A Workshop on Economic Analysis of Ancient Trade: The Case of the Old Assyrian Merchants of the 19th Century BCE
Friday, January 22, 2016 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Neubauer Collegium for Culture and Society
5701 S. Woodlawn Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60637
All are welcome to attend the second workshop of the Neubauer Collegium’s interdisciplinary Ancient Trade project, which involves both economists and specialists in ancient texts and archaeology. Using a 4,000-year-old archive of documents from present-day Turkey, we are investigating the applicability to ancient trade of mathematical and computational methods employed by economists to study modern trade. This project builds on the strengths of the University of Chicago in both economics and ancient studies, focusing on the relationship between social institutions and economic behavior, past and present.
WORKSHOP SCHEDULE
9:00–9:15
David Schloen
Associate Professor of Archaeology, Oriental Institute, University of Chicago
Welcome and introduction to the Ancient Trade project and the related NSF-funded CRESCAT project
9:15–9:30
Thomas Chaney
Professor of Economics, Toulouse School of Economics
Comments on the network structure of international trade
9:30–9:45
Alain Bresson
Robert O. Anderson Distinguished Service Professor of Classics, University of Chicago
Comments on ancient Greek trade and the analysis of coin hoards
9:45–10:15
Alessio Palmisano
Leverhulme Trust Research Associate, University College London
Spatial approaches to the political and commercial landscape of the Old Assyrian trading system
10:15–10:30 Coffee break
10:30–11:00
Adam Anderson
Ph.D. candidate in Assyriology, Harvard University
The Old Assyrian social network
11:00–11:30
Edward Stratford
Assistant Professor of History, Brigham Young University
Andrew Dix
Ph.D. candidate in Assyriology, University of Chicago
Progress report on digitizing Old Assyrian texts and modeling economic entities and relationships
11:30–12:00
Gojko Barjamovic
Lecturer on Assyriology, Harvard University
Kerem Coşar
Assistant Professor of Economics, Stockholm School of Economics
Ali Hortaçsu
Ralph and Mary Otis Isham Professor of Economics, University of Chicago
Progress report on testing a gravity model of long-distance trade using Old Assyrian data
12:00–1:00 Lunch for all attendees
1:00–2:00 Discussion Topic 1:
Methods, assumptions, and useful comparisons for a network analysis of Old Assyrian trade
2:00–2:15 Coffee break
2:15–3:15 Discussion Topic 2:
Computational capabilities and usage of the OCHRE system for research on ancient trade and social institutions
3:15–4:00 Informal conversations
