ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the role of the individual in the nature of classical collecting. It focuses on the notion of the individual living within or outside the community. The chapter also discusses the moral and ethical aspect of individual as this is presented in Hellenistic philosophy. It deals with the refutation of the arguments concerning the decline of the city-state during the Hellenistic period. The chapter explores the interrelationship between individuals and material culture in the classical world. Religion in the Hellenistic age has been thought to illustrate most clearly the 'discovery of individualism'. Collections are one of the main expressions of the conflict between the cultural structure of commoditization and the individual's attempts to bring a personal value order to the universe of things. The traditional approach regarding individualism has been based upon arguments deriving from philosophy, religion and the artistic expression of the period, mainly sculpture, portraiture and biography.
