Economic Management of Minoan and Mycenaean States and their development

Serge Svizzero (1) , Clement Allan Tisdell (2)

1 CEMOI - Centre d'Économie et de Management de l'Océan Indien
2 UQ [All campuses : Brisbane, Dutton Park Gatton, Herston, St Lucia and other locations] - The University of Queensland

During the Late Bronze Age, Aegean societies (Minoan and Mycenaean) exhibited strong economic development. This resulted from the implementation by the elite of a centralized and hierarchical administrative and social system in order to manage most economic activities. In these palatial economies, the elite organized the extraction of the surplus, therefore avoiding the Malthusian trap. They also organized the division of labor and the specialization in production and the distribution of the collected surplus by means of staple and wealth finance systems, the latter being based on the production of luxury items controlled by the palace. Trade was also encouraged and this strengthened palatial power.

Domaines: Economies et finances

Serge Svizzero, Clement Allan Tisdell. Economic Management of Minoan and Mycenaean States and their development. Rivista di Storia Economica, 2015, 3, pp.373-394. ⟨10.1410/81504⟩. ⟨hal-02148983⟩