The Black Sea is a major research area, gathering the interest of a wide range of disciplines in the last two decades. By now uncountable conferences, symposia and roundtables have been organised, regional and international, the proceedings of which have been published, along with a great number of edited volumes and monographs that have all promoted the collaborative and comparative study of the Pontic region, both in the West and in the East. If we ask whether the study of the Black Sea remains a terra incognita, based on the abundance of publications the answer should be ‘no’. However, something still seems obscure about this area – could it be the fact that it is located at the periphery of the Mediterranean ‘centre’? – which continues to amaze scholars. This volume is more evidence of this strong trend in current research that deals with the ancient Black Sea Littoral under a multi-theoretical and interdisciplinary approach.

The volume is divided into four main parts, each corresponding to a specific thematic group. Part A presents ‘Studies in Group Identity and Ethnicity Constructs around the Ancient Black Sea Coast’. V. Mordvintseva (Chapter 1) launches the discussion with ‘“Iraner” und “Sarmaten” in der Weltsicht Michael Rostovtzeffs’. She introduces us to the work of Rostovtzeff, who established an ethnic-based model of studying the North Pontic regions throughout antiquity by co-examining the then available sources and the archaeological material only to associate them with specific ethnic groups (the Iranians and the Sarmatians). His theories followed a largely ethnic-oriented approach, which eventually created many limitations. Although modern scholarship has surpassed them and applied a more nuanced research methodology, it remains interesting to observe Rostovtzeff's impact on the narrative of the Russian Empire myth and the early methodology of Russian, Soviet and post-Soviet scholarship. J. Porucznik, in ‘Cult and Funerary Practices in Olbia and Its Chora: a Methodological Approach to the Study of Cultural Identity in Urban and Rural Communities’ (Chapter 2), discusses the flexibility of cultures and the creation of collective identities despite any ethnic, cultural and social backgrounds and differences. Through archaeological material from Olbia Pontica she examines how shared rituals and practices, and the continuous interaction between Olbia city, its chora and the steppe communities, have formed a common identity that allowed Olbian society to prosper – especially after its refoundation in the first century bc. P.A. Harland, in ‘“The Most Ignorant People of All”: Pontic Peoples and Ancient Ethnic Hierarchies’ (Chapter 3), offers a critical examination of the ancient Greek sources and the ideologies under which they perceived the relative position of other, non-Greek ethnic groups. Greek philosophers of the classical, the Hellenistic and the Roman periods legitimise the ranking of other communities, mostly the Pontic tribes, under hegemonic hierarchies and seem to accept the superiority of the Greeks. As Harland clarifies, others (such as Ephoros or even Strabo) questioned such approaches and offered alternatives. M. Oller Guzmán, in ‘Facing the Greeks: Some Responses of Local Populations to Greek Settlers’ (Chapter 4), examines how Greek colonists were perceived by the local populations. The examples are not limited to the Black Sea, but they expand to the wider Mediterranean, wherever Greeks had founded colonies and emporia, revealing that the perception of the Greeks by locals was a complex issue, with both positive and negative outcomes. Oller Guzmán points out the need to be cautious when examining the texts as they can be filtered or even distorted by biases and prejudice. A.V. Podossinov's study on ‘Grausame und edle Skythen: Paradoxe Barbarenprojektionen bei antiken Autoren (besonders Strabon)’ (Chapter 5) examines two contradictory perceptions about the Scythians, who were considered cruel or inhuman and at the same time noble and uncorrupted. Obviously, these perceptions were filtered through Greek and Roman ideals and predilections, although, later, Strabo, through several examples, quoted both the positive and the negative sides. Podossinov highlights how the ecumenical approach launched by Christianity dissolved the contrasts between Greeks, Romans and the Scythians under the belief that all ethne were equal on heaven and earth.

Part B gathers ‘Studies in the Royal Dynasties of Pontos and the Bosporan Kingdom’. M. Dana, in ‘The Bosporan Kings and the Greek Features of Their Culture in the Black Sea and the Mediterranean’ (Chapter 6), discusses the way in which Bosporan Rulers were portrayed in contemporary literature. Their concern to be commemorated for their cultural patronage and royal beneficence towards Greek societies reveals the reflection of Greek culture and the ideals of the Second Sophistic upon the Bosporan Kings – how Philhellenism and especially Greek paideia was combined with diplomatic friendship and how such a policy contributed to their cultural and economic prosperity in the first century bc. G. Payen, in ‘Les suites de la paix d'Apamée en mer Noire’ (Chapter 7), illuminates the consequences of the Apameia Peace treaty. As deduced by written and numismatic sources, Rome was still a distant political factor and the rulers of Pontos and Bithynia, Pergamon and Rhodes were pursuing their own political agendas. It was the rise of Mithridates VI and his goals to dominate over Asia Minor and the Black Sea that urged Rome to become militarily involved and finally establish her dominion. L. Ballesteros Pastor, in ‘The Return of the King: Pharnakes II and the Persian Heritage’ (Chapter 8), discusses Pharnakes II, son of Mithridates VI, to whom Pompey granted the Bosporan Kingdom in 63 bc. Ballesteros Pastor describes the efforts of Pharnakes II to be seen as another great Achaemenid Ruler by linking himself to his ancestral Iranian roots. His revival of the Achaemenid tradition was well received by the local population who accepted him as a legitimate heir of the ancient Persian Kings, as also seen in the preservation of the Iranian royal titulature by his successors until the second century ad. Coşkun and G. Stern's contribution, ‘Queen Dynamis and Prince Aspurgos in Rome? Revisiting the South Frieze of the Ara Pacis Augustae’ (Chapter 9), contradicts a previous proposal (by B. Rose) that a boy figure depicted on the south frieze of the Ara Pacis should be interpreted as Aspurgus, the future king of Bosporus accompanied by Queen Dynamis. Although Coşkun and Stern accept that this figure represents an oriental boy, they reject any identification with Aspurgus and suggest an identification with the Parthian crown prince Phraates IV, considering Parthia more important to the Romans than the Kingdoms of Bosporus, Armenia or Kommagene. Additionally, on grounds of portrait iconography and typology and of historical evidence, they reject any representation of Queen Dynamis on the Ara Pacis. They perceive the south and north friezes as an idealised representation of the procession of 13 bc, with a declaration of Rome's global hegemony visualised by the placement, at each side, of one boy prince from all three continents (Europe, Africa, Asia).

Part C, ‘Studies in the Historical Geography of Pontos and Kolchis’, is shorter than the previous two sections. The peculiarity lies in the fact that this part includes three chapters of only one author, Coşkun – explained as a result of last-minute adjustments. Chapter 10, ‘Deiotaros Philorhomaios, Pontos und Kolchis’, focuses on Deiotaros Philorhomaios, promoted by Pompey to the King of Asia Minor after the Third Mithridatic War (64 bc). Although Strabo places the granted territories in the areas around Pharnakeia and Trapezus, up to Kolchis and Armenia Minor, their exact boundaries remain rather vague, due to the different translations of this text by scholars. Coşkun attempts to specify Deiotaros’ territories by comparatively examining the passages of Strabo's Geography, the views given by other scholars and a description of the region. His second study, ‘Pompeius und die “elf Städte” der Provinz Pontus’, attempts to clarify the exact number of cities (eleven or thirteen?) that Pompey founded, re-founded or included in the newly established province, Bithynia et Pontus, by comparing Strabo's text to other authors and shedding light on Strabo's view of the province, both as a political and as a geographical entity. Lastly, in ‘Searching for the Sanctuary of Leukothea in Kolchis’, Coşkun engages with a sanctuary of Leukothea recorded somewhere in Kolchis. By rejecting previous suggestions and through a comparative examination of the ancient texts, historical events and a topographical survey, he proposes that the Leukotheion should be sought near the coast, as a landmark for seafarers. He suggests as possible locations either the Mtsvane Kontskhi (the modern Batumi Botanical Garden) or the Tsikhisdziri hills.

The final Part D is even shorter, comprising two studies on ‘Cultural Change in Late Antiquity’. D. Ruscu, in ‘Christianity and Urban Changes in Late Roman Scythia Minor’ (Chapter 13), re-evaluates the impact of Christianisation on the urban space of Scythia Minor during late antiquity. Ruscu focuses on four major cities (Tomis, Kallatis, Istros and Tropaeum Traiani) from the foundation of the province under Diocletian and Constantine until the early seventh century, when the province was disbanded. From the fourth and fifth centuries onwards churches in Scythia increased in numbers, were erected in nodal points within the cities or at their peripheries, on the one hand causing a fragmentation of the urban space and on the other hand forming multiple urban centres. Lastly, H. Elton's ‘Agricultural Decision Making on the South Coast of the Black Sea in Classical Antiquity’ (Chapter 14) is based on archaeological and literary evidence from Paphlagonia and Pontus viewed from a new perspective. Leaving temporarily aside climate changes, his modern approach seeks to understand how measurable factors, such as the availability of land, manpower and funds, the market operation (risks and profits), the taxation systems and the existing technology affected the decision-making mechanisms regarding crop selection in Anatolia for a long time period.

This volume does not neglect previous methodologies, but it approaches the Black Sea coastline under new concepts. Most collective works released almost simultaneously address a great diversity of subjects, including in the same publication purely archaeological and purely historical studies. This volume avoids such a mixture and illuminates the mechanisms that made the Black Sea Littoral so important from the archaic period until late antiquity by focusing on specific historiographical issues of the region. Through the critical and comparative study of ancient authors and historical events it allows readers to comprehend the interaction between ethnicities, the formation of religious and cultural identities, hierarchies, settlement patterns, but also the inversion of stereotypes, cultural affiliations and diplomatic policies or even the perception of urban space through time. Therefore, and despite some weaknesses (uneven parts, few illustrations and of medium quality), this volume offers a fresh and modern presentation of the Black Sea Littoral.