Trees and Timber in the Ancient Mediterranean World

I first noticed this book on my university library bookshelf as an undergraduate over two decades ago. As a student of the ancient world, I had always been interested in the natural distribution of trees and forests in the ancient Mediterranean world and in the use of these trees by the ancients, and Russell Meiggs's book offered an in-depth study of this rather obscure subject. Having recently made time finally to read "Trees and Timber in the Ancient Mediterranean World," I can offer only the highest praise of Meiggs's book.As a fellow of Balliol College, Oxford, and University Lecturer in Ancient History, Meiggs is exceptionally well-versed in the Greek and Latin (as well as translated Hebrew, Assyrian, Aramaic, and Persian) literary sources, epigraphic and archaeological evidence, medieval and modern travelogues, and more recent scientific techniques such as dendrochronology and pollen analysis. The book was published in 1982 (after Meiggs had retired from full-time teaching) and so lacks more advanced scientific methods such as DNA analysis or computer-assisted modelling, but Meiggs's thorough knowledge of the ancient Greek and Latin sources in all their extant forms more than makes up for this. For the study of trees and timber the most important Greek writer is Theophrastus (371-287 B.C.), Aristotle's heir as head of the Athenian Lyceum and the "father of botany." The principal Latin writer on ancient trees and timber is Pliny the Elder (A.D. 23-79).Although some scholars have hypothesized that the climate of the ancient Mediterranean basin was colder and wetter than it is presently and that therefore there were more trees more widely distributed than now, Meiggs cites evidence that the ancient climate and distribution of trees and forests were basically the same as that of the present Mediterranean.The best sources for the tallest trees were the cedars and junipers of Lebanon, of the Amanus range behind Tarsus and Antioch, and of the Taurus Mountains behind Cilicia. Though there were also cedars on Cyprus (which the Ptolemies of Egypt exploited for their ship-building when the cedars of Lebanon, Amanus, and Taurus came under the control of the Seleucids), as well as some cedars in the Atlas and Aures mountains of the southwest Mediterranean (in the provinces of Mauretania and Africa) to which the Romans eventually gained access. In addition to their great size, cedar and cypress both had a pleasant scent and resisted insects and decay, and were thus highly prized for building.The cypress trees of Crete, Lycia, and Mount Ida (in ancient Troas) provided a convenient source of large timbers to the neighboring Greek regions of the Aegean, and the main roof-beam of the Parthenon was a large cypress from Crete. Lycia and Caria also had impressive junipersAccording to Theophrastus, the best trees for shipbuilding were the tall silver firs of Macedonia, followed by the firs of the forests behind Sinope on the south coast of the Black Sea, and then by the considerably less desirable pines of Parnassus and Euboea.Italy was more fully forested than mainland Greece, with some of the most impressive trees the tall firs of the Sila Forest in Calabria in the far southwest. (In the late 6th c. A.D., Pope Gregory the Great specially sent to the Sila Forest for firs long enough to repair the basilicas of St. Peter and St. Paul in Rome.) The Apennine Mountains along the spine of the Italian peninsula were rich in all manner of conifers, and deciduous trees such as elm, chesnut, and oak, and the Tiber basin and its tributaries provided a convenient mode of transporting harvested trees to Rome for both building and fuel. As the Roman Empire expanded, the impressive trees of Corsica and the mountains of Northwest Africa fell under its sway, as did the immense forests of Gaul, Germania, and Britain. Emperor Tiberius brought a massive larch tree from the Alps to repair a burnt-out bridge in Rome. Alpine larch, first encountered by Julius Caesar on a campaign, had a reputation for being semi-resistant to fire.Throughout "Trees and Timber in the Ancient Mediterranean World" Meiggs is able to draw-out fascinating evidence for the types and sizes of trees used in such varied structures as Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem, Assyrian palaces in northern Mesopotamia, Demetrius I's massive siege engine "Helepolis" employed against Rhodes, and Trajan's bridge across the Danube into Dacia. Meiggs also covers woods often used for furniture (box, citrus, ebony), doors (cypress), and door frames (elm) among others. Broad-leaf deciduous trees such as chesnut and oak were best for coppicing (the practice of cutting trees down to stumps and allowing new shoots to grow, mature, and eventually be harvested themselves) for stakes, posts, fencing, and firewood.With chapter titles such as "Forests and Fleets," "Timber for Armies," "Farms, Parks, and Gardens," and "Woods for Sculpture," Meiggs covers all aspects of the distribution and use of trees and timber in the ancient Mediterranean world. His last chapter is titled "Deforestation" and, as a previous reviewer has noted, Meiggs shows that the majority of the Mediterranean basin was well-forested (as in the ancient world) until the late nineteenth century when modern industrial logging thoroughly denuded the still-impressive forests of southern Italy, the Aures Mountains of Algeria and Tunisia, the Taurus range along the southern coast of Turkey, Crete, and Cyprus. The greatly expanding European population levels of this time also exacerbated deforestation as woodlands were cleared to make way for farms and pastures for sheep and goats. This last chapter is fascinating if also depressing.After the thirteen main chapters Meiggs also includes nine appendices with titles such as "Confusion of Species: Cedar and Juniper; Chesnut and Walnut," "The Forests of South Italy," and "Pitch." Interspersed throughout the book are also helpful illustrations such as cross-sections of the Parthenon's roof and the 4th c. A.D. St. Peter's basilica (which utilized a huge quantity of timber in its construction), and examples of tie-beam trusses, the structural innovation that allowed the later Romans to span the main halls of their basilicas with roofs up to eighty feet wide. There are also clear maps of the various regions of the Mediterranean discussed in the text.This book lived up to my high expectations. If you are interested in its subject, "Trees and Timber in the Ancient Mediterranean World" will provide much stimulating reading.

What happened to the Cedars of Lebanon? Long out of print, and now priced not to move, Meiggs' "Trees and Timber" is virtually the only book about deforestation in the cradle of western history. Thankfully, it is also a memorable read. Meiggs fingers a surprising villain: the nineteenth century. Most historic stands of trees survived quite nicely until then, simply because they were inaccessible. Railroads doomed much that was green. Calabrian peasants sold their entire forest patrimony to large German companies that cleared everything to the last twig. Then their goats moved in, munching every new shoot and blocking reforestation--to this day. And the famous cedars? The only stand of significance is protected by Maronite Christian monks; otherwise, forget them too. Anyone concerned about deforestation must read this book.

This book is MARVELOUS! It is almost the only book on Ancient Tree usage, it is the only one I know of, but his bibliography gives a few books that I've not seen nor read. THis book covers all the ancient Mediterranean world, from Lebannon to Cyprus to Greece. He actually wrote this book over a span of nearly 40 or so years, so it is very well written. Obviously not the sort of book that everyone may think is interesting, but it is and it is because Mr. Meiggs is a very good writer as well as scholar. If you can get ahold of this book it is worth the read.