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IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE FIFTH CENTURY B.C., Poseidonia, ancient colony of wealthy Sybaris, was the preeminent Greek city on the Tyrrhenian littoral. By ca 450 B.C. Poseidonia could boast, among her many city structures, three impressive temples, a bouleuterion in the agora, and the imposing sanctuary at Foce del SeIe. Nevertheless, by the end of the century, this flourishing Greek city-state suffered a major cultural transformation: the Lucanians invaded the SeIe plain, occupied the city, and overwhelmed the choral The Lucanian occupation of Poseidonia, or Paestum as the city came to be known,2 induced a major demographic change as well as the creation of a Lucanian ruling class. Burial customs were substantially altered,3 and archaeological evidence indicates that the population level in Paestum and its territory rose to an extent unparalleled in the earlier Greek or later Roman periods of the city.4
While most studies of fourth-century Paestum have focused on Lucanian cultural material (such as the splendid tomb paintings), little or nothing has been said concerning the fate of the Greek population which was overwhelmed by the conquering Lucanians. In fact, much work still needs to be done on the subject of relationships between the Italic peoples and the Greeks of Magna Graecia in the fourth and third centuries B.C.
As will be shown below, a close look at the archaeological evidence suggests that Greeks were an important element in Paestum's fourth-century society and a major part of Paestum's culture.5 It appears that they lived in harmony with the occupiers and had a symbiotic relationship with both the Lucanian population and the Lucanian rulers. An analysis of the archaeological evidence below suggests that many of the Greeks were artisans living among a Lucanian population that was becoming increasingly hellenized. Some Greeks, as will be suggested, merged with the Lucanian elite. During the third quarter of the fourth century Alexander the Molossian and his armies arrived at Paestum. Most scholars assume that Alexander captured Paestum and engendered an interim Greek administration. As will be discussed below, however, the Epirot king probably did not conquer Paestum but allied himself with the hellenized city and its leaders to repel Paestum's enemies, tribes from the interior. These events further support the proposition that the relationship between...