Penalties in action in classical Athens. A preliminary survey

Abstract

This paper attempts to look at the inner workings of the punitive system in ancient Athens. After a brief survey of the range of penalties avail-able in Classical Athens (capital punishment, exile and outlawry, disenfran-chisement, financial penalties, imprisonment, corporal penalties), it proceeds first to examine their nature (as they frequently fail to meet our criteria of punishment), and then to map them on the substance vs. procedure controversy regarding the Athenian legal system. The last two sections of the paper are devoted to the manner in which penalties were imposed (summary punish-ment, punishment by sentence, “automatic” punishment) and executed (private vs. public execution of court verdicts; coercive measures etc.).