A source-book of ancient history - The Search For Mecca

BOOK II
Hellas
CHAPTER VI
INTRODUCTION TO THE SOURCES
The main sources for Hellenic history are (i) the liter- The main
ary works of the Greeks themselves, (2)
their inscriptions
chiefly on stone, (3) letters and other documents on papyri,
many of which have recently been found in Egypt, (4)
geography, especially valuable for explaining the elements
of economic, social, and political life, (5) archaeology, a
relatively new science, which concerns itself with the
material works of
men's hands during the remote past.
In Botsford's History of the Ancient World, archaeology
is represented by the illustrations; the present volume is
sources
limited to written sources. In the study of the latter Criticism of
sources.
material we must discriminate between (i)
contemporary
sources, composed in the period to which they refer, (2)
sources later than the period treated. The contemporary
writer has the advantage of direct acquaintance with the
condition or event or person he describes.
His account
therefore is always fresher and often more trustworthy
than any afterward composed. We must keep in mind,
however, that in many cases a later writer is able to take
a broader, or more critical, view of a situation, and may
in that respect be a more valuable authority. In every
instance it is necessary to study the writer in order to
determine his worth as a source.
For the Cretan and ]\Iycenaean civilizations our chief
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