A presentation by Richard Phillips on how the Parians gained prestige and influence in the Ancient Greek and Roman worlds through their creative and innovative exploitation of Parian marble, a material in great demand by civic authorities and wealthy elites for prestigious buildings, sanctuaries and statuary. This became a potent ‘soft power’ resource for the Parians, who were able to exploit their valuable ‘brand’ by developing the knowledge, technology and artistic skills necessary for the entire process of marble extraction, transport and sculptural production.

Richard Phillips is affiliated with the Department of History, Classics, and Archaeology at Birkbeck, University of London. You can download his thesis.