although much of it was intra- rather than inter-regional change. In
succeeding chapters, we will see that although there were quite a few
prosperous towns in Macedonia (and in Thrace) in the period under
consideration in this book, at least as much attention needs to be given to
country estates when we consider the average standard of living of the
region’s inhabitants. This will, in turn, affect the way we can compare
standards with other regions.
The Odrysian royal dynasty relied on a pool of‘noble’families in a
manner similar to that of the Argeads. Hesychius includes in his Lexicon
the termZibythidesas a term for noble Thracian men and women.^74 As
in the case of the Macedonian‘nobility’, very little textual evidence
survives that provides specific information about this social group, or
groups. Xenophon’s writings provide a range of references of rather
uneven quality. In theArt of Horsemanship(8.6), he refers to the
Odrysian practice of racing downhill, like the Persians. Elsewhere his
remarks are less complimentary and to some extent give a rather dis-
torted view of who the Odrysians were. Xenophon refers on a number of
occasions to Odrysians during the just over a month that he and his
fellow mercenaries spent in the service of Seuthes, a regional prince and
commander, who never aspired to the kingship. Although the author was
not particularly concerned with the niceties of political relationships, he
makes clear that those who carried out administrative roles were all
Odrysians and that there was a clear structure of command between
the central authority, which plays a rather minor role in theAnabasis,
and regional administrators such as Seuthes, who is made in this narra-
tive to have abused his authority (if the statement put into the mouth of
one senior representative of king Medokos is at all trustworthy:
Anab.7.7.3; 7.11). An unnamed ambassador of Medokos, described by
Xenophon in a rather opaque way as a very powerful man coming from
those who had come down from the interior (7.7.2), was brought in as a
witness by Medosades, a lieutenant of Seuthes and a local landowner, to
enforce the law of the central power. The logic behind Xenophon’s story
confirms the robustness of central administration. There is no evidence
that regional dominions, such as Seuthes’, somehow undermined the
overall authority at the centre.^75 Individual self-appointed agents, such as
Herakleides of Maroneia (who had no formal status with Seuthes), may
(^74) Hesych. s.v.ZØâıŁßäåò.ƃ ̈æAfi óóÆØ Bfi ̈æAfi Œåò ªíÞóØïØ.
(^75) Medokos: Xen.Anab. 7.2.33, 3.13–16; Odrysians: 7. 2.32, 5.1, 5.15, cf. Thuc. 2.97.3;
Medosades:Anab.7.1.5; 2.10, 2.23–25, 7.15–16; Medokos’patronage of Seuthes as a young
man, and provision of cavalrymen to enable the restoration of Seuthes’inheritance: 7.2.32;
Stronk 1995, 186, 269–73 for commentary; Archibald 1998, 122–5 on Seuthes (II); 123 and
114 Societies and economies