I saw an article where a Scottish Economist calculated World GDP since time of Christ and wondered how that could possibly be done.
The Answer
I, too, have seen Angus Maddison's estimates going back to 1 AD. This involves a lot of guess work, but most people seem to think that it's on the mark. If I recall correctly, he essentially assumes for these early years that most people lived near the biological subsistence level. Find more about his work at this home page http://www.eco.rug.nl/~Maddison/
Going back even further into the past are studies based on skeletal remains. Check out Richard Steckel's research -- for example, at http://www.acs.ohio-state.edu/researchnews/archive/humhelth.htm
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