Misplaced Pages

#948051

96-544: He viewed the ancient economy as largely stagnant since, among other things, the scope of economic action was not directed to economic or productive growth as is so often the case in modern times: technological innovations therefore went without adoption, large projects were executed for prestige rather than practical benefit, and economic development, or profit maximisation. Such views, and the uncritical acceptance of elite ancient writers' economic mentalités , have been challenged and overturned by archaeological discoveries through

192-449: A Boeotian who wrote the earliest known work concerning the basic origins of economic thought, contemporary with Homer . Of the 828 verses in his poem Works and Days , the first 383 centered on the fundamental economic problem of scarce resources for the pursuit of numerous and abundant human ends and desires. Fan Li (also known as Tao Zhu Gong) (born 517 BCE), an adviser to King Goujian of Yue, wrote on economic issues and developed

288-457: A Greek word, οἰκονόμος , "one who manages a household". The household was the most important economic unit. Of course, they mined, taxed, and traded, but what the ancients did not do was to combine all their commercial activities into an overarching sub-system of society, a giant marketplace where the means of production and distribution responded to market forces such as the cost of labour, supply and demand, trade routes, etc. Moreover, Finley takes

384-725: A bale of linen brought overland from Brittany at great expense be worth more than one which is transported cheaply by sea?... Why should a book written out by hand be worth more than one which is printed, when the latter is better though it costs less to produce?... The just price is found not by counting the cost but by the common estimation. However, as Friedrich Hayek has written, the school rarely followed this idea through systematically. His members thought that authories were sometimes required to intervene and to control prices , especially in monopoly cases or for staples. The opportunity of an economic interventionnism , called arbitrism , wasn't unanimously accepted : if somes thought that

480-522: A bandwidth of more or less just prices. Mercantilism dominated Europe from the 16th to the 18th century. Despite the localism of the Middle Ages, the waning of feudalism saw new national economic frameworks begin to strengthen. After the 15th century voyages of Christopher Columbus and other explorers opened up new opportunities for trade with the New World and Asia, newly-powerful monarchies wanted

576-417: A blueprint of a society based on common ownership of resources. Aristotle viewed this model as an oligarchical anathema . Though Aristotle did certainly advocate holding many things in common, he argued that not everything could be, simply because of the "wickedness of human nature". "It is clearly better that property should be private", wrote Aristotle, "but the use of it common; and the special business of

672-409: A certain point higher taxes discourage production and actually cause revenues to fall. French philosopher and priest Nicolas d'Oresme (1320–1382) wrote De origine, natura, jure et mutationibus monetarum , about the origin, nature, law, and alterations of money. It is one of the earliest manuscripts on the concept of money. His treatise argues how money or currency belongs to the public, and that

768-456: A certain sense common, but, as a general rule, private; for, when everyone has a distinct interest, men will not complain of one another, and they will make more progress, because every one will be attending to his own business... And further, there is the greatest pleasure in doing a kindness or service to friends or guests or companions, which can only be rendered when a man has private property. These advantages are lost by excessive unification of

864-645: A crime. The text, states Trautmann, thus anticipates market exchange and provides a framework for its functioning. Economics in Jainism is influenced by the Mahavira and his principles and philosophies. His philosophies have been used to explain the economics behind it. He was the last of the 24 Tirthankars , who spread Jainism. In the Economics context he explains the importance of the concept of ' anekanta ' ( non-absolutism ). There are two core political-economic system of

960-575: A form of Gresham's law is presented in Aristophanes ’ Frogs , and beyond Plato 's application of sophisticated mathematical advances influenced by the Pythagoreans is his appreciation of fiat money in his Laws (742a–b) and in the pseudo-Platonic dialogue, Eryxias . Bryson of Heraclea was a neo-platonic who is cited as having heavily influenced early Muslim economic scholarship. ... Through work men grow rich in flocks and substance ... In

1056-600: A garden, so should the king from his kingdom. Out of fear for his own destruction, he should avoid unripe ones, which give rise to revolts. —Stocking the Treasury, Arthashastra 5.2.70 Chanakya (c. 350 BC – 275 BC) considered economic issues. He was a teacher of political science at the Takshashila University of ancient India , and later the prime minister of the Mauryan emperor Chandragupta Maurya . He wrote

SECTION 10

#1732852480949

1152-423: A good of 10 and 40, Aristotle points out that in exchange, it is most fair to price the good at 16, due to the equality proportional differences from their price to the new price. Another nuance in this analysis of exchange is that Aristotle also saw a zone of consumer surplus or mutual advantage to both consumers that had to be divided. Early Greek and Judaic law follow a voluntaristic principle of just exchange;

1248-443: A just exchange must be voluntary. Later in the biography, Xenophon discusses the concept of division of labor , referencing specialized cooks and workers in a shoemaking shop. Scholars have noted that Adam Smith 's early notes about this concept "read like a paraphrase of Xenophon's discussion of the role of the carpenter as a "jack of all trades" in small cities and as a specialist in large cities. Marx attributes to Cyropaedia

1344-453: A just price, emphasizing the costs of labor and expenses, although he recognized that the latter might be inflated by exaggeration, because buyer and seller usually have different ideas of a just price. If people did not benefit from a transaction, in Scotus' view, they would not trade. Scotus said merchants perform a necessary and useful social role by transporting goods and making them available to

1440-441: A kingdom, with a wealth of descriptive cultural detail on topics such as mineralogy, mining and metals, agriculture, animal husbandry and medicine. The Arthaśāstra also focuses on issues of welfare (for instance, redistribution of wealth during a famine) and the collective ethics that hold a society together. It discusses the ethics of economics and the duties and obligations of a king. Chanakya says that artha (sound economies)

1536-404: A local militia to ease the budget spending on the official standing army of 1 million troops, and the establishment of a Finance Planning Commission staffed largely by political loyals so that his reforms could pass quickly with less time for conservatives to oppose it in court. Reformers and conservatives would oust each other from power once they had the support of the emperor. To some degree,

1632-576: A more powerful military state to boost their status. Mercantilism was a political movement and an economic theory that advocated the use of the state's military power to ensure that local markets and supply sources were protected, spawning protectionism . Mercantile theorists held that international trade could not benefit all countries at the same time. Money and precious metals were the only source of riches in their view, and limited resources must be allocated between countries, therefore tariffs should be used to encourage exports, which bring money into

1728-563: A party was only held to an agreement after the point of sale. Roman law developed the contract recognizing that planning and commitments over time are necessary for efficient production and trade. The large body of law was unified as the Corpus Juris Civilis in the 530s by Justinian who was emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire from 526 to 565. Tax collection and ripe fruits As one plucks one ripe fruit after another from

1824-417: A person who does not know how to handle it, but still has exchange value. Although this broadens the idea of value based in individual use to a more general social concept of value that comes through exchange, scholars note that this is not a market theory of value . In Cyropaedia Xenophon presents what in hindsight can be seen as the foundation for a theory of fair exchange in the market. In one anecdote,

1920-504: A piece of land for the Ancient Greeks and Romans was not seen as a capital investment where profits could be obtained from the growing and selling of crops, but used as showpieces to enhance one's status as well as something that was inherently desirable from a traditional standpoint where economics played no part. To illustrate this, Finley turns to one of Pliny's letters where he writes that he will have to borrow money to buy more land. In

2016-458: A realist perspective and a discussion of when an army must use cruel violence and when it is more advantageous to be humane. Chanakya discusses economic laws, and suggests having a court system to oversee and resolve economic, contracts and market-related disputes. The text also provides a system of appeal where three dharmastha (judges) consider contractual disputes between two parties, and considers profiteering and false claims to dupe customers

SECTION 20

#1732852480949

2112-438: A regulated system, are proposed by Arthashastra. Boesche is not summarily critical and adds: Kautilya's Arthashastra depicts a bureaucratic welfare state, in fact some kind of socialized monarchy, in which the central government administers the details of the economy for the common good...In addition, Kautilya offers a work of genius in matters of foreign policy and welfare, including key principles of international relations from

2208-498: A series of reforms that centered around military reform, bureaucratic reform, and economic reform. Economic reforms introduced included low-cost loans for farmers (whom he considered the backbone of the Chinese economy in terms of production of goods and greatest source of the land tax ), replacing the corvee labor service with a tax instead, enacting government monopolies on crucial industries producing tea, salt, and wine, introduction of

2304-593: A set of "golden" business rules. Discourses on Salt and Iron in 81 BCE was one of the first recorded debates of state intervention and laissez faire . Hindu texts Vedas (1700–1100 BC) contain economic ideas but Atharvaveda (1200 BC) is most vocal about such ideas. Chanakya (born 350 BC) of the Maurya Empire , authored the Arthashastra along with several Indian sages, a treatise on statecraft, economic policy and military strategy. The Arthashastra posits

2400-423: A state ( monarchy , aristocracy , constitutional government , tyranny , oligarchy , democracy ) as a critique of Plato's advocacy of a ruling class of philosopher-kings. In particular for economists, Plato had drawn a blueprint of society on the basis of common ownership of resources. Aristotle viewed this model as an oligarchical anathema . In Politics , Book II, Part V, he argued that: "Property should be in

2496-631: A surprising extent." There was also the development of an early form of monetarism in response to the introduction of New World gold into the Spanish economy With their reflexions on Contract law and fairness in exchange, the members of the School of Salamanca were often confronted with the concept of value. Thus observing the effect of American silver and gold arrivals in Spain, namely lessening of their values and augmentation of prices, Martín de Azpilcueta established

2592-544: A trade and market economy based originally on the commodity money of the Shekel which was a certain weight measure of barley , while the Babylonians and their city-state neighbors later developed the earliest system of economics using a metric of various commodities , that was fixed in a legal code. The early law codes from Sumer could be considered the first (written) economic formula, and had many attributes still in use in

2688-500: Is Dharma (ethics, righteousness), the root of Dharma is Artha (economy, polity), the root of Artha is right governance, the root of right governance is victorious inner-restraint, the root of victorious inner-restraint is humility, the root of humility is serving the aged. — Kautilya, Chanakya Sutra 1-6 The scope of Arthaśāstra is, however, far wider than statecraft, and it offers an outline of an entire civil and criminal code and bureaucratic framework for administering

2784-446: Is a dialogue principally about household management and agriculture. Plato 's dialogue The Republic (c. 380–360 BC) describing an ideal city-state run by philosopher-kings contained references to specialization of labor and to production . According to Joseph Schumpeter , Plato was the first known advocate of a credit theory of money that is, money as a unit of account for debt. Plato also argued that collective ownership

2880-411: Is a short treatise on economic development, and showed an understanding of the importance of taking advantage of economies of scale and advocated laws promoting foreign merchants. The Oeconomicus discusses the administration of agricultural land. In the work, subjective personal value of goods is analyzed and compared with exchange value . Xenophon uses the example of a horse, which may be of no use to

2976-522: Is best left in private or public hands. In the Middle Ages , Thomas Aquinas argued that it was a moral obligation of businesses to sell goods at a just price . In the Western world, economics was not a separate discipline, but part of philosophy until the 18th–19th century Industrial Revolution and the 19th century Great Divergence , which accelerated economic growth. Hesiod active 750 to 650 BC,

The Ancient Economy - Misplaced Pages Continue

3072-618: Is owned in common and there is universal education and religious tolerance, inspiring the English Poor Laws (1587) and the communism-socialism movement. Nicolaus Copernicus In 1517 Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus (1473–1543) published the first known argument for the quantity theory of money . In 1519 he also published the first known form of Gresham's law : "Bad money drives out good". Jean Bodin In 1568 Jean Bodin (1530–1596) of France published Reply to Malestroit , containing

3168-468: Is the basis for Aristotle's moral rejection of usury. Later, in book VII Chapter 1 of Politics , Aristotle asserts external goods have a limit, like any other instrument, and all things useful are of such a nature that where there is too much of them they must either do harm, or at any rate be of no use, to their possessors and some interpret this as capturing a concept of diminishing marginal utility , though there has been marked disagreement about

3264-462: Is the most important quality and discipline required for a Rajarshi , and that dharma and kama are both dependent on it. According to Chanakya, a conducive atmosphere is necessary for the state's economy to thrive. This requires that a state's law and order be maintained. Arthashastra specifies fines and punishments to support strict enforcement of laws (the Dandaniti ). Roger Boesche has called

3360-400: Is the study of the philosophies of the different thinkers and theories in the subjects that later became political economy and economics , from the ancient world to the present day. This field encompasses many disparate schools of economic thought . Ancient Greek writers such as the philosopher Aristotle examined ideas about the art of wealth acquisition, and questioned whether property

3456-533: Is willing to pay. Until Joseph J. Spengler 's 1964 work "Economic Thought of Islam: Ibn Khaldun", Adam Smith (1723–1790) was considered the "Father of Economics". Spengler highlighted the work of Arab scholar Ibn Khaldun (1332–1406) of Tunisia, though what influence Khaldun had in the West is unclear. Arnold Toynbee called Ibn Khaldun a "genius" who "appears to have been inspired by no predecessors and to have found no kindred souls among his contemporaries...and yet, in

3552-484: Is worthless, and because it is not useful as a means to any of the necessities of life, and, indeed, he who is rich in coin may often be in want of necessary food. But how can that be wealth of which a man may have a great abundance and yet perish with hunger, like Midas in the fable, whose insatiable prayer turned everything that was set before him into gold?. Thomas Aquinas (1225–74) was an Italian theologian and economic writer. He taught in both Cologne and Paris, and

3648-514: The Arthashastra (" Science of Material Gain " or " Science of political economy " in Sanskrit ). Many of the topics discussed in the Arthashastra are still prevalent in modern economics, including its discussions on the management of an efficient and solid economy, and the ethics of economics. Chanakya also focuses on issues of welfare (for instance, redistribution of wealth during a famine) and

3744-514: The East India Company , he wrote about his experiences in A Discourse of Trade from England unto the East Indies (1621). Sir William Petty In 1662 English economist Sir William Petty (1623–1687) began publishing short works applying the rational scientific tradition of Francis Bacon to economics, requiring that it only use measurable phenomena and seek quantitative precision, coining

3840-713: The codex of Ur-Nammu , king of Ur (c. 2050 BC), the laws of Eshnunna (c. 1930 BC) and the code of Lipit-Ishtar of Isin (c. 1870 BC). Some scholars assert economic thought similar to the modern understanding occurred during the 18th century or the Enlightenment , as early economic thought was based on metaphysical principles which are incommensurate with contemporary dominant economic theories such as neo-classical economics. Several ancient Greek and Roman thinkers made various economic observations, especially Aristotle and Xenophon . Many other Greek writings show understanding of sophisticated economic concepts. For instance,

3936-421: The costs of production , including the maintenance of a worker and his family. Aquinas argued it was immoral for sellers to raise their prices simply because buyers had a pressing need for a product. Aquinas discusses a number of topics in the format of questions and replies, substantial tracts dealing with Aristotle's theory. Questions 77 and 78 concern economic issues, primarily what a just price might be, and

The Ancient Economy - Misplaced Pages Continue

4032-463: The history of economic thought , ancient economic thought refers to the ideas from people before the Middle Ages . Economics in the classical age is defined in the modern analysis as a factor of ethics and politics, only becoming an object of study as a separate discipline during the 18th century. Economic organization in the earliest civilizations of the Fertile Crescent was driven by

4128-438: The "primitivists", who argued that the economies of ancient Greece and Rome were dominated by subsistence farming and household-level development; this was in contrast to the "modernists" who viewed economic activities in the ancient world to be highly analogous to modern levels of specialisation and trade. However, Finley rejected placement in this primitivist-modernist debate, instead arguing on different dimensions: whether or not

4224-471: The 16th and 17th centuries the School of Salamanca in Spain developed economic theory, one of the earliest forms of a study in the economic tradition of the field of economics. Even if his doctrin was influenced by the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas , it sometimes renew the economic thought as such an extent that it was defined as "pro-market, pro-hard money, anti-state in many ways, pro-property, and pro-merchant to

4320-525: The Arthashastra "a great political book of the ancient world". He interprets the 1st millennium BCE text as describing a system similar to the Soviet Union and China, where the state envisions itself as driven by the common good, but also operates an extensive spy network and system of surveillance. This view has been challenged by Thomas Trautmann, who asserts that a free market and individual rights, albeit

4416-655: The Euphrates and Nile valleys during the Babylonian Empire and Egyptian Empires when trading units spread through the Near East within monetary systems. Egyptian fraction and base 60 monetary units were extended in use and diversity to Greek, early Islamic culture , and medieval cultures. By 1202, Fibonacci 's use of zero and Vedic-Islamic numerals, motivated Europeans to apply zero as an exponent, birthing modern decimals 350 years later. The city-states of Sumer developed

4512-572: The Prolegomena ( Muqaddimat ) to his Universal History he has conceived and formulated a philosophy of history which is undoubtedly the greatest work of its kind that has ever yet been created by any mind in any time or place." Ibn Khaldoun expressed a theory of the lifecycle of civilizations, the specialization of labor, and the value of money as a means of exchange rather than as a store of inherent value. His ideas on taxes were similar to supply-side economics ' Laffer curve , which posits that beyond

4608-463: The ancient economy could be understood in terms of formalist unchanging economic laws (as is argued by neoclassical economics ) or needed to be understood in terms of embedded social values. To show how the economies of Ancient Greece and Rome differed from our times, he first examines how the Ancients lacked even the concept of an "economy" in the way we refer to it in our own times. Economy derives from

4704-420: The arithmetic, the geometric, and the harmonic. The harmonic proportion implies a strong commitment to the subjective values of the traders. Sixth century AD philosopher Boethius used the example of 16 as the harmonic mean of 10 and 40. Sixteen is the same percentage larger than 10 as it is smaller than 40 (60 percent of 10 is 6, while 60 percent of 40 is 24). Thus if two bargainers have subjective prices for

4800-403: The clearest statements of mercantile policy, listing nine principal rules of national economy: To inspect the country's soil with the greatest care, and not to leave the agricultural possibilities of a single corner or clod of earth unconsidered... All commodities found in a country, which cannot be used in their natural state, should be worked up within the country... Attention should be given to

4896-476: The collective ethics that hold a society together. The Arthashastra discusses a mixed economy, where private enterprise and state enterprise frequently competed side by side, in agriculture, animal husbandry, forest produce, mining, manufacturing and trade. However, royal statutes and officials regulated private economic activities, some economic activity was the monopoly of the state, and a superintendent oversaw that both private and state-owned enterprises followed

SECTION 50

#1732852480949

4992-407: The country, and discourage imports which send it abroad. In other words, a positive balance of trade ought to be maintained through a surplus of exports, often backed by military might. Despite the prevalence of the model, the term mercantilism was not coined until 1763, by Victor de Riqueti, marquis de Mirabeau (1715–1789), and popularized by Adam Smith in 1776, who vigorously opposed it. In

5088-400: The country... Opportunities should be sought night and day for selling the country's superfluous goods to these foreigners in manufactured form... No importation should be allowed under any circumstances of which there is a sufficient supply of suitable quality at home. Nationalism , self-sufficiency and national power were the basic policies proposed. Ancient economic thought In

5184-441: The current price system today: codified amounts of money for business deals ( interest rates ), fines in money for 'wrongdoing', inheritance rules, laws concerning how private property is to be taxed or divided, etc. For a summary of the laws, see Babylonian law . Earlier collections of (written) laws, just prior to Hammurabi , that could also be considered rules and regulations as to economic law for their cities include

5280-847: The development and role of marginal utility considerations in Aristotle's value theory. Certainly this book formulates an ordinal hierarchy of values, which later appeared in Maslow's contribution to motivation theory . Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics , particularly book V.v, has been called the most economically provocative analytic writing in ancient Greece. Therein, Aristotle discusses justice in distribution and exchange. Still considering isolated exchanges rather than markets, Aristotle sought to discuss just exchange prices between individuals with different subjective values for their goods. Aristotle suggested three different proportions to analyze distributive, corrective, and reciprocal or exchange transactions:

5376-594: The early Muslims based their economic analyses on the Qur'an (such as opposition to riba , interest), and from sunnah , the sayings and doings of Muhammad . Al-Ghazali (1058–1111) classified economics as one of the sciences connected with religion, along with metaphysics, ethics, and psychology. Authors have noted, however, that this connection has not caused early Muslim economic thought to remain static. Persian philosopher Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (1201–1274) presents an early definition of economics (what he calls hekmat-e-madani,

5472-406: The exchange rate depend upon international trade and not bankers, and that the state should regulate trade to insure export surpluses. Thomas Mun English economist Thomas Mun (1571–1641) describes early mercantilist policy in his book England's Treasure by Foreign Trade , which was not published until 1664, although it was widely circulated in manuscript form during his lifetime. A member of

5568-483: The fact that the Ancient Greeks and Romans did not have a sophisticated accounting system as well as how imprecise or carefree they are about numerical data to imply the lack of an economy resembling Western modern ones that place exorbitant demands on numerical computations and precise accounting records. He also deals with the roles of orders and status. He argues that because the ancients placed so much emphasis on status, which heavily regulated what commercial activities

5664-582: The fairness of a seller dispensing faulty goods. Aquinas argued against any form of cheating and recommended always paying compensation in lieu of service obtained as it utilized resources. Whilst human laws might not impose sanctions for unfair dealing, divine law did, in his opinion. One of Aquinas' main critics was Duns Scotus (1265–1308), originally from Duns Scotland, who taught in Oxford, Cologne, and Paris. In his work Sententiae (1295), he thought it possible to be more precise than Aquinas in calculating

5760-401: The first known analysis of inflation , which he claimed was caused by importation of gold and silver from South America , backing the quantity theory of money . Barthélemy de Laffemas In 1598 French mercantilist economist Barthélemy de Laffemas (1545–1612) published Les Trésors et richesses pour mettre l'Estat en splendeur , which blasted those who frowned on French silks because

5856-437: The government or sovereign of the economy has no right to control the value of the currency just so that they can profit from it. Saint Antoninus of Florence (1389–1459), O.P. , was an Italian Dominican friar , who became Archbishop of Florence . Antoninus' writings address social and economic development and argued that the state has a duty to intervene in mercantile affairs for the common good, and an obligation to help

SECTION 60

#1732852480949

5952-456: The idea of a value-scarcity, first form of the quantity theory of money . They also renewed the aquilian concept of just price , which respects the principle of commutative justice but depends on many factors. The just price have a certain latitude because it's not the result of God's will or of labor but of the common estimation of the people (communis aestimatio hominum). On this Luis Saravia de la Calle wrote in 1544: Those who measure

6048-473: The idea that the division of labor correlates to the size of a market. Xenophon also presents an example of mutual advantage from exchange in a story about Cyrus coordinating an exchange of surplus farmland from Armenians, who were herders, and surplus grazing land from Chaldeans, who were farmers. Of Plato's works those considered the most important to study of economics are Nomoi , Politeia and Politikos (Backhaus). In his work Laws Plato writes on

6144-444: The industry created employment for the poor, the first known mention of underconsumption theory , which was later refined by John Maynard Keynes . Leonardus Lessius In 1605 Flemish Jesuit theologian Leonardus Lessius (1554–1623) published On Justice and Law , the deepest moral-theological study of economics since Aquinas, whose just price approach he claimed was no longer workable. After comparing money's growth via avarice to

6240-413: The just price by the labour, costs, and risk incurred by the person who deals in the merchandise or produces it, or by the cost of transport or the expense of traveling...or by what he has to pay the factors for their industry, risk, and labour, are greatly in error.... For the just price arises from the abundance or scarcity of goods, merchants, and money...and not from costs, labour, and risk.... Why should

6336-444: The labels of "natural" and "unnatural". Natural transactions were related to the satisfaction of needs and yielded wealth that was limited in quantity by the purpose it served. Un-natural transactions aimed at monetary gain and the wealth they yielded was potentially without limits. He explained the un-natural wealth had no limits because it became an end in itself rather than a means to another end—satisfaction of needs. This distinction

6432-552: The late 20th century. Finley argued that ancient economic activity was embedded in a society of political and social values which made it substantively different from modern economies. He argued that the ancient well-to-do were disinterested in production or productivity improvements. Instead, they focused on socially prestigious consumption goods and self-sufficiency. This implied limited trade in all but necessities (mainly food) and luxury goods as well as stagnation in technology and economic thought . Many scholars identified Finley with

6528-402: The legislator is to create in men this benevolent disposition." In Politics Book I, Aristotle discusses the general nature of households and market exchanges. For him there is a certain "art of acquisition" or "wealth-getting", which is necessary and honourable for one's household, while exchange on the retail trade for simply accumulation is "justly censured, for it is dishonorable". Writing of

6624-490: The letter, Pliny does not discuss if this new purchase is an economically wise one in terms of the profits that can be derived from it. The last part of the book, Finley discusses the discrepancies between life in the urban and rural settings. He also writes about how government forces did not play a role in managing the economy and treasury in the same ways modern governments are expected to do in most Western economies. The book has had such an impact on classical scholarship that

6720-432: The native artisans. Slavery heavily influenced the value placed on labour and certain jobs. Thus, the distribution of labour as well as the means of production that one sees in the ancient economy was different from how modern economies function where human capital plays a role in determinant of price as well as on supply. Another relationship Finley discusses is the way the Ancients viewed the value of land. The ownership of

6816-450: The need to efficiently grow crops in river basins . The Euphrates and Nile valleys were homes to earliest examples of codified measurements written in base 60 and Egyptian fractions . Egyptian keepers of royal granaries, and absentee Egyptian landowners are reported in the Heqanakht papyri . Historians of this period note that the major tool of accounting for agrarian societies,

6912-608: The opinion of the Austrian school of economics the first economist is thought to be Hesiod, by the fact of his having written on the fundamental subject of the scarcity of resources, in Works and Days . His contribution to economic thought is at least in his relevancy to the practice of economical activity in the depositing and lending of grain, as his writings are "... the chief resource for details as to Grecian agriculture ..." and that according to Loudon (1825) he provided " ... directions for

7008-499: The order of their psyche. In The Republic he gives an account of the manner by which a state is to be formed with the skills (techne) of individuals supporting economic sustainability. With respect to the identification of skill Plato's writing in the Republic also deals with the specialization of skills as the concept of division of labour. Aristotle 's Politics (ca. 350 BCE) was mainly concerned to analyze different forms of

7104-525: The patronage of rulers, such as under Qin Shi Huang , Sang Hongyang , Wang Mang and Wang Anshi , though they were abolished shortly thereafter. Chancellor Wang Anshi (1021–1086), one of China's most prominent reformers, lived during the medieval Song dynasty (960–1279). Espousing heated reaction by conservative ministers at court, Wang Anshi's political faction of the New Policies Group enacted

7200-461: The people, Aristotle stated that they as a whole thought acquisition of wealth ( chrematistike ) as being either the same as, or a principle of oikonomia ("household management" – oikonomos ), with oikos meaning "house" and with ( themis meaning "custom") nomos meaning "law". Aristotle himself highly disapproved of usury and cast scorn on making money through a monopoly . Aristotle discarded Plato's credit theory of money for metallism ,

7296-442: The poor and needy. In his primary work, "summa theologica" he was mainly concerned about price, justice and capital theory. Like Duns Scotus , he distinguishes between the natural value of a good and its practical value. The latter is determined by its suitability to satisfy needs (virtuositas), its rarity (raritas) and its subjective value (complacibilitas). Due to this subjective component, there cannot only be one just price, but

7392-507: The population whenever it was involved in mercantile activity. One such debate is recorded in the Discourses on Salt and Iron , a debate over salt and iron monopolies imposed by Emperor Wu of Han to fund wars and expansionism against the Xiongnu . Although Confucian laissez faire was largely dominant throughout China's history, legalist policies often gained prominence in times of war or with

7488-426: The population, that it may be as large as the country can support... gold and silver once in the country are under no circumstances to be taken out for any purpose... The inhabitants should make every effort to get along with their domestic products... [Foreign commodities] should be obtained not for gold or silver, but in exchange for other domestic wares... and should be imported in unfinished form, and worked up within

7584-470: The prince concerned of public interest is more trustable that greedy merchants, like Domingo de Soto and Tomás de Mercado , others like Luis de Molina , Leonardus Lessius or Juan de Lugo considered that any intervention of the authorities is inopportune owing to the corruption and the clientelism that it'll created. Sir Thomas More In 1516 English humanist Sir Thomas More (1478–1535) published Utopia , which describes an ideal society where land

7680-467: The propagation of hares, he made the first statement of the price of insurance as being based on risk. Edward Misselden and Gerard Malynes In 1622 English merchants Edward Misselden and Gerard Malynes began a dispute over free trade and the desirability of government regulation of companies, with Malynes arguing against foreign exchange as under the control of bankers , and Misselden arguing that international money exchange and fluctuations in

7776-497: The public. Jean Buridan ( French: [byʁidɑ̃] ; Latin Johannes Buridanus ; c. 1300 – after 1358) was a French priest . Buridanus looked at money from two angles: its metal value and its purchasing power, which he acknowledged can vary. He argued that aggregated, not individual, demand and supply determine market prices. Hence, for him a just price was what the society collectively and not just one individual

7872-416: The role government should have in the economy, such as setting monopolies in lucrative industries and instating price controls. Confucian factions tended to oppose extensive government controls, while "Reform" or legalist factions favored intervention. The Confucians' rationale for opposing government intervention was that the government should not "compete for profit with the people" as it would tend to exploit

7968-517: The same regulations. The private enterprises were taxed. Mines were state owned, but leased to private parties for operations, according to chapter 2.12 of the text. The Arthashastra states that protecting the consumer must be an important priority for the officials of the kingdom. The need for law, economics and government सुखस्य मूलं धर्मः । धर्मस्य मूलं अर्थः । अर्थस्य मूलं राज्यं । राज्यस्य मूलं इन्द्रिय जयः । इन्द्रियाजयस्य मूलं विनयः । विनयस्य मूलं वृद्धोपसेवा॥ The root of happiness

8064-539: The scales used to measure grain inventory , reflected dual religious and ethical symbolic meanings. The Erlenmeyer tablets give a picture of Sumerian production in the Euphrates Valley around 2200–2100 BC, and show an understanding of the relationship between grain and labor inputs (valued in "female labor days") and outputs and an emphasis on efficiency. Egyptians measured work output in man-days. The development of sophisticated economic administration continued in

8160-654: The society recognized by the Mahavira. One is communism and the other, capitalism . The former is meant to be more socialistic and the latter capitalistic. However, the Mahavira found no difference in both these systems because both were driven by materialism. Fan Li (later Tao Zhu Gong ; 517 BC – ), Chinese businessman, politician and strategist, wrote on economic issues. He developed 'golden' rules for doing business. Additionally, he discussed seasonal effects on markets, and business strategy among other things. In ancient China, Chinese scholar-officials would often debate about

8256-464: The state." Allocation of scarce resources was a moral issue to Aristotle. He also wrote in Politics (book I), that consumption was the objective of production, and the surplus should be allocated to the rearing of children, and personal satiation ought to be the natural limit of consumption. (To Aristotle, the question was a moral one: in his era child mortality was high). In transactions, Aristotle used

8352-522: The term "political arithmetic", introducing statistical mathematics, and becoming the first scientific economist. Philipp von Hörnigk Philipp von Hörnigk (1640–1712, sometimes spelt Hornick or Horneck ) was born in Frankfurt and became an Austrian civil servant writing in a time when his country was constantly threatened by Ottoman invasion . In Österreich Über Alles, Wann es Nur Will (1684, Austria Over All, If She Only Will ) he laid out one of

8448-406: The theory that money derives its value from the purchasing power of the commodity upon which it is based: Indeed, riches is assumed by many to be only a quantity of coin, because the arts of getting wealth and retail trade are concerned with coin. Others maintain that coined money is a mere sham, a thing not natural, but conventional only, because, if the users substitute another commodity for it, it

8544-608: The theory that there are four necessary fields of knowledge: the Vedas, the Anvikshaki (philosophy of Samkhya, Yoga and Lokayata ), the science of government, and the science of economics (Varta of agriculture, cattle, and trade). It is from these four that all other knowledge, wealth, and human prosperity is derived. Ancient Athens , an advanced city-state civilisation and progressive society, developed an embryonic model of democracy. Xenophon 's (c. 430–354 BC) Oeconomicus (c. 360 BC)

8640-415: The three things as important to a person of these mind he stated as the most important, then body and lastly estate (Χρήματα). In Phaedo , Plato makes the first distinction between things which are thought necessary and those thought a luxury (Bonar). Plato promoted the exercise of temperance in respect to the pursuit of material wealth such that by strengthening moderation a person there-by preserves

8736-618: The views brought forward in The Ancient Economy has been labeled "the Finley/Polanyi orthodoxy". Finley covers both ancient economic thought , wealth, the role of a government, the use of slavery, and the tax system. "Indeed, no individual writer ... has attempted [as of 2000] a comprehensive economic overview of the entire classical world since Finley, though period specific, regional or thematic work has abounded". History of economic thought The history of economic thought

8832-513: The whole business of family economy in the country". The influence of Babylonian and Persian thought on Greek administrative economics is present in the work of Greek historian Xenophon. Discussion of economic principles are especially present in his Oeconomicus , Cyropaedia , Hiero , and Ways and Means . Hiero is a minor work which includes discussion of leaders stimulating private production and technology through various means including public recognition and prizes. Ways and Means

8928-413: The young Cyrus is to judge the fairness of an exchange made between a tall and a short boy. The tall boy forces the pair to exchange tunics, because the tall boy's tunic is too short, shorter than the short boys, which is too tall for him. Cyrus rules the exchange fair because it results in a better fit for both boys. Cyrus' mentors were not pleased with Cyrus' basing his decision on the values involved, as

9024-563: Was acceptable for those in the upper orders and well as the lower ones, their economy differed from any modern economy where everyone was free and able to participate in whatever legal commercial enterprise. Finley also discusses the institution of slavery which was very prominent in the ancient world. The relationship between master and slave was complex and even among slaves, there was a diversity of societal rankings. Yet despite this complexity, Finley shows how slavery provided free labour that at times had to be curtailed in order to provide work for

9120-484: Was necessary to promote common pursuit of the common interest, and to avoid the social divisiveness that would occur "when some grieve exceedingly and others rejoice at the same happenings." Aristotle 's Politics (c. 350 BC) analyzed different forms of the state ( monarchy , aristocracy , constitutional government , tyranny , oligarchy , and democracy ) as a critique of Plato's model of rule by philosopher-kings. Of particular interest for economists, Plato provided

9216-471: Was part of a group of Catholic scholars known as the Schoolmen , who moved their enquiries beyond theology to philosophical and scientific debates. In the treatise Summa Theologica Aquinas dealt with the concept of a just price , which he considered necessary for the reproduction of the social order. Similar in many ways to the modern concept of long-run equilibrium , a just price was just sufficient to cover

#948051