<p>Tebtunis, an ancient village formerly located in lower Egypt, is one of the most enduring subjects of study from the civilization’s Roman era. This fascinating volume details a dozen family papers that have survived from the second century AD. Belonging to the families of various different classes, this unique documentation provides a rare opportunity to explore how local elites under Roman rule exploited their wealth in the countryside and interacted with its rural inhabitants. </p><p><i>The Ties That Bind</i> is the first book to investigate these family papers holistically, focusing on the economic activities in which the families engaged: land leases, loans in cash and kind, and the employment of managers and laborers on landed estates. This study also addresses strategy and decision-making among both elite families and villagers, the complexity of interfamilial relationships, and the implications of this social networking. This micro-historical study elucidates the diversity of socio-economic life in a village where no single family dominated.</p>
