ABSTRACT
As dusk fell on the ancient world, numerous activities ensued, some of which were fundamentally different from what people did during the daytime. Some artifacts, features, and buildings associated with these activities were particular to the dark, while other material culture was transformed in meaning as the sun set. So much of our economic, social, and ritual lives take place at night, and yet, until recently, relatively little archaeological research has been undertaken specifically on nocturnal quotidian practices. Many tasks are uniquely suited to the affordances of nighttime. Night is often quieter, and its darkness provides refuge from heat and offers freedom from surveillance and the demands of the day. In this chapter, we consider those who worked the ‘nightshift’ in ancient societies—from the hunters, agriculturists, sewage workers, and ironsmiths to the poets, historians, astronomers, navigators, rebellion leaders, military strategists, and ritual specialists. Drawing on archaeological data and textual evidence, we argue that nighttime in the ancient world was anything but sleepy.
