The Ancient Mariners: Seafarers and Sea Fighters of the Mediterranean in Ancient Times

by Lionel Casson

Written by the renowned authority on ancient ships and seafaring Lionel Casson, The Ancient Mariners has long served the needs of all who are interested in the sea, from the casual reader to the professional historian. This completely revised edition takes into account the fresh information that has appeared since the book was first published in 1959, especially that from archaeology's newest branch, marine archaeology. Casson does what no other author has done: he has put in a single volume the story of all that the ancients accomplished on the sea from the earliest times to the end of the Roman Empire. He explains how they perfected trading vessels from mere rowboats into huge freighters that could carry over a thousand tons, how they transformed warships from simple oared transports into complex rowing machines holding hundreds of marines and even heavy artillery, and how their maritime commerce progressed from short cautious voyages to a network that reached from Spain to India.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Ancient History, Maritime, Archaeology, Nautical, World History

299 pages, Paperback

Published August 26, 1991

About the author

Lionel Casson was a classicist, professor emeritus at New York University, and a specialist in maritime history. He earned his B.A. in 1934 at New York University, and in 1936 became an assistant professor. He later earned his Ph.D. there during 1939. In 2005 he was awarded the Archaeological Institute of America Gold Medal.

Reviews

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Mediterranean was the waterway of the ancient West. As far back as the fourth millennium BCE, people built boats that rode its waves to engage in trade and warfare. Across it spread goods and ideas that shaped the development of Western civilization, culminating in the establishment in the 1st century BCE of a single entity, the Roman Empire, that used it to dominate everything from the straits of Gibraltar to the Palestine coast. Yet for all of its importance, for centuries many of the details of the vital role played by this activity have been lost to time, leaving the particulars of its use frustratingly obscure.

This began to change in 1900, when a group of Greek sponge divers unwittingly began the practice of marine archaeology. In the decades since, numerous discoveries at the bottom of the Mediterranean have enriched our understanding of early commerce in the region and the boats used to conduct it. In this book, Lionel Casson draws upon the bounty of their finds to inform an overview of thousands of years of maritime activity in the Mediterranean. By combining their work with that of historians and other scholars, he provides a wide-ranging portrait of the economic, social, and military activity that took place on the waters of the region, one that helps us to better understand the development of civilization in the ancient world.

Much of our understanding of this is disjointed, thanks to the fragmentary nature of the information that has survived. Casson uses what is available to explain how ships were designed, the purposes for which they were employed, and how they were crewed and maintained. The naval technology involved was remarkable in its ingenuity, both in terms of the construction of vessels and the ways that their designers sought to cope with the challenges of waterborne travel. These he sets within the context of the roles performed by the ships, especially as vessels began specializing to serve diverse needs. What made for a profitable merchant vessel, for example, was often different from the requirements for an effective man-of-war, even if roles overlapped depending on need. From this Casson infers the ways in which these ancient societies engaged in commerce and control, which often decided the fate of the civilizations of the region.

Though Casson’s book displays an impressive breadth of knowledge, he wears his learning lightly through his accessible writing style. It makes for a book that is an excellent introduction to its subject, and one that anyone interested in a more well-rounded understanding of the ancient world should read. It’s unfortunate that Casson is no longer able to update his study as he did after its initial publication in 1959, as the research since his last edition was published over thirty years later has undoubtedly only furthered our understanding of his subject. Until someone undertakes the formidable task of revising or replacing this valuable survey, though, it remains the book to start with about seafaring in the ancient West.

[Caleb Curry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely book on the history of the ancient maritime world. Surveys the beginnings of sailing to the invention of the sail until the scant records of the declining Byzantine navy.

Covers the lives of merchantmen, skippers, and the marine alike (and many more), while also providing insight on ancient conflicts that I had never known or thought of. Despite being an “older” publication (1991), it didn’t feel outdated in many ways, just wished it had dove into topics a little more with maybe diagrams, definitions, etc. though I am a visual learner and not an individual familiar with nautical terms, so that might be more telling of my personal needs.

Anyways, easy 4-4.5/5! Would recommend to anyone looking for a refreshing history book with a unique perspective.

[Arlian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite the name, "The Ancient Mariners" is not actually about the Mariners (i.e. Sailors, Captains, Navigators, or even shipbuilders) of the ancient world. Much less a book about the history of sailors and sailing so much as a general-history lesson of the ancient world told from the interesting and unique angle of sea travel. The book is very much about trade routes and naval battles--which includes fascinatingly specific details about weapons and naval maneuvers but only incidentally includes the human experience and perspective. It's true that the book gives several amusing and exciting anecdotal stories about people who had "Ocean Adventures" but the stories selected were not usually men who made their lives on the sea so much as tales of passengers who had some sort of interesting experience while on a boat (for example, Paul the Apostles famous cruise). I found these stories interesting, and they were woven in with the greater time-line contained in the book in a competent way, but I was very disappointed by the lack of focus on the lives of actual seamen. (To be fair, some information was given about the lives of naval recruits in during the roman empire, but the history of sailing is so much more vast than merely that.)

Another complaint I have about this book is the assumption that every reader is competently versed in both sailing and ancient history. The book is obviously trying to tackle a very niche subject and one can agree that the market for such a book would be very specific indeed, but I think the book does a very poor job of appealing to anyone but an expert--or at least an obsessed amateur. There are only 4 (count 'em! 4!) Maps in the entire book (which are not placed in a very easily understood or logical manner). Small port towns are mentioned frequently, often in connection with some greater town, voyage, or battle, yet without a map (or verbal explanation of location based on mileage and modern country names and landmarks) almost no one would be able to completely understand the setting. Also one is expected to already be familiar with both modern and ancient sailing terms. Few non-sailors would would be able to visual the difference between specific kind of rigging or understand the different names for masts based on their respective places on the boat without explanation--which this book does not give. Whats more, who but a specific kind of historian would know what the specific name of a specific type of worker from the ancient world does without an explanation? Yet the book uses such extraordinarily specialized language that few can understand completely without the aide of both an encyclopedia and a dictionary (or Wikipedia).

Overall, a very severe letdown. But still, since it IS the only book that I know on this subject and that, despite being inaccessibly written is STILL chock full of fascinating information, I would still recommend it--but practically only to a history major specializing in ancient Greece who happens to be in the yacht club at their school.

[Fraser Ronald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lionel Casson’s the Ancient Mariners: Seafarers and Sea Fighters of the Mediterranean in Ancient Times discusses the origins of maritime trade and the navies that protected it. It traces the evolution of maritime transport and defence from the earliest times to the Roman Empire in a chronological manner, discussing the different technologies and the uses to which different nations, leagues, and empires put them.

Casson has done a marvellous job of writing a very meaty general survey. Basically, this would be – for me – the paradigm of a textbook. There is enough academic knowledge to help propel further inquiry and consideration, but the prose is smooth enough that the text flows and it isn’t a chore to read. Casson’s writing is technically strong but also engages the reader and has a certain colloquial quality that helped me follow the text even among the distractions of family and background noise.

I am very much the target audience for this book. I am interested in the period, and I have a particular fascination in long-distance trade in the ancient and classical periods. I am not, however, exploring the topic for scholarly ends, but just out of curiosity. I do seek a certain amount of academic rigour when I am reading history, so the balancing point that Casson has found between scholarship and the story nestled within the facts hit my sweet spot. I enjoyed learning about the various trade networks that grew up through the Mediterranean, and Casson’s use of ancient myth as a possible starting point and reference point to explore the topic helped to keep me invested.

I would give this book a strong recommendation for anyone interested in the topic. I think this is a great book for those who are just approaching the topic, but I believe there is also enough meat here for someone who has already done some reading on the subject. I don’t believe Casson presented anything that is contrary to the current understanding of the evolution of maritime transport and security, but I also believe he has distilled down the essence of the topic and current thinking on it to a very digestible presentation that is accessible to any reader.

[Joe White · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an immensely detailed subject, naval archeology of the Mediterranean, from its beginnings to a summarization of the status at the end of the classical Roman empire (around 300-400 AD). It has been written to be readable as more of a novel than a research thesis. However, due to the time span and the detail of implementations over historical time, it can become a dry read if read in a linear fashion.
Imagine someone that you want to know a little more about, telling you details of generational family history including awards, accomplishments, education, financial prowess, plus a complete family lineage. At some point the compendium of facts may overwhelm your attention span and the exercise dulls your sense of educational absorption.

For sheer informational fact presentation and summarization this rates 5 stars. The reader has to be one with an interest in the subject, and a desire to assimilate the historical texture which will become the framework for further research.

The book includes references, and most importantly a timeline listing of landmark events.

[Read by Fred · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nicely written book.

Lionel Casson's "The Ancient Mariners" is a book on maritime trade, war, exploration and ship building from 3500BC to the time of the Byzantium period. For an academic text book this is well written and flows very nicely. Mr. Casson does a wonderful job weaving a story, rather than presenting the reader with dry facts and figures.

I appreciated the book plates. 95% of the images were located there so it was easy to tag it and flip back to the specific plate mentioned in the text (individual plates were referenced multiple times in the text).

Each chapter was just the right size. I personally dislike reading text books where a chapter spans a large number of pages - I prefer shorter chapters so that I can finish one off prior to ending my reading session.

As for content, the book focuses mainly on the Mediterranean, the Black Sea, the Nile and Tiber rivers with a mention of the seas around Britain. Near the end, the book talks about Roman trade in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean. Trade was the main topic for many eras in the book, followed by war or keeping the seas free of pirates. Exploration of not only the western Mediterranean during the time of the Phoenicians, but also around the continent of Africa (as told by Herodotus) is discussed.

All in all a wonderful and engaging read.

[Andy Gagnon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent.

[Windsor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good intro, pretty good Roman section. Hard to judge a 200 page book that’s on such an old/unknown subject.

[Bob · Rating 3 out of 5]

A detailed, though surprisingly easy-to-read history of marine innovation in the ancient world, the book focuses on the historical pressures thatr brought groups into trade and conflict.
Casson treats his subject chronologically, though he does make digressions with the Romans to separate commercial from political/military developments.
There were lots of intriguing facts, for me. The Romans accorded a relatively low status to their Navy, despite its importance to a state which fed itself through marine commerce; the use of sailors to deploy the canvas awnings in the Roman Colosseum on sunny days; the manner in which amphoras were stored in ships.
It includes an excellent glossary of classical maritime terms, a timeline, and a very usable index.

[Carole]

This thorough explanation of the progress of ancient sailing technologies put the development of the triremes and penteconters typically considered Greek ships into the context of all ancient naval development, which was helpful for the development of a port scene. It would also have been highly useful for the Artemisia piece I worked on about eighteen months ago. It includes much information about Egyptian and Roman sailing technologies as well, if a little less than desired about non-military vessels.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

This might be a little dated but gives an overview from the earliest known boats and ships to the early Byzantine Empire, with equal emphasis on commerce, exploration, and war. The Mediterranean is obviously the focus, and so the Greeks and Romans are given the lion's share of attention, but there is some interesting information on Phoenicia/Carthage, Egypt, and even India.

[Arinn Dembo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly one of the most important books that I read in the course of my education. I would recommend any of Casson's books to those who want to really understand life, travel and commerce in the ancient Mediterranean.

[Larold Aarence · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rather brilliant. All a man could possibly want to know about triremes and barges and biremes and quadremes. Row, oarsmen, row!

[Pedro Enguita · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best books on the subject.