City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 2005 Contracts in Athenian Law Ellen Knopf Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/1816 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] CONTRACTS IN ATHENIAN LAW by ELLEN KNOPF A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Classics in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, The City University of New York 2005 UMI Number: 3187409 Copyright 2005 by Knopf, Ellen All rights reserved. UMI Microform 3187409 Copyright 2005 by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, MI 48106-1346 ii © 2005 ELLEN KNOPF All Rights Reserved iii This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in Classics in satisfaction of the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. 8/18/2005 Edward M. Harris Date Chair of Examining Committee 8/18/2005 Dee L. Clayman Date Executive Officer Professor Edward M. Harris Professor Dee L. Clayman Professor Jennifer Tolbert Roberts Supervision Committee THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK iv Abstract CONTRACTS IN ATHENIAN LAW by Ellen Knopf Adviser: Professor Edward M. Harris This dissertation investigates contracts and the contractual language of 4th century B. C. Athens. Its main source is Attic oratory although there is some discussion of inscriptions. Since no ancient Greek word has the same range of meanings as the English word ‘contract’, the first task is to consider the characteristics of transactions that will count as contracts in the study and to define the term. After giving criteria for identifying contracts, the study examines Greek words whose dictionary definitions include the word ‘contract’. Part I surveys the terms, ımolog¤a, suggrafÆ, sumbÒlaion and sunyÆkh, discussing their senses in oratory and their legal significance in Athenian law. When a word can denote a written document, the study distinguishes between this concrete sense and the abstract reference to the idea of contract without the writing. Part II of the dissertation examines the features of particular Athenian contracts and compares them to Roman counterparts. Avoiding a modern categorization of the transactions, I group them instead in Greek word groups or by Roman contract for the sake of comparison. I discuss loan transactions, security arrangements associated with other contracts, partnership, the complex of arrangements associated with the words v m¤syvsiw and misyÒv, deposit and sale. All of the contracts studied involve economic relationships. I find that the Athenians had many of the same categories of contracts that the Romans did, but the Romans distinguished more types within some of the categories. vi Acknowledgements I am grateful to Professor Dee L. Clayman, the Executive Officer of the Ph.D. Program in Classics, for aiding me in the logistics of contacting professors as well as for reading and commenting on the final drafts of this dissertation. Thanks are due to Professor Jennifer Tolbert Roberts for agreeing to be a reader of the dissertation at the last minute as well as for offering useful advice regarding earlier, related material. I thank Professor Peter Phillips Simpson for reading and commenting on parts of the dissertation and for discussing some of the questions that arose. Finally, I thank my adviser, Professor Edward M. Harris for introducing me to the study of ancient Greek and Roman law and for suggesting this topic. I appreciate the discussions I had with students of the Classics Department regarding my dissertation. Susan P. Johnson and I read each other essays on our respective areas of interest, and Hannah Lansky, Paul McBreen and I corresponded on a weekly basis regarding dissertation progress. Finally, I thank my friend, Stan Fogel. vii Table of Contents I. INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................ 1 1. THE IDEA OF CONTRACT .............................................................................................. 1 2. ROMAN CONTRACTS .................................................................................................... 2 3. MODERN LEGAL SYSTEMS ........................................................................................... 5 (i) Introduction............................................................................................................ 5 (ii) French Civil Code ................................................................................................. 6 (iii) 19th Century British Common Law: The Importance and Limitation of Agreement................................................................................................................... 8 4. APPROACH TO ATHENIAN CONTRACTS ...................................................................... 10 (i) Definition of the Term ‘Contract’....................................................................... 10 (ii) Dispute about the Status of Laws in Ancient Athens.......................................... 13 (iii) Contracts and the Economy ............................................................................... 14 (iv) Methodology ...................................................................................................... 17 II. WORD STUDIES ..................................................................................................... 20 1. ÑOmolog¤a .............................................................................................................. 20 (i) Overview.............................................................................................................. 20 (ii) Contracts ............................................................................................................. 20 (iii) Statewide or Interstate Agreements ................................................................... 25 (iv) Admission of Damaging Information ................................................................ 28 (v) Observations on Usage........................................................................................ 29 2. SuggrafÆ ............................................................................................................. 30 (i) Introduction.......................................................................................................... 30 (ii) Oratory ................................................................................................................ 31 A. Maritime Commerce ....................................................................................... 33 B. Outside of Maritime Commerce...................................................................... 42 (iii) Conclusions........................................................................................................ 49 3. SumbÒlaion ........................................................................................................... 51 (i) Introduction.......................................................................................................... 51 (ii) SumbÒlaia Described in Detail........................................................................ 51 A. Outside of Maritime Commerce ..................................................................... 51 B. Maritime Commerce ....................................................................................... 69 (iii) Passing References to sumbÒlaia.................................................................... 82 A. Andocides 1, On the Mysteries ....................................................................... 82 B. Demosthenes 18, On the Crown...................................................................... 83 C. Demosthenes 47, Against Evergus and Mnesibulus........................................ 83 D. Isaeus 4, On the Estate of Nicostratus ............................................................ 85 E. Isaeus 5, On the Estate of Dikaiogenes ........................................................... 86 F. Isocrates 18, Paragraphe against Callimachus............................................... 87 G. Isocrates 20, Against Lochites......................................................................... 88 H. Lysias 5, For Callias....................................................................................... 89 I. Lysias 12, Against Eratosthenes; Isocrates 24, Plataicus ................................ 89 J. Lysias 30, Against Nicomachus........................................................................ 90 K. Isocrates’ Treatises.......................................................................................... 91 viii (iv) Conclusions...................................................................................................... 100 A. SumbÒlaia Described in Detail.................................................................. 100 B. Passing References to sumbÒlaia............................................................... 101 C. Public / Private Distinction