Revelation and the Marble Economy of Roman Ephesus

A People's History Approach

Anna M. V. Bowden

• Publisher: Fortress Academic
• Year: 2020
• eBook ISBN: 9781978783904
• Edition: 1
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: History of Ancient Art
• Index: History

In an effort to bring the (im)practicalities of John's command for withdrawal from cultural participation in 18:4 to the forefront of scholarly discourse, this book reconstructs the marble economy of ancient Ephesus and proceeds to read Revelation by foregrounding the daily lives of its marble-workers. This book argues that Ephesus was a major center of the marble economy in the Roman world and that the infrastructure that went into creating, building, and sustaining such an enterprise generated the need for a large workforce. Anna M. V. Bowden further demonstrates that the majority of marble-workers endured poor working conditions and struggled on a daily basis to ensure subsistence. Finally, Bowden explores the ways marble-workers participated in empire "through the work of their hands" (9:20) and questions John's characterization of marble-workers as idolaters, sorcerers, murderers, fornicators, and thieves. Bowden concludes that the praxis Revelation requires from its audience of complete withdrawal is pragmatically not sustainable and is ultimately a manifesto leaving marble-workers jobless, hungry, and with a heightened risk for malnutrition, disease, injury, and even death.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Revelation and the Marble Economy of Roman Ephesus
• Revelation and the Marble Economy of Roman Ephesus: A People’s History Approach
• Copyright
• Contents
• List of Figures and Tables
• Acknowledgments
• Chapter 1
• Rev 18:4 and Societal Participation
• Chapter 2
• A People’s History Approach
• Chapter 3
• The Ephesian Marble Economy
• Chapter 4
• The Marble-Workers
• Chapter 5
• The Work of Their Hands
• Chapter 6
• The Marble-less New Jerusalem
• Conclusion
• Bibliography
• Index
• About the Author