A FINANCIAL TIMES BEST BOOK OF 2025 as chosen by Martin Wolf ' Economica is an epic story .
. . an important retelling of global economic history that puts women at the centre . . .
Bateman is a great storyteller . . . a rare long-term perspective on gender equality' -
Financial Times 'This book sets a new standard in economic history' - TIM HARFORD author of
How To Make the World Add Up 'Erudite ambitious and richly global in scope' - PETER
FRANKOPAN author of The Silk Roads THE UNTOLD STORY OF HOW WOMEN MADE THE WORLD WEALTHY
Humanity's journey from poverty to prosperity is filled with men who have become household
names. But how many female entrepreneurs merchants and industrialists can you name?
Economica places women at the centre of the story of economic growth. Starting in the Stone Age
and continuing to the present day it takes the reader through the key economic milestones of
the past twelve millennia - from the birth of farming to the advent of computing - all told
through the experiences of women as well as men. Historian Victoria Bateman weaves a
thrilling globe-spanning narrative that proves women weren't 'missing' from economic life
they were merely hidden from view. We discover the female workers who helped to build the Great
Pyramid of Giza and to plumb the city of ancient Rome the silk weavers who made a vital
contribution to the development of the Silk Road and global trade the women who dominated
London's brewing trade during medieval times and the brave twentieth-century pioneers who
fought to make our economies not just richer but fairer. Economica rewrites our understanding
of women's role in the economy and tells a more accurate economic history of us all. 'A
must-read for anyone interested in women's history and economic justice' - AMANDA FOREMAN
author of Georgiana and A World on Fire
