History of merchant shipping and ancient commerce (Volume IV)

By W. S. Lindsay

Follow the wake of the earliest traders as they stitched coast to coast, turning harbours into hubs and cargo into civilisation. Ports made empires and fortunes. In Volume IV of W. S. Lindsay's History of merchant shipping and ancient commerce, a major maritime history book and enduring scholarly history reference, the story moves beyond ships alone to the systems that sustained them: ancient commerce networks, finance, commodities, and the political power that flowed along seaborne trade routes. With the reach of a multi-volume history set and the precision of a working historian, Lindsay maps connections from the ancient Mediterranean trade to wider patterns of classical antiquity commerce, showing how exchange reshaped cities, laws, and maritime practice. It is rich material for maritime history students and a reliable compass for economic history researchers, illuminating the roots of global economic history without losing the tangible realities of hulls, ports, and risk. His synthesis offers a dependable benchmark for debates on ports, piracy, and policy across centuries. Republished by Alpha Editions in a careful modern edition, this volume preserves the spirit of the original while making it effortless to enjoy today - a heritage title prepared for readers and collectors alike. For the casually curious, it reads as an engrossing voyage through enterprise and exploration; for classic-history collectors, it stands as a significant nineteenth-century attempt to organise the evidence of merchant shipping history, still valuable alongside modern maritime archaeology studies. Add this volume to your shelves and watch the ancient world trade again.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 9353701279
• ISBN13: 9789353701277
• Release Date: May 2000
• Publisher: Alpha Edition
• Length: 728 Pages
• Weight: 2.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.6" x 5.5" x 8.5"