Here (as has been said) amicable interest-free loans or a kind of social assistance from family and friends was involved. But there was more to it than that: the structure of the classical Athenian credit mechanism was complex. Its main feature was the eranos. This might or might not be interest-free, and was organized by family and friends. The loan, the object of which was to make a profit out of bankers and private persons, was at the disposal of the inhabitants, and more particularly the traders, of Attica.
Eranos-type loans were not intended as gifts. Valuable assets of the acceptor were frequently mortgaged in order to secure repayment. A person who defaulted on payment was liable to be prosecuted and taken to court. An eranos, in contrast to a khreos (a conventional debt), was assembled from various sources. In one case there is reference to repayment by instalments.
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