Comparing Sparta: an ancient society in historical perspective

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This project challenges previous interpretations of classical Sparta, which have viewed her as an exceptional society divergent from the norms of other Greek city-states and of most civilised societies. The project examines Spartan social institutions from the perspective of comparable institutions of other Greek city-states and in societies at their historical times and places. Its comparative approach is grounded in an analysis of the historiography of previous attempts to compare Sparta with other societies and of the mythology of cross-cultural comparison. The objective is an enhanced understanding of Spartan society through viewing her supposedly distinctive institutions in broader historical context.