The aim of the Techniques and Economies in the Ancient Mediterranean chair is to present the contribution of recent archaeological research, most often carried out during preventive excavations, to our knowledge of the history of techniques and their impact on the ancient economy.
Due to a lack of sources, the models proposed for the ancient economy have only marginally addressed the question of energy, which we know to be fundamental to any civilization. It became crucial as early as the Metal Ages, and even more so in classical antiquity as trade multiplied and techniques became more complex. The study of energy has long been neglected because, in ancient history, it is the surviving documents that mark out the fields of study. Issues can only be developed by examining the same documents from different angles.
The abundance of inscriptions and texts, for example, has led to significant development and sophistication in studies of ancient religions or administrative careers, but we have nothing of the kind for energy. With few literary sources, often obscure, and no accounting records, statistics or technical notes, we lack the tools to identify the applications of various energies and measure their impact.