel up to Russia to
bargain for wheat for the needs of Athens, in the docks of Piraeus they would load
ships with olive oil for their colonies in the Black Sea, they would get to Beirut to
supply themselves with timber from the cedars of Lebanon, they negotiated in
Miletus, in Asia Minor, for their fine woolen fabrics, which they resold double or
triple the price in Athens or Syracuse. Their trade ships were 30m long and had a
capacity of 100 or even 500 tons.
A modern replica of 4th Century BCE merchant vessel
We have to imagine that when some cities were developed as trade centres, its
character was transformed as they had to cater for the needs of the people who
would pour into: inns, tavernas, public baths, and other facilities. Additionally,
consulates would be there to represent his homeland and help his co patriots when
an emergency raised.
Another source of gain for a city was the exploitation of public land, forests, mines,
quarries or salt pits. At the time money appears as a means of transactions. So
trading is now made for profit. Money appears as early as the 7th c but it was very
uncomfortable. It had the shape of an iron spit –ovolos. Later money is made of
silver and weighs less. The attic drachma weighs 4.36 gr and values 6 times more
than ovolos. A mna is equivalent to 100 drachmas and a talanto is worth 60 mnes.

8. 8
Citizens whose income was more than two talanta instead of taxation had to offer
some services to the state, “leitourgies” which were some kind of sponsourships.
A mna
And as we proceed in history we reach the period of Classic Era (480-323 BC) when
Greek city-states and especially Athens got to their highest peak of prime. The
culmination of this progress is the Golden Age of Pericles. A state that prospers
economically will undoubtedly have cultural and political prosperity as well.
There were various sources of money influx. Athens formed the Delian League, an
alliance like an early kind of company (reminding us of later companies like the one
of the East Indies) aiming, in the beginning, to have a strong coalition against the
Persians, with equality among its members but soon it turned to an Athenian
hegemony with Athens making profits from the other members’ contributions.
Athens used the money they got from their allies for the construction of great works
some of which we still admire.
The Delian League
Another source of profits for the state was those coming from judicial revenue and
money penalties. Also metoikoi, i.e. foreigners who lived in Athens, had to pay a
special annual tax to renew their residence permit. As we have already mentioned,
richer citizens sponsoured some activities of the city like theatre performances,
religious celebrations or sport events.

9. 9
They also made money from the duty paid for the imported products and Athens
issued all the permits for transferring on the sea commodities and raw materials.
Piraeus, thanks to Themistocles’ astuteness became an important harbour. Laws
aiming at promoting commerce and the domination on the sea lead to the
development of this sea port. There, traders or entrepreneurs would form the
international prices of goods, they would charter ships for long voyages and make
business deals. They even had ships ready to be sold. As a consequence of this busy
trading activity by the sea, was the construction of the Agora (Market) in Athens to
accommodate all the traders and commodities.
The Athenian Agora
Tourists were also attracted providing steady revenue for the city. Piraeus became a
significant traffic in transit centre. There were Customs offices, storage areas,
arsenals, chambers of commerce, and shops and of course an integral administrative
system for the function of all these services. In the premises we have the appearance
of the first banks with bankers starting giving loans with interest. The Athenian
drachma, used for trading, was a currency of great value, recognized in all foreign
markets.
Athens would import wheat and timber but it would export other agricultural and
farming products along with ceramics and metal artifacts.

10. 10
Big traders were highly respectable while small ones were regarded lowly because
they believed that due to their limited capital they could lapse in dishonoured
actions.
Mercantile laws were made to monitor trading actions and very often tribunals of
the city had to deal with mercantile cases.
Pericles reinforced the democratic polity by paying salaries to the state archons
(leaders) so that everybody, and not just the wealthy ones, could participate in the
Assembly (Ecclesia of Deme) making decisions about the state and its welfare. The
state also provided pensions for the men who had been injured in wars.
Land owners who cultivated their land were still, though, venerable members of
society. That’s why they founded colonies: they gave the opportunity to people to
find new lands. Xenophon in his book Oeconomicus praises agriculture. Still, the
produce of cereals was not enough and they had to import them. Generally
speaking, agricultural techniques were very primitive and farming was not very
developed. Industry was beginning to rise and most urban people had a vocation.
Hard labour, though, was for slaves and foreigners. Anyway, Athenian citizens were
busy taking part in the governing of the state or in the tribunals.
Craftsmen usually taught their sons their secrets so as to succeed them and they
needed knowledge and skills for their crafts. Very often it was difficult to tell the
difference between a craftsman and an artist. Among the trades of the time we have
pastry makers, pottery makers, carpenters, ship builders, sculptors, tanners, textile
dyers. Of course there were teachers, trainers, lawyers and medicinal doctors.
However, as it usually happens, a period of such development was followed by a
dark period just after the Peloponnesian war that stopped any form of evolution or
progress.
Spartans, the sworn enemies of Athens along with some important royal houses in
northern Greece (among them the Molossian kingdom - the people of Arta are
supposed to descend from that tribe) had a different economical system resembling
more to the mighty oikoi of the Archaic period. This was also the case with the
Macedonian Kingdom which played a tremendously serious role for the future of
both Greece and the whole world. Philip II and his son Alexander the Great definitely
changed the course of history.
In Macedonia farming and agriculture were the solid ground of their economy.
People were free farmers, farming was not based on slavery and this gave their
society strong bonds and cohesion. The land of Macedonia was very rich in natural
resources and there were plenty of rivers. They cultivated all kinds of cereals, had
fruit trees and forests from where they got the timber they needed. Philip invested

11. 11
in improving agriculture by following a policy of reformations and restructuring. He
drained marshy areas, stopped river flooding and used the river waters to improve
the micro climate of areas. He was also interested in the development of animal
farming by encouraging nomads to have permanent settlements by making use of
royal land. He even imported 20000 Scythian thorough bred mares to improve the
quality of the horses of his cavalry. Most importantly, after finding a gold mine, he
cut golden coins or double-mineral coins (golden and silver) which put aside the
Persian golden coins dareikoi . His coins now could be found in the most important
trade centres of the known world.
Alexander continued his father’s agricultural policy. In the countries he conquered
he distributed the land to the people to cultivate, sometimes as a gift and sometimes
hiring it. They intensified cultivation and they paid Alexander, as taxation, one tenth
of their profits. When Alexander set out on his military campaign, he had with him
specialized scientists to study the geography and geology of the new lands. He made
maps, studied intensely the flora and fauna and the climate of the new acquired
countries.
By founding new greek cities from Egypt to India, he contributed to the blooming of
commerce and brought tremendous changes to global economy. He liquidized the
treasures of the Persian Kings by cutting coins which he expanded in the world
markets creating a monetary policy. He established a common currency which was a
steady point of value reference globally.
He got interested in improving land roads. This means that they constructed bridges,
ferries, canals, they installed signposts, stations and outposts. So apart from the
naval roads new commodities like cotton, flax, spices pepper or perfumes would
travel through any possible routes. His revolutionary methods influenced economy
for at least the following 1000 years.
Commerce reached its prime not only in the east but in the west we also had
important market centres as Marseilles and Cartagena. Generally, people started
having a better understanding of the world as travelling had become easier. Pytheas
had travelled to the most northern part of England and Eratosthenes had made a
world map.

12. 12
Roman Time (1-3c AD)
During the Hellinistic time – the period when the descendents of Alexander the
great ruled - and the beginning of the new powerful Roman Empire, travelling and
trading got even greater dimensions. People would go beyond the boundaries of the
empire to what they called terra incognita. To the north they got as far as Scotland,
to the west to the Canary Islands. A for the east merchants reached China and
started importing and exporting products, using on the way trading contacts with
India too. Greek and roman delegations were established there. Cinnamon, cotton,
valerian herb, pepper and of course silk were some of the desirable products.
Gradually, they sailed out in the sea and got as far as Malaysia, Sumatra and Java.
They traded spices, camphor, or jade and were trying to get closer to the source of
silk. Correspondingly, they brought from home greek-roman figurines, jewellery and
ceramics. South bound, Africa was also approached and they got to Zanzibar,
Ethiopia and Sudan. For cheap textiles and fancy trinkets they would bring back
tortoise shells, ivory and incense.
Principal Roman trade routes, internal and external in 180AD
In the interior of the empire industry was developing especially in central and
western Europe but not agriculture, as people preferred to join the army to ensure
better profits and security or to seek work in urban centres.
Byzantine period (330-1453 AD)
The Roman Empire little by little started to weaken and finally was divided in the
eastern and western part. The roman emperor Constantine decided to transfer the
capital from Rome to the east, on the site of the ancient greek city of Byzantium
which was renamed Constantinople. There, in the eastern part, the greek element

13. 13
was prominent so the greek philosophy and culture along with the newly established
Christian faith absolutely influenced the character of the new empire.
In this period, city life and country life were intertwined. The land was the most
important wealth resource. As in most medieval societies, social status is measured
by the size of land property (feudalism). Great amounts of agricultural products were
exported to the west and east: cereals, olive oil, wine, cotton, silk, fish and farming
products.
Workers on the field (down) and pay time (up), Byzantine Gospel of 11th century
Byzantium was actually a natural bridge between Asia and Europe, so it controlled all
forms of trading. Constantinople was the synonym for wealth and welfare. All sorts
of products were transferred through the empire’s territories: gold, silver, marbles,
ivory, gemstones, amber, enamel, porphyry, et al. For this reason they organized
land and sea routes.

14. 14
AD 737 - Trade Routes, Colin McEvedy's The Penguin Atlas of Medieval History
It is characteristic that the state had a very strict intervention in all forms of
economy. For example, sometimes the state had to enforce monopoly to secure the
abundance of some kinds of food (wheat). They even had 5 state bakeries to provide
with free bread the people who could not afford it. They determined salaries and the
price of goods and they supervised private enterprises. They protected the price of
goods by acting against trade intermediaries. They were reluctant to let valuables to
be exported from Constantinople. Thus, they imposed heavy duties to the Venetian
merchants that ventured it. They also prevented their merchants from selling these
products abroad. Also foreign merchants were given a short permit of residing in the
empire (maximum 3 months) enough just to dispose their goods and leave.
They, of course, made sure that the value of their currency was very high and they
achieved it for at least a millennium. The influence of Christianity started to appear
by engraving Christian symbols on coins.

15. 15
Solidus of Justinian II, second reign, after 705
Then the Italians started to take over with the Venetians already controlling the
transit trade towards the west.
It was not degrading for noblemen, even emperors to have mercantile activities. For
instance, Ioannis Vatatzis gained so much from his poultry farm that he bought his
wife a new crown. On the other hand Nikiforos Fokas was accused for speculation as,
during a period of famine, he had bought all the wheat available and then resold it in
an overrated price to the corresponding guild.
In the past, as in ancient times, peddlers would go around in neighbourhoods to sell
their merchandise. During the time of the Byzantine empire we have the appearance
of fairs for people to sell their products. They acted as modern exhibitions for
clothing, house equipment and basically foods and drinks.
As in the rest of Europe, enterprising activities were organized in guilds (from the
saxon verb gildan that means pay). Only in the capital there were at least 23. These
had to do with the basics of nutrition (bread, fish and meat) or referred to crafts like
tapestry making, weaving and working on metals or with diamonds and silk. The
oldest guild was that of the dyers of porphyry. Guilds functioned under specific and
strict rules.
Women were not professionally active. They could do petty trading like baking and
selling bread, making ropes, weaving or knitting. Rich women could deal with
investments. But women could also be doctors (gynecologists) or midwives, only that
their fee would be less than the males’ equivalent.
The Ottoman Occupation (1453-1821 AD)
In 1453 Constantinople falls in the hands of the Turks and gradually all territories
get enslaved. Obviously, the previous splendor vanishes.
The financial situation was downgraded and life became mostly agricultural.
Taxation was heavy for the Christians so they had to find the means to survive
mainly by cultivating the land. However, in Constantinople and the Ionian islands
there were still some well off Greeks. After 1600 AD, the situation deteriorated as
the Turks got hold of the best parts of land and the Greeks had to retire to more
barren or mountainous areas.

16. 16
The growth of the Ottoman Empire
Nevertheless, with the decline of the Ottoman Empire, the Turks granted a
substantial part of commerce to the Greeks and the Jews by allowing them some
privileges. Anyway, the Turks considered themselves more as accomplished warriors
rather than merchants. In fact, whole areas were given tax exemption as in the cases
of Syrrako or Calarrytes (two mountainous villages near Arta) for their trading and
craft aptitude.
As for the guilds, the Turks realized it was for their advantage to keep them as they
diagnosed the financial and social benefits they would bring to the Sublime Porte. All
trades people, merchants and craftspeople were united in sectional corporations
that were now called fraternities. This institution was regulated by very strict rules.
Another institution of the previous era that revived and even evolved was the one of
the trade fairs. They became a focal event for the rural areas and they moved from
place to place so that they could cover the whole territory. There, merchants
became themselves buyers as it was a chance to get supplies of raw materials they
needed for their crafts. These kinds of fairs (without the element of exchanging
goods) are still organized in parts of Greece.

17. 17
Finally, with the industrial revolution and the import of industrially manufactured
goods from the west the fraternities began to decline and fairs changed their
character.
Lastly, in 1821 the revolution against the Turks began which will lead to the forming
of a free Greek state again (at least partly, as the last areas will be liberated in 1913).
During the war there was a very busy commercial activity of some prosperous
Greeks abroad aiming at sponsouring the fight against the Turks. The same is the
case of some ship owners who used their ships for the same purpose. Sometimes
even piracy (against the Turkish ships) was used to offer income for the cause.
Conclusion
Going through the above we can see that in the depth of centuries the
entrepreneurial past of Greece was strongly related to the cultivation of land and sea
trading. We can’t say that this has changed much in modern times. Each time the
historical, political and social conditions, the neighbouring peoples and the prevailing
tendencies of the time would configure the exact manifestations of economical
activities. The fact is that, no matter the adversities, the people persisted to survive
and very often excel in what they did.
It’s quite interesting the information we get from written sources, but also from
various forms of art. As early as in the works of Homer and Hesiod we get vivid
descriptions of the entrepreneurial activities of the time, description becomes more
descriptive later in Xenophon’s texts and we are really amazed at the modern terms
and thoughts of Plato and Aristotle. Demosthenes, in his speeches, views the
weaknesses of entrepreneurship as they emerge in some judiciary cases.
We get a lot of information though visual arts. The snapshots of daily life carved on
Achilles’ shield, the depiction of trades on the Cycladic figurines, the more detailed
description of economical activities on red or black figure pottery and life snapshots
presented on byzantine paintings and mosaics.
Nowadays, globalisation of economy, automatization and technological
advancement make it more difficult for a people to stand out on the arena of
entrepreneurial innovation. Yet, men will always attempt to advance further, to
excel and to make the difference even outside the boundaries of their homeland.

18. 18
Bibliography
Ο δημόσιος και ιδιωτικός βίος των Βυζαντινών(Everyday Life in Byzantium) , Talbot Rice
Tamara, 1967
Ο δημόσιοςκαι ιδιωτικόςβίος των αρχαίων Ελλήνων(La vie quotidienne en Grece au siecle
de Pericles), Flaceliere Robert, 1971
Travel in the Ancient World, Casson Lionel, 1974
The Company: A short history of a revolutionary idea, Mickletghwait John & Wooldridge
Adrian, 2003
Η επιχειρηματικότητα στην αρχαία ελληνική οικονομία, Καραγιάννης Α. & Μπαλόγλου Χ.,
2008
Articles from the magazine: Historical issues
 Η οικονομική σκέψη στην αρχαία ελληνική γραμματεία. Από τον Όμηρο στον
Ξενοφώντα
 Η φορολογία στην αρχαία Ελλάδα.
 Οικονομική πολιτική επί Φιλίππου Β’ και Μ. Αλεξάνδρου.
 Το εμπόριο των αγροτικών προϊόντων στην αρχαία Ελλάδα.
 Ο Πειραιάς και το θαλάσσιο εμπόριο στην Ελλάδα.
 Οι συντεχνίες της μεσαιωνικής Κων/πολης.
 Από την φεουδαρχία στον καπιταλισμό.
 Η γυναικεία παρουσία στη Βυζαντινή αυτοκρατορία.