Romanization in the Time of Augustus Ramsay MacMullen

During the lifetime of Augustus (from 63 B.C. to A.D. 14), Roman civilization spread at a remarkable rate throughout the ancient world, influencing such areas as art and architecture, religion, law, local speech, city design, clothing, and leisure and family activities. In his newest book, Ramsay MacMullen investigates why the adoption of Roman ways was so prevalent during this period.Drawing largely on archaeological sources, MacMullen discovers that during this period more than half a million Roman veterans were resettled in colonies overseas, and an additional hundred or more urban centres in the provinces took on normal Italian-Roman town constitutions. Great sums of expendable wealth came into the hands of ambitious Roman and local notables, some of which was spent in establishing and advertising Roman ways. MacMullen argues that acculturation of the ancient world was due not to cultural imperialism on the part of the conquerors but to eagerness of imitation among the conquered, and that the Romans were able to respond with surprisingly effective techniques of mass production and standardization.

Ramsay MacMullen is the recipient of a lifetime Award for Scholarly Distinction from the American Historical Association (awarded on 5 January 2001). The citation begins, 'Ramsay MacMullen is the greatest historian of the Roman Empire alive today'. Dunham Professor Emeritus of Classics and History at Yale University, MacMullen is also Chief Executive Officer of PastTimes Press. He is also the author of Christianity and Paganism in the Fourth to Eighth Centuries, Corruption and the Decline of Rome, Paganism in the Roman Empire, and Roman Social Relations, all published by Yale University Press.

"'Fans of Ramsay MacMullen's prolific output will find in this latest volume all the ingredients of his previous successes... This small book with its large theme is important enough to merit both attention and critical evaluation; and whether it inspires imitation or provokes a creative resistance, the scholarly community is lucky to have it.' Greg Woolf, Journal of Roman Archaeology 'MacMullen's study succeeds admirably. He has taken a huge body of complex material and produced attractive answers to important questions. His documentation is transparent and exemplary, allowing readers to follow him and check his conclusions at every turn... Readers interested in the origins of their cultural patrimony will be well served by this book.' Geoffrey Bakewell, Theological Studies"