BCE, how it worked, its institutions, and its important historical figures. Demos does not stop with a simple description but intends to allow all of its readers, whatever their background, to have access to the real evidence on which our knowledge of Athenian Democracy is based. We hope to make the study of the first democracy as democratic as possible. The study of ancient history is the study of ancient sources, which are the evidence on which accounts and descriptions are based. All textbooks, scholarly publications, and documentaries in any medium are based on the same body of ancient evidence.
Ancient sources can be difficult to find and difficult to interpret.
For this reason, many books on Athenian Democracy that are aimed at a general audience do not refer to the ancient sources, or do so only occasionally. Books aimed at an audience of specialists, on the other hand, are more likely to refer to specific sources as they interpret events. This allows some readers to be less dependent on the author, but only those readers who are trained in ancient history. Classical Athenian Democracy , and the other projects underway as part of The Stoa , will bridge the gap between history written for general audiences and history written for professional specialists. Demos will offer all readers an account of Athenian Democracy organized by professional historians, but will also allow readers to access, understand, and interpret the sources for themselves.