Circa 115 B.C.E.-53 B.C.E.
Entrepreneur And Politician

Financial Wizard. Marcus Licinius Crassus lost his brother and father in the civil strife during the early part of the first century B.C.E. To carry on his family's aristocratic heritage and to be a substantial player in politics, he needed to build up his finances. In this pursuit he excelled. He not only made money off of farmland (the traditional financial base for a Roman senator), he also invested in mining and loaning operations. He was also unusual for having made money off of urban real estate in Rome, where he would buy at a low price properties that burned (a common phenomenon) and then salvage them. He maintained a skilled workforce of slaves whom he would rent out. Because such open interest in finances was considered degrading for a Roman senator, Crassus earned...