Grain moves in sacks, and sacks do not survive like pots. And the grain itself probably doesn't either. What we will be able to tell two thousand years from now is that there was a movie theatre there. But you don't have the ability to sort of archaeologically draw out these complex networks. There are some questions that archaeology just cannot answer.
Historian Bret Devereaux of the University of North Carolina talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about our understanding of the ancient Greeks and Romans. Devereaux highlights the gap between the reality of Greece and Rome and how they're portrayed in popular culture. The conversation focuses on the diversity of ancient Rome and the military prowess of Sparta.