Age, Gender and Status in Macedonian Society, 550-300 Bce - (Intersectionality in Classical Antiquity) by Elina M Salminen

About the Book

Provides large-scale analysis of age, gender and status in Macedonian society

Book Synopsis

Building on the largest sample of Archaic to Hellenistic burials from Macedon synthesized to date, this work provides new insight into the society that gave birth to Philip II and Alexander the Great. An intersectional focus on gender, age, and status reveals the lives of Macedonians only rarely discussed, from non-elite men to women and children. Through quantitative analysis and case-studies, the reader gets a view of the complexity and nuance of a society sometimes reduced to mighty warriors and fierce royal women. Change over time is also discussed, introducing depth into the historical narrative that is largely limited to the Late Classical and Hellenistic periods. Finally, the book addresses the promise and challenges of applying intersectionality, a framework that is immensely fruitful but which was developed for contemporary contexts, to archaeological contexts.

Review Quotes

In this ground-breaking study Elina Salminen explores the dynamics of Macedonian society in the crucial period leading up to the kingdom's emergence as a major power in the eastern Mediterranean. By bringing together evidence of burials and their accompanying assemblages from a wide range of sites and viewing the material through the lens of mortuary and social theory, Salminen is able to reveal Macedonian society in unprecedented breadth and detail.--Lisa Nevett, University of Michigan