Mastering the World : Ancient Geography

This volume presents a concise introduction to ancient geography, which surveys the actual geographical knowledge of antiquity and explores the crucial interrelationship between geographical knowledge and political decision and propaganda.

The book is divided into three main parts: the first part of the book presents the evidence for the development of scientific geographical knowledge, from Homer and Herodotus to Ptolemy and beyond.

It examines the ways in which this knowledge was presented, such as maps and texts and who had access to it.

The second section of the book deals with the growth of geographical knowledge.

The author asks whether systematic exploration occurred, what impact independent discovery had or whether geographical discovery was simply a by-product of military activity, such as Alexander's expeditions or Rome's European conquests.

Finally, the third section of the book analyzes how geographical knowledge shaped historical decisions.

For example, did the journeys of Odysseus and the Argonauts influence real voyages?

Did Augustus fail in the north because of his erroneous geographical knowledge of the area?.