The Ancient Lydians: The History and Legacy of the Iron Age Kingdom of Lydia
ISBN: 9781530600847
$6.99
*Includes pictures *Includes accounts of the Lydians from ancient historians and contemporary records *Includes footnotes, online resources and a bibliography for further reading *Includes a table of contents “When all these nations had been added to the Lydian empire, and Sardis was at the height of her wealth and prosperity, all the great Greek teachers of that epoch, one after another, paid visits to the capital.” – Herodotus Of all the empires and kingdoms in the ancient world, few could compare with the Lydians in terms of wealth and opulence. From the early 7th century BCE until the middle of the 6th century BCE, the Lydians played an important role in the history of the eastern Mediterranean region as they took on the role of middleman between the empires of the Near East and the emerging Hellenic civilization in Greece. From their capital in Sardis, the Lydian kings traded and made alliances and war with numerous kings, tyrants, and generals, which ultimately cemented their role as a brief but historically important people and kingdom in the ancient world. An examination of the Lydian people and their kingdom reveals that their power did not materialize overnight, but was instead a long process, dependent upon several factors. The primary factor contributing to Lydia’s success was its wealth. The Lydians were fortunate enough to possess large deposits of precious metals within in their territory, but how they exploited and utilized those resources is what truly made them successful.