Although Campania has for centuries attracted the attention of historians epigraphers and
archaeologists no researcher has yet produced an extensive study concerning the municipal
elites of the region during the 2nd and the early 3rd century CE. In this book Wojciech
Pietruszka fills this void by offering a broad insight into the socio-economic aspects of the
Campanian municipal elites during the Antonine-Severan period. This in-depth account employs a
wide variety of source material with particular attention on the available epigraphic
material. The study focuses on several key issues which include the general condition of
Campania (emphasising the effect that events such as the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 CE and the
Antonine plague had on the region) the income and expenditure of the municipal elites (both
private financial affairs and public acts of euergetism) the composition of city councils the
role and position of Augustales and the importance of Campanian equites and senators. Bearing
in mind that the whole area of Campania was quite diverse the author divides Campania into
three zones - coastal central and the foothill regions - which enables him to analyse how the
geographical location (the place of living) and its distance from both the 'centre' and the
important trade routes influenced the way the municipal elites functioned. Finally by
comparing these research results with information from the earlier period Pietruszka attempts
to answer the question of whether the 2nd beginning of the 3rd century CE was a time of real
crisis continuity or growing prosperity for the municipal elites and Campanian cities.
