This article examines the private orations of classical Athens for evidence of the relations between brothers, brothers and sisters, and brothers-in-law. Although affection could exist between male siblings, Athenian inheritance laws, requiring equal division of the paternal estate among male heirs, stimulated conflict between brothers. Females, however, could not inherit if they had brothers, neither were their dowries equal to their brothers' share of the patrimony. The interest of the natal family in giving a substantial dowry and in contracting a secure and prestigious marriage for the daughter often led to ties between brothers and sisters and cooperation between brothers-in-law. When cross-siblings or their descendants contended for the same estate, however, conflicts did arise, at times aggravated by the institution of adoption.
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