This part describes the liberty of the ancients, in particular in ancient Greece,
and shows how this concept of collective freedom was embedded in the mechanisms of the ancient economy. It traces the Greek originality in inventing the concept of liberty to the demise of palatial societies and the transition to the Classical polis, where hierarchies became flatter under the norm of symmetric reciprocity. Solon’s reforms in Athens transformed economic relations profoundly by abolishing debt slavery, which ultimately caused the expansion of coinage and transformed traditional norms of political holism.
Professor Stefan Collignon is ordinary professor of political economy at Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, since October 2007, and was International Chief Economist of the Centro Europa Ricerche (CER), Roma, 2007-2019. He is the founder of Euro Asia Forum at Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies.
Dr. Sitta von Reden is Chair of Ancient History at Albert-Ludwigs-University in Freiburg.