Historiens et érudits à leur écritoire

The period between Sulla’s death and the Flavian age is characterised in Rome by a flourishing of monumental Histories; the bibliothekai-works of Diodorus Siculus, Strabo, and Pliny the Elder bear witness to this development. The first part of this volume focuses on the specific contexts in which these authors worked, in view of the unprecedented resources offered by the Vrbs and the increasing availability, from the 1st century BC, of Greek and Latin texts. The second part focuses on the historian’s workshop as they consult their sources and prepares their work for publication. Here we examine the practical implications of their undertaking: how does the historian deal with the difficulties related to the huge and overwhelming nature of their project?