Oikèma ou pièce polyvalente: recherches sur une installation commerciale de l’Antiquité grecque

This volume discusses the evolution of oikema, which is the most common type of commercial facility in ancient Greece. The study covers a large area including Continental Greece, the Aegean islands, the Ionian islands and the west coast of Asia Minor. The author, after a thorough analysis, proposes a new terminology for commercial and industrial facilities. The book also presents the architectural characteristics and the equipment of oikemata and discusses their location and relationship with other buildings. The ownership, use and maintenance of oikemata are also discussed. It is argued that oikemata provided merchants and craftsmen with a suitable working space and contributed to the gradual abandonment of houses as working places, especially in cities that developed in the Hellenistic period. Their characteristics corresponded perfectly well to the needs of Greek commerce.