These books have helped me to understand the rich, complex place that was the Hellenistic world—that is, Mediterranean civilization between the time of Alexander the Great and the Roman empire. If I could recommend only one book, I think it would be Hellenistic Civilisation by W. W. Tarn—fantastic. That guy knew the Hellenistic world.
The List
- Alexander the Great by Robin Lane Fox
- Astrology and Religion Among the Greeks and Romans by Franz Cumont
- The Gnostic Religion: The Message of the Alien God and the Beginnings of Christianity by Hans Jonas
- The Hellenistic Age: A Short History by Peter Green
- Hellenistic Civilisation by W. W. Tarn
- Hellenistic Civilization and the Jews by Victor Tcherikover
- The Hellenistic Philosophers, volume 1: Translations of the principal sources with philosophical commentary by A. A. Long and D. N. Sedley
- Hellenistic Religions: An Introduction by Luther H. Martin
- The Hellenistic World by F. W. Walbank
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