18 EDwaRD M. HaRRIs aND DavID M. LEwIs
command high prices. According to Herodotus (3.131), Democedes of Croton
came to Aegina to practice medicine and was offered one talent by the people
there. The Athenians then lured him away with an offer of one hundred mnai but
were outdone by Polycrates of Samos, who offered him two talents.
It is also possible to speak of a market for credit in the ancient Greek world.
Douglas North and Robert Thomas have demonstrated the importance of
strong property rights for economic growth in the modern United States,^93
and North has shown that inefficient property rights created a barrier to eco-
nomic growth in early modern Spain.^94 Edward M. Harris takes these insights
from New Institutional Economics and applies them to ancient Greece. It has
been argued that most credit was obtained from friends, family and neighbours,
but Harris’ contribution to this volume shows that the market for credit in
areas like Attica and the island of Tenos extended far beyond this limited circle.
The existence of property records in Greek cities gave individuals verifiable
title to their assets. This meant that lenders could be more confident that bor-
rowers had title to the security they offered for loans and thus make ‘credible
commitments’ in the language of New Institutional Economics, which in turn
made credit more easily available. As a result, loans were made well beyond the
closed circle of friends and neighbours that have traditionally dominated dis-
cussion of this issue.
Beyond the realm of private access to credit, there is also some evidence for
lending between cities. Aeschines (3.104) relates how Demosthenes made a
loan of one talent at an interest rate of 12 percent to the people of Oreus, who
pledged their public revenues as security. Around 358/7 the Athenian politi-
cian Androtion was praised for making a loan without interest to the people
of Arcesine (IG XII 7, 5, lines 4–8). But these were probably unusual arrange-
ments. Even though Androtion was not out to make money, Demosthenes
was clearly looking for a profit and attempted to reduce risk by insisting on
security. On the other hand, the temple of Apollo on Delos made loans both to
Delians and to foreigners and neighbouring cities, but the latter were all from
the Cyclades. As Reger notes,The best-preserved account of the fourth century, the so-called Sandwich
Marble (ID 98 = 1635 = Tod II.125), gives the interest paid on loans by
thirteen neighbouring states (including Karystos on Euboia) amounting
to a borrowed capital of 260,600 dr, over 43 talents.... Paros borrowed
money in the fourth century; all three cities on Amorgos were forced to
borrow in the fourth and third centuries; Ios likewise borrowed funds
for various public purchases; and on Keos, Ioulis borrowed money in the
third century and another city, perhaps Karthaia, had to borrow pathet-
ically small sums month to month. Likewise individuals who borrowed
from Delian Apollo during the Amphiktyonia came from Tenos, Karystos
on Euboia, Andros, and Galessos on Syros.^95