How to Make Money

An Ancient Guide to Wealth Management

Pliny the Elder, Luca Grillo, Luca Grillo, Luca Grillo

• Publisher: Princeton University Press
• Year: 2024
• Print ISBN:
  9780691239125
• eBook ISBN:
  9780691239132
• Topic: Philosophy
• Subtopic: Personal Success

An enriching collection of classical writings about how ancient Romans made—and thought about—money

Ancient Romans liked money. But how did they make a living and sometimes even become rich? The Roman economy was dominated by agriculture, but it was surprisingly modern in many ways: the Romans had companies with CEOs, shareholders, and detailed contracts regulated by meticulous laws; systems of banking and taxation; and a wide range of occupations, from merchant and doctor to architect and teacher. The Romans also enjoyed a relatively open society, where some could start from the bottom, work, invest, and grow rich. How to Make Money gathers a wide variety of ancient writings that show how Romans thought about, made, invested, spent, lost, and gave away money.

The Roman elite idealized farming and service to the state but treated many other occupations with suspicion or contempt, from money lending to wage labor. But whatever their attitudes, pecunia made the Roman world go round. In the Satyricon, Trimalchio brags about his wealth. Seneca accumulated a fortune—but taught that money can’t buy happiness. Eumachia inherited a brick factory from her father, married well, and turned to philanthropy after she was widowed. How to Make Money also takes up some of the most troubling aspects of the Roman economy, slavery and prostitution, which the elite deemed unrespectable but often profited from.

Featuring lively new translations, an illuminating introduction, and the original Latin and Greek texts on facing pages, How to Make Money offers a revealing look at the Roman worlds of work and money.

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Series Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Introduction
• Chapter 1. How to Become Rich, Envied, and Respected: Farming (English)
• Chapter 1. How to Become Rich, Envied, and Respected: Farming (Latin original)
• Chapter 2. How to Become Rich, Probably Envied, and Perhaps Respected: Commerce and Banking (English)
• Chapter 2. How to Become Rich, Probably Envied, and Perhaps Respected: Commerce and Banking (Latin original)
• Chapter 3. How to Become Rich, Maybe Envied, but Certainly Not Respected: Taxation and Public Contracts (English)
• Chapter 3. How to Become Rich, Maybe Envied, but Certainly Not Respected: Taxation and Public Contracts (Latin original)
• Chapter 4. How to Invest, Lose Money, and Gain Popularity: Giving Back to the People (English)
• Chapter 4. How to Invest, Lose Money, and Gain Popularity: Giving Back to the People (Latin original)
• Chapter 5. How to Invest and Lose Money, Popularity, and Everything Else: Disastrous Investments (English)
• Chapter 5. How to Invest and Lose Money, Popularity, and Everything Else: Disastrous Investments (Latin original)
• Chapter 6. The Dark Side of Money Making: Human Trafficking (English)
• Chapter 6. The Dark Side of Money Making: Human Trafficking (Latin original)
• Acknowledgments
• Glossary
• Notes