08-25-2012, 08:21 PM
Quote:Good point about business. While we concentrate on military in this forum, far more Romans were engaged in business across the empire. The tools of standardized calendars, currency and contract law underwrote the economies of mass manufacturing and distribution across the empire, undercutting local businesses, as in pottery, glassware, wine and other items that became commodities. I will bet there were ruthless Roman businessmen that fit the virtu mold.
My understanding was that Crassus built his staggering wealth through Sulla's proscriptions. I can picture him looking at the lists hours before they were published, and staging his men in advance to take over once the proclamation was made. He also bought fire damaged properties on the cheap, and had slaves who were trained architects and builders which allowed him to fix up a place for rent for a minimal cost.
I also read in the book The Romans for Dummies (okay, so I'm a plebe... Hey, we all start somewhere in this study.) that around 300 AD, a Roman official in Egypt heard through the grapevine that Diocletian was going to devalue the currency. He wrote to his staff to spend all of his money on goods and cargo, and on the following day, those who sold him the items suddenly found that they had unwittingly given him a major discount.
Real name: Stephen Renico
