Ancient Greece - An Illustrated History

Ancient Greece

AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY

Marshall Cavendish
Reference
New York

Marshall Cavendish This publication represents the opinions
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CONTENTS

Foreword 4 Macedon and Alexander

Bronze Age Greece the Great 154

The Minoans 6

Mycenae and Troy After Alexander 166

The Dark Age and 14
Greek Expansion
The Greek Legacy 174
Sparta and Athens
26
From Tyranny to
Democracy Glossary 184

Greek Religion 40 Major Historical Figures 187

The Birth of Drama 52 Index 188

The Persian Wars 64
80
The Age of Pericles 88
96
The Great 110
Philosophers
122
The Peloponnesian
War 138

FOREWORD

I n the preface to his lyric drama “Hellas” gives them the background needed to interpret
(1821), written the year before he died, the current circumstances. Such background is sore-
poet Percy Bysshe Shelley declared to readers ly needed, for the past has always served as the
throughout the English-speaking world that: prologue to the future. Beginning with a survey
“We are all Greeks. Our laws, our literature, our of Stone Age culture from the Paleolithic era and
religion, our arts, have their root in Greece.” For a study of the life of the island peoples inhabit-
citizens of the West, Shelley’s statement is as true ing Crete and the Cyclades, this book then
now as it was then. Take, for example, the evi- introduces its readers to the Bronze Age warrior
dence from our everyday language. Nouns in culture populated by the men and women who
common usage such as “democracy,” “tragedy,” were made immortal by the poet Homer in the
“odyssey,” “tyrant,” “theater,” and “poet,” as well Iliad: Agamemnon, Helen, Hector, and Achilles,
as the adjectives “spartan,” “stoic,” “comic,” among others.When the Mycenaean hegemony
“olympic,” “epic,” and “platonic,” testify to the fell apart, there followed a prolonged period of
enduring influence of the Hellenic past. decline, from whose ruins rose a system of city-
states such as those of Sparta, Corinth, Thebes,
At no time in recent history have the peoples and Athens. These cities in turn created eco-
of Europe and of Western civilization in general nomic engines, forms of art and architecture,
been as engaged as they are today in areas of the structures of government, techniques of diplo-
globe that were involved for centuries in repeat- macy, methods of warfare, and systems of philos-
ed conflicts and continuous cultural exchange ophy, religion, and law that are now applied
with the Greeks. Scarcely a day passes in which worldwide. The successes, failures, biases, and
an event in the Near East, western Asia, or South shortcomings of these systems remain of great
Asia does not make up some aspect of the daily consequence to us. The warning made by the
news cycle. Looking back to the last century, the Greek historian Herodotus to his audience in
British invasion of Iraq during the Anglo-Iraqi the fifth century BCE still pertains: the divinities
War in May 1941 marked the first time since who sanction prosperity will just as frequently
Alexander the Great’s siege of the island city Tyre destroy it.
in 333 BCE that armed forces of any nation had
marched east from the eastern shores of the Over time, this pan-Hellenic network of
Mediterranean Sea to the Mesopotamian city of Greek-speaking city-states absorbed and was
Babylon. That invasion occurred roughly 70 itself absorbed by neighboring cultures. The
years ago. How little the world changes! network became truly multicultural as it spread
westward throughout the Mediterranean region
Covering the major periods of Greek histo- into Sicily, portions of Italy, southern France,
ry, Ancient Greece:An Illustrated History brings the and the Iberian Peninsula, southward into Africa,
past alive to a new generation of students and

4

and eastward as far as the Hindu Kush and FOREWORD
northern India—where Alexander the Great
made the final thrusts of his military campaign. artifacts as well as presenting modern views of
Alexander’s death in Babylon in 323 BCE ancient sites—sustains the reader’s interest.
marked the beginning of the Hellenistic Age. Instructors will enjoy teaching from this book
It may indeed be no exaggeration to say that we and students who learn from it will come away
are still living in the Hellenistic Age, because with a strong sense that “the glory that was
the Greek cultural diffusion, quickened by Greece,” vis-à-vis Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “To
Alexander’s wide reach and later extended by Helen” (1845), is no frothy sentiment of poetic
the Romans and the Byzantines, has not yet hyperbole, but in fact an assertion well worth the
ended. scrutiny and analysis of every generation.

Ancient Greece: An Illustrated History has many Michele Ronnick
merits and is a commendable asset to the 21st-
century classroom. Its prose is clear and well- Michele Ronnick is president of the Classical
paced, and its pagination and format are visually Association of the Middle West and South and a pro-
attractive. In addition to the neat summations of fessor in the Department of Classical and Modern
information arranged in time lines and the valu- Languages, Literatures, and Cultures at Wayne State
able details of geography conveyed by the vol- University, Detroit, MI.
ume’s many maps, a positive boon is the book’s
illustrations. Additional related information is available in the
11-volume History of the Ancient and Medieval
The images are large, mostly in color, and World, second edition, and the corresponding
their varied arrangement—depicting actual online Ancient and Medieval World database at
www.marshallcavendishdigital.com.

5

BRONZE AGE
GREECE

TIME LINE In the third millennium BCE, a relatively sophisticated culture
grew up on both the Greek mainland and the surrounding
c. 6500 BCE islands. In particular, the inhabitants of the Cyclades began to
Farming produce beautiful works of sculpture.
communities
established on Greece consists of mainland Greece on third millennium BCE. In addition to a
Greek mainland. the Balkan Peninsula and a mass of knowledge of bronze, the invaders intro-
islands, large and small, scattered over the duced the swing-plow, which greatly
c. 3000 BCE Aegean Sea and extending as far south as improved farming methods. The period
Distinctive culture Crete in the Mediterranean.The climate between around 2800 and 2600 BCE
emerges on is volatile, with extreme fluctuations in (called Early Helladic I) was a time of
Cycladic islands temperature, strong winds, and sudden great change. Walled hilltop villages
in Aegean Sea. downpours of torrential rain. The main appeared, with a chief who ruled over
agricultural products are olives, grapes, the surrounding farmland. Trading with
c. 2800 BCE and figs. In ancient times, both cattle and other communities, some of them over-
Invaders with horses were grazed in the eastern central seas, led to the emergence of a wealthy
knowledge of regions of mainland Greece. class, who built their houses of stone
metalwork arrive rather than mud bricks. Along with the
on Greek mainland; Greece in the Stone Age rise of this merchant class came the
beginning of craftsman class and the use of symbols to
Early Helladic I There is evidence of Stone Age hunters mark goods and seal containers.
period. living in mainland Greece in the
Paleolithic Age, and by the seventh mil- During the period called Early
c. 2600 BCE lennium BCE it seems that farming Helladic II (c. 2600–2100 BCE), this civ-
Beginning of Early communities were established. These ilization peaked, building settlements
Helladic II period. early farmers lived in villages of circular surrounded by towering stone walls and
Sophisticated mud huts, grew grains, peas, and lentils, containing houses with several rooms.
stone settlements and kept animals, such as pigs, cattle, Excavations at Lerna have uncovered
built. goats, and sheep, for meat and milk. The what was probably an important civic
farmers supplemented their diet by building, the massive House of Tiles,
c. 2100 BCE hunting and fishing and made stone tools which was built two stories high with a
Migrants from such as axes and chisels. By the end of the balcony on the upper story. The house
central Asia Neolithic Age, people were living in takes its modern name from a number of
arrive on Greek walled towns, in which some large hous- small, flat tiles of baked clay that were
mainland to es had a central hall—indicating that found in its ruins. The tiles may have
establish Minyan some individuals had now become covered a sloping roof and are thought to
culture. wealthier than others, or had even be the earliest roof tiles ever discovered.
become chieftains.
c. 1500 BCE From 2100 BCE onward, successive
Traditional date On the mainland, metalworking waves of hostile migrants from central
given for eruption invaders arrived in the first part of the Asia swept through the Balkan Peninsula
of volcano on
Greek island of
Thera.

6

BRONZE AGE GREECE

and destroyed most of the fortified uncovered it in the late 19th century CE This marble
towns. In their place, the invaders built when he was excavating at Orchomenus, sculpture, made on
dwellings of more primitive, one-storied, a city in Boeotia that rose to prominence the island of Keros
houses. The invaders brought with them in the Mycenaean era. Schliemann around 2000 BCE,
a new kind of pottery, which was made named both the pots and the people who depicts a musician
on a wheel and whose angular shapes had produced them Minyan. These playing the harp.
seemed to imitate metal pots. This pot- Minyans spoke an Indo-European lan-
tery was first discovered by the German guage and have since come to be consid-
archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann, who ered the first Greeks.

7

ANCIENT GREECE

ITALY

Scoglio del
Tonno

SICILY

This gold goblet The invaders eventually integrated The Cyclades get their name from
dates to around with the indigenous inhabitants and the Greek word kyklos, meaning “circle,”
2100 BCE, an learned from them seafaring skills that because they are arranged roughly in a
era known to had been notably lacking. The general circle around the island of Delos, which
archaeologists level of culture remained low, however, was considered sacred to the god Apollo
as the Early for the Minyans. They lived in simple (see box, page 11).The islands have been
Helladic II period. “long houses” arranged in villages, and inhabited since very early times.There is
some of the villages were enclosed evidence of settlements on the larger
within walls. islands, such as Kythnos, Mykonos,
Naxos, and Milos, dating from the sixth
Island cultures millennium BCE.

Prior to the Early Helladic I period on These early Neolithic settlers proba-
the Greek mainland, another culture had bly came from southwestern Anatolia
started to develop on the Cycladic (present-day Turkey), and as they were
islands. Located in the southwestern seafaring people, they settled near the
Aegean Sea, the Cyclades are a group coasts on the chosen islands. The settlers
of more than 30 major islands formed grew barley and wheat, raised pigs, sheep,
from the peaks of mountain ranges sub-
merged long ago. The islands are rocky
and volcanic and are rich in miner-
als such as gold, silver, obsidian, and
marble, as well as the ores of lead, iron,
and copper.

8

BRONZE AGE GREECE

GREECE IN THE BRONZE AGE

GREECE Troy ANATOLIA
Orchomenus Aegean Sea LESBOS Miletus
Gla

Mycenae KYTHNOS DELOS
MYKONOS
Pylos
rranean Sea PAROS NAXOS

Medite MILOS CYCLADES

THERA

CRETE

and goats, and caught fish, particularly hard rock that the sculptors obtained
tuna, in the Aegean. There is evidence from Naxos. Details were then often
from some excavated sites that these peo- picked out in red and blue paint.
ple were familiar with copperworking
from around 4000 BCE. The figurines are extremely distinc-
tive in their style. To begin with, they
Cycladic art almost always portray women rather than
men.The elongated figures stand upright
From around 3000 BCE, the Cycladic with the head tilted back, while the arms
islanders began to develop a distinct cul- are usually folded across the chest, with
ture of their own. They became expert the left arm above the right.The legs and
at carving small, elegant figurines in feet touch one another. The statues vary
the pure white marble that they found in size enormously; the smallest are only
on the islands of Paros and Naxos. 2 inches (5 cm) tall, while the largest are
Archaeologists have discovered these almost life-size.
statuettes in burial chambers. To achieve
a smooth surface, the figures were Archaeologists are unsure about the
rubbed with emery stones, a dark, very purpose of these statuettes. Because
many of these figurines were found in

9

ANCIENT GREECE tombs, and because the form was usually
female, it is thought they may represent
The early goddesses who would protect the dead.
inhabitants of
Greece were skilled They could also have been votive fig-
at metalworking. ures (objects of prayer).
This gold The first modern discoveries
headband from of Cycladic figurines were made
around 2100 BCE in the 1880s CE. In the early 20th
depicts a group of
warriors. century CE, the statuettes became
fashionable with art collectors who
This ancient Greek admired them for their purity and
sculpture depicts a simplicity of form.
man carrying a calf.
Much of Bronze Age Cultural developments
Greek life revolved
around farming. This Early Cycladic era is divided
into two separate periods: Early
10 Cycladic I (c. 3200–2700 BCE) and
Early Cycladic II (c. 2700–2400
BCE), based on significant burial-site
finds at Grotta-Pelos and Keros-Syros,
respectively. Besides the female figurines,
other artifacts found in tombs of this
Early Cycladic period include a seated
male marble figure, depicted playing a
musical instrument, plus items such as
bowls, bottles, and vases. Because the
quality and quantity of goods vary from
grave to grave, archaeologists believe that

different levels of society were beginning BRONZE AGE GREECE
to be seen on the Cyclades at this time.
DELOS
As well as the beautiful white marble
of the Cyclades, another substance of The island of Delos figures in many Greek legends.The
benefit to the whole region was obsidi- very creation of the island was the subject of a myth.
an. This black, glassy volcanic rock was Poseidon, the god of the sea, together with Zeus, king of
found on Milos and was prized for mak-
ing knives or scraping tools. The the gods, was supposed to have used
islanders were able to profit by trading columns made of diamonds to secure
in obsidian. an enormous rock to the sea bed; this
rock became Delos. Delos was des-
Moving inland tined to be the birthplace of the
moon goddess Artemis and her twin
A significant shift in the population of brother, the sun god Apollo, who was
the Cyclades took place around 2500 also the god of poetry and music and
BCE.The communities that had been is often depicted holding a lyre (a form
living in simple villages close to the of small harp).
coasts to facilitate their fishing activities
started to move into the central parts of When the Ionians occupied the
the islands and to build citadels, Cyclades, they designated the
making the people less vulnera- island of Delos as their reli-
ble to attack. One particular gious capital, because they
citadel, found at Kastri on believed themselves to be
Syros, was encircled by a wall descended from Apollo. By
with six towers. the eighth century BCE, a large
religious festival dedicated to
From around 2000 BCE, the
grave goods become more Apollo was being held annually
sophisticated, and it is thought on Delos.
that the Cycladic islanders may
have had contact with, and been results. Ash and volcanic debris
influenced by, the Minoan civiliza- rained down on Thera and the sur-
tion that was developing on the rounding islands.The explosion was
nearby island of Crete. In more than so violent that it actually split Thera
500 tombs excavated near Kastri, into several pieces, resulting in one
terra-cotta, marble, and gold vessels large island and several smaller ones;
have been found, along with pins much of the original island disap-
made of bronze and silver that were peared into the sea. Volcanic debris
probably used to fasten garments. was lifted high into the atmosphere
The fact that these pins are engraved and deposited thousand of miles away.
with designs also found in Egypt and One town that was devastated by
mainland Greece suggests that the the eruption was Akrotiri. As the vol-
Cycladic islanders were regularly trad-
ing with those countries. Cycladic art is highly distinctive.This
statuette from around 2600 BCE depicts a
Volcanic eruption woman standing with her arms folded.

Some time around 1500 BCE (or possi- 11
bly earlier; see box, page 12), a volcano
on the southerly island of Thera (present-
day Santorini) erupted with cataclysmic

ANCIENT GREECE

THE EXPLOSION AT THERA

The volcanic eruption on the island of Thera several decades, this theory was acknowledged to
was one of the major events to occur in the be true. However, from the 1970s onward,
Mediterranean region in the second millennium archaeologists increasingly began to dispute the
BCE. Ash from the explosion was thrown so far date, as radiocarbon evidence began to suggest
into the sky that some of it has been found in that the disaster may have occurred much earlier,
Greenland and North America.The eruption around 1625 BCE.
would have caused huge tidal waves to crash into
other Aegean islands, including Crete, which is In 2006, a new theory was proposed in an article
why the aftereffects of the explosion have some- published in the magazine Science. Research by
times been blamed for the downfall of the Danish geologist Walter Friedrich suggested that
Minoan civilization. the eruption occurred between 1627 and 1600
BCE. Friedrich’s conclusion was based on radio-
Traditionally, the date of the Thera eruption has carbon dating of an olive branch that was buried
been placed at around 1500 BCE.That date was in the lava. Friedrich’s theory did not settle the
originally put forward in 1939 because pottery argument, however.While many geologists and
found buried by the eruption on Thera closely archaeologists have supported his claims, others
resembled Egyptian pottery from 1500 BCE. For have questioned his findings.

The island of
Santorini, called
Thera in ancient
times, is now a
popular tourist
destination.

12

BRONZE AGE GREECE

cano exploded, enormous boulders came into that of the Mycenaeans.The Cyclades Two young boys
crashing down on the town and the were also in contact with the Phoenicians, box in this fresco
sky darkened with ash. Next, tons of who visited the islands to trade for pre- found in the town
molten lava engulfed the hapless town, cious metals. By around 1000 BCE, the of Akrotiri.
which was buried under 16 feet Cycladic culture had completely disap-
(5 m) of debris and so preserved almost peared. Most of the islands had been set-
intact, rather like the later Roman town tled by Ionians from Anatolia, while
of Pompeii. Dorians from northwestern Greece had
occupied Milos and Thera.
Cycladic life
See also:
When the town of Akrotiri, on Thera, The Minoans (page 14) • Mycenae and Troy
was eventually excavated, it gave a very (page 26)
clear picture of what life was like in the
Cyclades before around 1500 BCE. The
people lived in houses consisting of sev-
eral rooms, arranged on either two or
three stories. The narrow streets of the
town were equipped with a simple
drainage system for removing sewage.
The houses contained wooden furniture
and pottery and, on the ground floor,
large earthenware jars for storing food-
stuffs such as grain, vegetables, dried fish,
wine, and oil.

One room in each house was
arranged as a shrine and decorated with
wall paintings (frescoes) showing land-
scapes with animals, birds, and flowers
such as lilies and crocuses. In other hous-
es excavated at Phylakope on Milos, fres-
coes have been found depicting battles,
festivals, and, in one famous painting, a
school of flying fish.

Because no human remains have
been found at Thera, it is thought that
the inhabitants may have had time to
escape, but where they went is a mystery.
Another mystery linked to Thera is that
of the lost world of Atlantis, which was
the subject of later Greek legends. It has
been thought that these legends may
refer to Thera.

End of Cycladic culture

From around 1500 BCE, the Cyclades
came increasingly under the influence of
the Mycenaeans on mainland Greece, and
Cycladic culture was gradually absorbed

13

THE
MINOANS

TIME LINE The Minoan culture, which flourished on Crete between around
2500 and 1450 BCE, was one of the first major cultures to
c. 3000 BCE emerge in Europe. Much of what is known about the Minoans has
People living in been gained through excavations at Knossos.
Aegean begin to
make bronze by In the spring of 1900 CE, there was great extending over 6 acres (2.4 ha). Evans
mixing copper excitement on the island of Crete in the named it the Palace of Minos (see box,
and tin; dawn of Mediterranean Sea. British archaeologist page 18). The 1,400 rooms, which
Minoan culture Arthur Evans and his team had just included ceremonial chambers, were
on Crete. unearthed the first signs of a sophisticat- connected by corridors and staircases,
ed Bronze Age civilization on the island. and many of the walls were decorated
c. 2000 BCE The excavations were centered on a large with elaborate paintings showing young
First large palace mound, called Kephala (or Knossos), in men and women and more sea creatures.
complexes built at the north of the island. Local legend had There were also paintings of bulls, sug-
Knossos and it that this was the site of a great palace gesting that the palace was indeed the
Phaistos. belonging to the mythical King Minos. source of the Minotaur legend.
According to the legend, Minos’s palace
c. 1700 BCE was home to a monster known as the The site that Evans had discovered
Early palaces Minotaur, which lived in a labyrinth and was the center of a Bronze Age culture
destroyed, either devoured young men and women as sac- that flourished on Crete from around
by invaders or by rificial victims (see box, page 20). 2500 to 1450 BCE. It was the first
an earthquake; sophisticated civilization to develop in
later rebuilt. The first finds were fragments of pot- Europe; it was a civilization centered on
tery decorated with images of sea crea- trade and an efficient bureaucracy, and
c. 1525 BCE tures such as starfish, dolphins, sea urchins, unlike most other early civilizations, it
Kings based and octopuses.The subject matter of the seemed entirely unwarlike. Prior to the
at Knossos reach designs suggested that the pottery was Minoans (as Evans called these people),
height of power. produced by a seagoing people. Even life on Crete had been primitive.
more exciting were the fragments of a
c. 1500 BCE wall painting that showed a man in a The Neolithic period
Volcanic eruption loincloth carrying a vase. Similarly
on nearby island clothed figures had been painted on the Before around 6000 BCE, Crete may
of Thera results in walls of ancient Egyptian tombs, where have been uninhabited, but in the sixth
vast quantities of they were identified as the Keftiu (island millennium BCE, groups of people
ash showered people) paying tribute to the pharaoh. It from Anatolia settled in mainland Greece
over Crete. seemed that the Cretans and the Keftiu and on Crete, bringing with them a
could have been one and the same. knowledge of farming. These early
c. 1450 BCE
Minoan civilization Very soon, evidence of walls, floors, This mosaic depicts the Greek hero Theseus
comes to end. and columns came to light, indicating
Palaces burned the presence of an enormous palace killing the Minotaur. According to legend, the
down, possibly
by Mycenaean Minotaur lived in a maze on Crete.
invaders.

14



ANCIENT GREECE This ivory figurine was found in the

Cretan settlers found a large island (the palace at Knossos. It dates to around the
fifth largest in the Mediterranean) with
mountains covered in trees and a large 17th century BCE.
fertile plain in the center.The warm cli-
mate made it a favorable Early Minoan (3000–2000)
area for growing crops. BCE), Middle Minoan
The farmers grew (2000–1600 BCE), and
barley, oats, and Late Minoan (1600–1050
wheat, as well BCE). However, other
as pulses and historians have chosen
peas. They kept to divide Minoan his-
goats, sheep, cattle, and pigs
and supplemented their diet by tory into three alternate periods
hunting and fishing.They fashioned pots spanning a shorter time: First Palace
out of clay by hand and made axes and (1900–1700 BCE), Second Palace (1650–
chisels from stones that they ground to 1540 BCE), and Third Palace (1450–
a sharp edge. 1200 BCE).

The Bronze Age During the Early Minoan period, the
Minoans started to use bronze to make
Around 3000 BCE, people living in metal tools such as daggers, adzes, and
the region of the Aegean discovered double-headed axes. They grew olives
how to make bronze by mixing cop- and grape vines and traded the resulting
per with tin, so beginning the peri- olive oil and wine with neighboring
od known as the Bronze Age. peoples in the Aegean, taking to the sea
The people living on Crete in the in ships propelled by a combination of
early Bronze Age built houses of oars and square sails attached to masts.
mud bricks. The houses had sepa- The Minoans used seals to stamp
rate living rooms, kitchens, and
workrooms.The Cretans became impressions on wet clay, possibly to seal
skilled metalworkers, producing storage jars to guard against theft.
beautiful jewelry in gold and They also began building extensive
silver.
settlements, although few traces of
At the same time that the them now remain.
Minoan civilization was devel-
oping on Crete, other cultures The age of the palaces
were developing in different parts
of the Mediterranean region. One cul- It was in the Middle Minoan
ture arose on a group of islands in the period that the Minoans started
Aegean called the Cyclades. The early to build great palaces at sites such as
inhabitants of the Cyclades are most Knossos, Phaistos, Mallia, and Zakro.
famous for the finely wrought figurines These palaces consisted of a complex of
that they carved out of stone.The Greek buildings surrounding a large open court
mainland saw the rise of another culture, and the main royal residence.The build-
the Helladic, which in its later stages was ings, which served as the island’s admin-
known as the Mycenaean civilization. istrative center, included workshops for
craftsmen and artisans, plus special stor-
When Arthur Evans was excavating age rooms for oil, wine, grain, and other
the palace at Knossos, he divided Minoan farming produce.
history up into three main periods: The first palaces have disappeared
almost completely, but there have been
16 numerous smaller finds from this period.

THE MINOAN WORLD THE MINOANS

Troy CRETE
ANATOLIA Knossos

Mallia
Phaistos Gournia Zakro

Aegean SeaGREECEAthens
Mediterranean SeaMycenae CYCLADES

Thera CANAAN

CRETE

One of the most striking of these finds is have a small central court that possibly
a type of thin-walled pottery called served as an air and light shaft. Some of
Kamares ware, which was produced on a the houses are shown with window
potter’s wheel and decorated with spirals openings painted bright red, which
and plant motifs in red, orange, yellow, might indicate that the early inhabitants
and white on a blue-black background. of Crete used oiled parchment as an early
This refined pottery was crafted by spe- type of windowpane.
cialized potters both for the domestic
market and for export. The palace at Knossos

A collection of small plaques found Around 1700 BCE, all the Minoan
in the palace at Knossos gives a good palaces were destroyed, either by earth-
idea of the architecture of this period. quakes or invaders. They were all soon
The plaques are made of faience (a fine rebuilt, however. The new palace at
grade of pottery covered with a glaze) Knossos became even more elaborate
and depict city houses built of stone, than its predecessor, with at least three
bound together with large wooden stories and many rooms, including a
beams. All the houses have a least two magnificent throne room. The kings of
floors and a flat roof, and many appear to Knossos reached the peak of their power

17

ANCIENT GREECE

THE PALACE OF MINOS

The Palace of Minos excavated by Arthur Evans was a stately throne carved out of gypsum and
at Knossos is one of the most fascinating backed by a colorful mural depicting griffins (a
archaeological sites of the ancient world.The site kind of mythical animal). Evans thought that this
covers a vast area around 3 miles (5 km) from room might have been used by the king to
the north coast of Crete, and it is thought that as receive visitors, although others have suggested it
many as 30,000 people lived and worked there might have been used for religious ceremonies.
in its heyday.
The eastern side of the palace contained the
Digging down, Evans discovered a palace five sto- royal apartments.The king’s room was a large
ries high in places, with the floors connected by a double room with a light well at one end and a
grand staircase.The whole palace was skillfully veranda facing east. Motifs of double axes were
designed to let light in and allow air to circu- carved on stone blocks found in the room, and
late—and to protect the occupants from the for this reason it was named the Hall of the
fierce summer heat. In winter, the doors would be Double Axes.The queen’s hall was decorated with
closed so that fireplaces could provide warmth. paintings of dolphins and a dancing girl. It con-
tained a bathroom in one corner, with an earth-
One very grand room was the throne room, enware bathtub that was probably filled by ser-
which opened off the central courtyard. Inside vants. A hole in the floor leading to the drains
made emptying it simple. In an adjoining room,
there was a toilet.This was simply a hole in a
stone slab with a drain beneath that carried the
waste away to a stream.

As well as these grand rooms, there was a multi-
tude of smaller rooms, all connected by corridors
and staircases, together with vast numbers of
underground storage rooms for the goods
brought in from the surrounding countryside.The
palace was a hive of activity. In addition to the
king, queen, and nobles, there were priests, store-
keepers, accountants and scribes, plus many ser-
vants and slaves. In the workshops around the
palace, there were craftspeople such as jewelers,
painters, potters, and carpenters busily plying
their trade to produce the wonderful artifacts of
the Minoan culture.

A pithos, or storage jar, stands amid the excavated
ruins of the palace at Knossos.The palace complex at
Knossos contained many storage rooms that would
have contained pithoi such as this. Pithoi were
usually used as containers for wine and olive oil.

18

THE MINOANS

between around 1550 and 1500 BCE, striking. They were long, narrow base- This artist’s
dominating the Aegean region and trad- ment rooms containing rows of enor- illustration depicts
ing extensively with the Greek mainland, mous storage jars called pithoi in which how the palace at
the Aegean islands, Anatolia (present-day grain, oil, and wine were kept. Knossos may have
Turkey), Egypt, and the Canaanite looked.The palace
Syrian coast. Social structure was spread over
a large area
The basic plan at Knossos—which Minoan society was divided into several and contained
was echoed in the other palaces—was regions and groups. Presiding over the several floors.
that of a large central courtyard sur- country as a whole was the king. Below
rounded by reception halls, living quar- the king were the nobles, who were
ters, workshops, and storerooms. The provincial rulers living in country man-
palace was not protected by fortifica- sions. A group of officials controlled the
tions, and its western side looked out operations of the merchants, who con-
over wide agoras (public courtyards used tributed to the region’s wealth through
for ceremonies and gatherings). The trade. In particular, merchants supplied
whole palace was supplied with water imported materials such as ivory to the
through an elaborate system of pipes, craftsmen who lived and worked in the
while drains and conduits removed waste palace. Below these classes came the
water and sewage from the site. The farmers, who produced the agricultural
storerooms at Knossos are particularly goods that were so important for the

ANCIENT GREECE

THE LEGEND OF THE MINOTAUR

According to Greek mythology, the When the son of Minos was mur-
god Poseidon sent a snow-white bull dered by the king of Athens, Minos
to King Minos of Crete, intending demanded that every nine years
that the king should sacrifice the bull Athens should send seven young
to Poseidon.When Minos refused men and seven young women to
to do this, Poseidon, in revenge, Minos in compensation.These
made Pasiphaë, the wife of Minos young people were fed to the
and queen of Crete, fall in love with Minotaur. Finally, the Athenian hero
the bull. As a result of this affair, she Theseus decided to put an end to
bore a child—a monster with a this practice. He offered himself as
human body and a bull’s head— one of the victims and sailed with
that was called the Minotaur. the others to Crete. Ariadne, the
daughter of Minos, fell in love with
To keep the Minotaur Theseus and offered to help him
safe, Minos commis- escape his fate. She gave him a ball
sioned the architect of thread, which he tied to the
Daedalus to build a entrance to the maze and unwound
labyrinth so complex as he went. At the center of the
that nobody could find maze, he found the Minotaur asleep
the way through it.When and killed him.Then, with the help
the maze was complet- of the thread,Theseus made his
ed, the Minotaur was escape, together with the intended
locked inside. victims he had rescued.

This drinking Minoans’ wealth.There was also a class of
vessel made in the scribes, who were kept busy recording
shape of a bull’s stocks of produce on clay tablets.
head was found at
Knossos. It was made The Minoans had a highly developed
between around 1900 religious life, and many priests and
and 1400 BCE. priestesses lived in the palaces. Rather
than building temples to their gods, the
Minoans held religious ceremonies in
their houses, at hilltop shrines, or in
special rooms in the palaces. Many gods
and goddesses were worshipped, but it
seems that one goddess, the mother (or
earth) goddess, was supreme. She watch-
ed over animals and plants and symbol-
ized fertility. Every year, she married a
young god who died when winter came
around but who came back to life in the

20

THE MINOANS

spring. Another important goddess was is Gournia, which stands on a ridge over- Athletes are shown
the snake goddess. Usually portrayed looking the sea around 38 miles (60 km) vaulting over a
holding a snake in each hand, she was east of Knossos. This town, excavated at charging bull in this
seen as the guardian of the house. around the same time as Knossos, con- fresco from the east
sisted of a maze of winding streets con- wing of the palace
Many replicas of bull’s horns carved necting small square houses and court- at Knossos. Experts
in stone have been found in Crete, sug- yards.The houses were up to three stories are divided over
gesting that the bull played an important and had flat roofs. The first floor usually whether bull leaping
part in some religious cult.There are also contained workshops or storerooms, was a religious
several wall paintings that show young while the living quarters were on the ritual or just a
men and women somersaulting over a second floor, which was reached by an dangerous sport.
charging bull. This sport possibly took outside staircase. From the tools found in
place in the palace courtyard and may the workshops, it is clear that the town’s
have been part of a religious ritual. inhabitants included potters, weavers,
metalsmiths, and carpenters, as well as
Minoan towns and villas fishermen and farmers.

Minoan palaces were encircled by large A number of villas have also been
cities, which were connected to each excavated on Crete, and they were all
other and to other Cretan towns by built to the same plan as the palaces,
paved roads. One famous Minoan town

21

The remains of the Minoan town of Gournia are extremely well albeit on a smaller scale. Some historians
preserved. Like a number of other Minoan towns, Gournia was the believe that these villas, which are all
site of a large palace. located within 7 to 10 miles (11 to 16
km) of each other, were the regional
THE PALACES AT PHAISTOS offices of a central power.

Knossos was just one of the many locations where Minoan art
Minoan palaces were built.Another location was Phaistos,
in the south of the island.The site was occupied by The interiors of the palaces were deco-
around 4000 BCE, but the first palace at Phaistos was rated with colorful murals, some made
not built until around 2000 BCE, roughly the same time up of abstract patterns, others depicting
as the palace at Knossos.What is now known as the plants, animals, and people. These paint-
“old palace” at Phaistos was destroyed by fire around ings are often called frescoes, but true
1700 BCE. Another palace was built in its place. frescoes are painted on wet plaster,
whereas the Minoan murals were paint-
Like the palace at Knossos, the “new palace” at Phaistos ed on dry plaster walls. The so-called
was built around a magnificent central courtyard, lined House of the Frescoes at Knossos is
with pillars.The royal quarters stood to the north. famous for its murals showing a park
Workshops were found to the east, while storerooms where various flowering plants are com-
were located to the west.The west wing also contained plemented by high-spouting fountains
rooms that were used for religious purposes; religious and a blue bird. Murals showing dolphins
figurines were found there and pictures of double and flying fish have been found in sever-
axheads (a religious motif) were carved into the walls. al other places.
Like the other great palaces, the palace at Phaistos was
destroyed around 1450 BCE when the Minoan civiliza- The paintings of men and women
tion came to an end. provide a clear idea of how the Minoans
looked and dressed.When taking part in
rituals, men often covered their bodies
with a type of red powder for ceremoni-
al purposes, so the men are often shown

22

painted red. Men usually wore their hair This fresco probably THE MINOANS
long, but were clean shaven. In some shows a Minoan
paintings, men are shown wearing just a priestess.The MINOAN WRITING
leather belt and a loincloth, while in woman depicted is
others they wear a kilt. Women wore sometimes known as The Minoans were one of the earli-
dresses with a long flounced skirt and La Parisienne est peoples to develop writing.
an open bodice that left their breasts because she From around 2000 BCE onward,
and arms bare, their jewelry consisted resembles the they began using a system of hiero-
of rings, bracelets, necklaces, and subjects of paintings glyphic or pictographic writing, with
earrings, and they had elaborate hair- by French artist signs in the shape of animals or
styles with strings of beads braided into Henri Toulouse- objects.This form of picture writing
their long hair. Lautrec. may have originated through con-
tact with the Egyptians, who were
Women often occupy a prominent also writing in hieroglyphics at this
position in these paintings. They are time. Nevertheless, very few of the
shown dominating ceremonies from a Minoan signs resemble those of
place of honor and performing dances in the Egyptians.
beautiful costumes. In the famous bull-
leaping fresco at Knossos, two young Around 300 years later, the Minoans
women are shown taking equal part with started writing in a simplified linear
a young man in the ceremony. script, which used signs to repre-
sent the different syllables in a
word.This script was usually
scratched on clay tablets, although
there is evidence that some kind of
paper (perhaps similar to the
papyrus of the Egyptians) was also
used, together with a form of ink.
Tablets in this script found at
Knossos bear stockkeeping records
of textiles, grain, animals, oils, and
spices. Arthur Evans named this
script Linear A.

No large statues from the Minoan
civilization have survived, but the
pedestals of what were presumably
wooden statues have been preserved. A
number of small statues have been found.
These are made of ivory (sometimes
inlaid with gold), bronze, or faience, and
they depict goddesses or priestesses, pray-
ing figures, acrobats, animals, and a few
tableaus, such as a stable with cattle or a
group of dancers. Occasionally, children
are portrayed.

23

ANCIENT GREECE

This ivory figurine depicts a Minoan acrobat taking part in a The pots and ceramic ware from this
bull-leaping ritual.The figurine was found in the palace at Knossos period show that there was a great tech-
and was made around 1550 BCE. nical and artistic tradition. Motifs from
the plant kingdom, inherited from the
HUMAN SACRIFICE earlier Kamares ware, were mingled with
images of marine creatures. These deco-
It seems clear that some religious rituals practiced rations were painted in dark colors on a
by the Minoans involved the slaughter of animals as a light background.
sacrifice to the gods. However, there may have been
an even more dramatic and sinister practice. In 1979, It is obvious from a number of other
a major sanctuary was excavated in the mountains found items that sections of Minoan
around 4.5 miles (7.2 km) south of Knossos. Among society were very affluent. Beautiful jew-
the items found were a cult statue and a number of elry was wrought in gold, while elegant
votive offerings.What caused the greatest excitement stone vases were made of rock crystal,
was evidence that when the sanctuary was destroyed obsidian (a kind of volcanic glass),
by an earthquake, a human sacrifice had been in alabaster, or marble. Gold signet rings
progress.The body of a young man found tied to a low engraved with scenes of rituals have also
altar had died as a result of having his throat cut. Other been found.
finds in Knossos have included children’s bones that
show knife marks, suggesting that child sacrifice took Other important sources of informa-
place—or even cannibalism.There have been further tion on Minoan life are the numerous
archaeological indications to support the idea that seals that have been found. They were
these were not isolated instances. engraved with many designs, including
geometric patterns and representations
of human beings and animals. After 2000
BCE, the seals bear a type of writing that
Arthur Evans termed hieroglyphic.Three

24

THE MINOANS

centuries later, this writing was replaced torch. Whatever the reason, the existing This fresco depicts a
by a simplified script called Linear A (see social order was overthrown. Minoan ship
box, page 23). Seals were used for placing entering a port.The
a personal or official stamp on objects as Invaders, probably Greek-speaking Minoans were highly
a signature.They were also used as orna- Mycenaeans from the mainland, came to successful traders.
ments and charms. dominate Crete. They made Knossos,
which had suffered relatively little
The Third Palace period damage, their administrative center,
but by 1300 BCE, the town appears
Around the 15th century BCE, the to have been destroyed by unknown
Minoan people suffered a series of disas- attackers. Occupied by the Mycenaeans,
ters. At the beginning of the century, the Crete became a Greek city-state, and
volcano on the island of Thera in the the Minoan civilization that had flour-
Cyclades erupted violently, causing cata- ished for more than 1,000 years was at
strophic destruction over a wide area. an end.
Around 50 years later, many Minoan
centers were destroyed by fire, and the See also:
palaces and other settlements may have Bronze Age Greece (page 6) • Mycenae
been ransacked before being put to the and Troy (page 26)

25

MYCENAE
AND TROY

TIME LINE The Mycenaean civilization was the first major culture to
develop on the Greek mainland. It flourished from around
c. 3000 BCE 1600 BCE until around 1250 BCE. According to legend, a major
First settlement rival of the Mycenaean kingdoms was the Anatolian city of Troy.
appears at Troy.
Around the same time that the Minoan Most of the knowledge about the
c. 1600 BCE civilization was flourishing on Crete, Mycenaeans is of fairly recent origin.
Mycenae becomes another culture was developing on the The obsession of a German archaeolo-
major power Greek mainland. This new culture was gist, Heinrich Schliemann (1822–1890),
on Greek the Mycenaean culture, which was with the story of Troy led to the city of
mainland. named after the ancient city of Mycenae, Mycenae being discovered in the 19th
one of the culture’s centers. The century CE. That Mycenaeans spoke
c. 1450 BCE Mycenaean civilization was not a single Greek was only established in 1952,
Mycenaeans kingdom; it consisted of a group of city- when a cryptographer succeeded in de-
invade Crete, states united by a common language and ciphering the script on clay tablets that
making Knossos way of life. Other great centers of had been found at Pylos and Mycenae
administrative Mycenaean society were the cities of (see box, page 30).
center; fortress Athens,Thebes, Pylos,Tiryns, and Gla.
at Tiryns built Schliemann and Homer
around this Unlike the Minoans, the Mycenaeans
time. were a warlike people. However, they The epic poems the Iliad and the
were also successful traders and skillful Odyssey, attributed to the Greek poet
c. 1275 BCE craftsmen. Their origins are still a mys- Homer, describe a Greek world in which
Tomb known as tery. Some historians believe they were a Agamemnon ruled Mycenae, the para-
Treasury of Greek-speaking people from the north- mount Greek city, while his brother
Atreus built east who migrated to mainland Greece Menelaus was king of Sparta and Pylos
at Mycenae. around 2000 BCE. Other experts, while and Ithaca were ruled by Nestor and
accepting that such people did arrive in Odysseus respectively. Both of these epics
c. 1250 BCE Greece, remain unconvinced that they were once regarded as complete fiction,
Mycenaean era were the Mycenaeans. Wherever they but historians now accept that they give
comes to end, came from, the Mycenaeans had become some very valuable glimpses into the
possibly as result a major power in the Aegean region by Mycenaean civilization of the 12th cen-
of invasion from 1600 BCE. They were to dominate the tury BCE.
the north. region for the next 400 years. Around
Troy VIIa, the 1450 BCE, they invaded Crete, where In the late 19th century CE, nothing
Troy of Homer, they made the city of Knossos their was known about Greek history prior to
destroyed. administrative center.They also occupied 800 BCE, but Heinrich Schliemann
many other Aegean islands and their became convinced that the world
c. 1050 BCE commercial empire extended through- described by Homer was based on fact
Troy VIIb destroyed; out the Mediterranean region. and that Troy and Mycenae had really
city abandoned existed. In 1876, Schliemann set out to
for several
centuries.

26

MYCENAE AND TROY

prove that Mycenae was the city of Dating from the has since been established that the mask
Agamemnon. While excavating a burial 16th century BCE, dates from the 1550s BCE, around 300
ground close to the ruins of Mycenae, this gold death mask years before the time of the Trojan War.
Schliemann came across a tomb contain- was discovered in a
ing many exquisite gold objects, includ- shaft burial at The city of Mycenae
ing a gold death mask—a replica of a Mycenae. At the
dead person’s facial features. Schliemann time, it was Like many other cities in the ancient
was convinced he had found the tomb of mistakenly believed world, Mycenae had been built on a hill
the Mycenaean king. “I have looked to have belonged to to make it easy to defend if attacked. At
upon the face of Agamemnon,” he the legendary king the top of the hill was the upper city, or
declared triumphantly in a telegram Agamemnon. citadel, which contained the royal palace.
written to the king of Greece. During the Late Mycenaean period (c.
Schliemann was mistaken, however. It 1550–1100 BCE), the citadel was sur-
rounded by a defensive wall almost half a

27

ANCIENT GREECE

mile (805 m) long, 30 feet (9.1 m) high, At the center of the citadel lies the
and at least 20 feet (6.1 m) thick. The palace, which covers an area of 200 by
wall was constructed of massive lime- 180 feet (61 by 55 m). Built on uneven
stone blocks so heavy that later genera- terrain, the palace probably gave the
tions believed the wall must have been impression of being a stepped or terraced
built by the Cyclopes, a mythical race of structure.The entrance to the palace was
one-eyed giants. As a consequence, this approached by a grand staircase, some of
type of masonry is called Cyclopean. which still survives.

On the west side of the fortress, the A royal residence
Lion Gate, the main gateway into the
city, was an impressive structure, crowned The palace was an enormously impor-
by two stone lions standing on their hind tant building. Besides housing the royal
legs on either side of a column.The lions family, it acted as a regional center and a
are thought to have been a symbol of military headquarters. In addition to a
kingship.The gate was closed by a set of throne room, the palace contained halls,
double doors, and the spindle holes for storerooms, and workshops. The core
these doors can still be seen in the room was the megaron—a large rectan-
threshold and the massive lintel. The gular room where the king presided over
doors were hung on the spindle ends that state business. This audience chamber
protruded from the holes. A feature of had a large central hearth where a fire
the gate that seems to bring the ancient was kept burning, and the walls were
city to life is the fact that the threshold painted with colorful scenes of daily life.
still shows traces of wear from the con-
stant passage of chariots and carts. The citadel, which contained several
houses as well as the palace, had many
HEINRICH SCHLIEMANN underground vaults and a system of
underground drains. A reliable water
Heinrich Schliemann, born in January 1822, in Germany, supply was crucial to the city, particular-
was the son of an impoverished pastor. Schliemann left ly in time of siege, and Mycenae had a
school at 14 and, after a succession of odd jobs, sailed secret underground reservoir outside the
for California, where he made a fortune during the wall of the citadel. Historians believe that
Gold Rush. Schliemann next established himself in the water was brought into the citadel by
Russia, where he became a successful businessman and an underground channel.
eventually grew rich enough to retire in his late thirties,
devoting himself to archaeology. In addition to the king and his rela-
tives, the citadel housed a number of
Schliemann had been obsessed with the stories of the other noble families, probably in separate
Trojan War since childhood, and he used the fortune houses. Most of the houses were spacious
that he had amassed to pursue his dream. He not only and had two stories. In the late 1960s,
excavated the cities of Troy and Mycenae, but also the a sanctuary containing the remains of
city of Tiryns. Schliemann publicized his discoveries terra-cotta figures 2 feet (0.6 m) high
through books and letters to British newspapers. was found within the walls.These figures
were possibly cult statues.
Schliemann died in Naples on December 26, 1890, as
the result of an ear infection. From the remains of a number of
dwellings found on the hillside outside
the citadel, it has been assumed that a
substantial town extended from the foot
of the city walls. In times of war, the
population of the town would have
taken refuge within the citadel.

28

MYCENAE AND TROY

THE MYCENAEAN CIVILIZATION

Ae Troy
ANATOLIA

THE BALKANS Iolkos gean Sea

GREECE Gla

Lefkandi
Thebes

Athens

Mycenae
Asine Tiryns

Mediterra Pylos

nean Sea

CRETE

Tombs around 1600 BCE. These tombs were KEY
composed of simple shafts, which were
Two styles of Mycenaean tombs have dug deep into the ground. Each tomb The Mycenaean
been discovered. When Schliemann was contained the bodies of several genera- civilization in
excavating Mycenae, he found an exten- tions of royalty, together with their pos- 1300 BCE
sive burial site in the northwest corner of sessions. When a tomb was full, it would
the citadel. Archaeologists call this loca- be covered with stones and the shaft
tion Grave Circle A. The site contains a filled with earth. Later, a second circle of
number of royal tombs dating from

29

ANCIENT GREECE

shaft tombs, called Grave Circle B, was Another type of Mycenaean tomb
discovered outside the citadel walls. was the tholos tomb, which was used from
around 1500 BCE.These more elaborate
The treasures that were buried with tombs were built by master craftsmen.
the deceased in these shaft tombs are a Schliemann excavated many of these
testimony to the power and wealth of tombs, which appear to have been
Mycenae in those days. As well as gold reserved for the elite. The tholos tomb
death masks, the graves yielded many had a dome-shaped roof, and because of
richly decorated weapons, including a the domed appearance, the tombs are
number of daggers inlaid with gold or also known as beehive tombs.
silver. Some of the daggers featured
entire scenes, including hunts and battles, In a tholos tomb, the burial space
depicted in inlay work. The hilts of the consisted of a round hole in the ground
daggers were often made of wood or covered by a dome of stone blocks. The
bone to which reliefs of hammered gold blocks were laid in such a way that each
were applied. layer protruded inward over the layer
below, leaving only a small opening
The deceased were not only provid- at the top. The opening was then
ed with weapons, however. A number of closed with an apex stone. The stone
other splendid objects have also been blocks were covered with soil and peb-
found in the burial shafts. These objects bles, and the mound thus created was
include vases, dishes, golden rhytons (an given an identifying mark or gravestone.
ornate type of drinking vessel), beautiful- Inside the tomb, the protruding portions
ly crafted diadems, earrings, hairpins, of the stone blocks were removed, and
necklaces, and bracelets, as well as hun- the surface was smoothed, creating a
dreds of tiny gold disks, which were conical dome.
probably used to decorate clothes.
Archaeologists have also found a number A tholos tomb was often built into the
of cylinder seals and signet rings. side of a hill and was approached by a

MYCENAEAN WRITING

When archaeologist Arthur Evans was excavat- script represented an unknown language of the
ing the Minoan city of Knossos in the early 20th Minoans, because the signs of Linear B were
century, he unearthed a number of clay tablets clearly based on those of Linear A.
inscribed with three distinct types of script.
Evans called these scripts hieroglyphic (the earli- Ventris tried to establish a phonetic value for
est form), Linear A, and Linear B. Evans never the syllable signs, based on assumptions about
succeeded in deciphering any of these scripts. the place names on the tablets. Starting from
such names as Konoso and Aminiso (Knossos
In 1939, excavations at the Mycenaean palace at and Amnissos),Ventris was able to uncover an
Pylos turned up many more Linear B tablets, archaic form of Greek. In 1953, together with
and thousands more were subsequently found John Chadwick, a specialist in Greek historical
at Mycenae,Tiryns, and Thebes. Using the tablets linguistics,Ventris published his findings.The ini-
from Pylos and Knossos, a cryptographer, tial article was controversial, but the decipher-
Michael Ventris, set about deciphering Linear B ment is now generally accepted—the language
in the 1950s. Most people believed that the of the Mycenaeans was Greek.

30

MYCENAE AND TROY

Royal palace with a central The citadel
megaron, a large room built contained
around a central hearth. spacious homes for
the aristocracy.

A secret tunnel
provided an
escape route
from the citadel
in case of siege.

THE BRONZE AGE CITADEL Grave Circle A, a
AT MYCENAE cemetery within
the citadel for
Fortified city gate. noble burials.

long open corridor called a dromos. One have been found in Tiryns. Probably the This artist’s
particularly splendid tholos tomb discov- most striking features of these buildings illustration depicts
ered in the citadel of Mycenae was are the covered corridors and casements how the citadel of
named the Treasury of Atreus (see box, enclosing impressive galleries. Mycenae may
page 32). have appeared.
The floorplan of one building,
Other Mycenaean centers Nestor’s Palace at Pylos, has been partic-
ularly well preserved. Named after one of
Although Mycenae was the mightiest the city’s semimythical kings, Nestor’s
center of the Mycenaean world, other Palace comprised several buildings,
royal fortresses and palaces of similar or which were not protected by massive
even greater size were built at Tiryns, surrounding walls but were probably
Asine, Pylos, Athens,Thebes, and Iolkos. guarded by fortresses along the coast. At
the gateway to the citadel, there was a
At Tiryns, a fortress was built in three guardroom, as well as another room
stages some time after 1450 BCE. This where records were kept of the daily
fortress has mighty walls that surpass business of the palace, produce received
those of Mycenae both in height and in in taxes, and work to be carried out by
the size of their stone blocks. Several officials. At the center of the citadel was
palace buildings, including a megaron,

31

ANCIENT GREECE

THE TREASURY OF ATREUS

The so-called Treasury of Atreus was a huge, of the dome may well have been decorated with
handsome domed grave at Mycenae that bronze rosettes and friezes.
dates from the early 13th century BCE. Atreus
was a mythical king of Mycenae who was involved Using evidence from this and other tombs,
in a bitter and tragic battle with his brother archaeologists have tried to imagine what a royal
Thyestes for the city’s throne.The identity of the funeral would have been like. It probably started
real-life king who was buried in the tomb remains with the funeral procession—consisting of the
a mystery, however. body of the king drawn on a chariot, followed by
priests and mourners—moving slowly along the
One of the most spectacular features of the dromos toward the entrance to the tomb, where
dome is its impressive dromos (entrance passage), great doors of bronze would open to admit the
which measures 120 feet (36.6 m) long and procession. Inside the tomb, the king would be
20 feet (6.1 m) wide.This dromos leads up to a laid to rest on a golden carpet. He would be
majestic doorway that is 30 feet (9.1 m) tall and dressed in his robes of state, and around him
would have been elaborately decorated. A gigantic would be laid his provisions for after death—
stone block weighing 120 tons (108,862 kg) food and wine, together with his weapons.
closes off the top of the entrance. Inside the Animals would be sacrificed, roasted on fires
tomb, the vast dome has a diameter and height of lit within the tomb, and eaten by the mourners.
approximately 45 feet (13.7 m) each and consists Everyone would then have withdrawn, the doors
of 33 layers of stone blocks fitted snugly together. would have been closed, and the entrance would
Remnants of bronze nails suggest that the inside have been filled up.

The dromos
(entrance
passage) of the
Treasury of
Atreus.The
Treasury of
Atreus is one
of the most
splendid
examples of a
tholos tomb.

32

MYCENAE AND TROY

the palace itself, with an open courtyard,
anteroom, and state room (megaron), all
surrounded by pantries and storerooms,
together with the queen’s apartments,
which consisted of a smaller megaron, a
boudoir, and a large bathroom with a
terra-cotta bath.

Many clay tablets have been recov-
ered from the palace at Pylos. When the
palace was destroyed by fire around 1200
BCE, the fire may have actually pre-
served the tablets by baking them. The
tablets generally record administrative
matters, listing goods, palace personnel,
and other details of housekeeping. By
doing so, the tablets provide a snapshot of
the palace administration just before the
destruction. In addition, the tablets reveal
much information about Mycenaean
social life.

Mycenaean society help support the royal family, priests, Tiryns, the ruins of
bureaucrats, and the army. which are seen here,
Despite its loose political organization, was one of the
the Mycenaean world was surprisingly Another section of Mycenaean socie- most important
united in its social, religious, and linguis- ty included the skilled craftsmen. The Mycenaean cities.
tic aspects. Each region had its own king most important of these were the
(wanax), who acted as its head. Under bronzesmiths, who made the weapons
him was the lawagetas (people’s leader), for the army. There were also jewellers,
who was possibly an army commander. potters, carpenters, and cabinetmakers,
Then there were the telestai, who are who carried out intricate inlay work.
thought to have been wealthy landown- Large-scale textile manufacturing was
ers. Freemen were referred to as damos. carried out by spinners and weavers, most
Each class had its own kind of landown- of whom were women. Many slaves were
ership or tenancy. employed in Mycenaean society; most of
them had been bought in slave markets
Everything was controlled by the in Anatolia.
palace—the ownership and use of land,
the labor employed, and the products of The Mycenaeans were aggressive and
craftsmen. The tablets that have been warlike, and each king kept his own
recovered make it clear that most standing army, which he had to feed,
Mycenaeans were poor farmers who clothe, and arm.The commanders of the
worked on land that was owned by the
king.They grew crops such as barley and
wheat and kept groves of olive trees to
produce olive oil. They raised animals
such as goats and sheep, which provided
both meat and wool, and grew flax to
make linen. Most of this produce had to
be taken to the palace. It was then sold to

33

ANCIENT GREECE

MYCENAEAN RELIGION

There appear to have
been many similarities
between the Mycenaean
and Minoan religions, but
the two were not identical.
Still, it seems that both
civilizations did worship a
mother goddess, whose
divine son died at the death
of the old year and was born
again in the spring. Many
Bronze Age paintings show
people making offerings to
this goddess.

Mycenaean tablets also These Mycenaean terra-cotta figures date to
mention the names of many between 1400 and 1200 BCE. Archaeologists believe
gods, including Zeus, Athena, that the figures’ flattened headdresses indicate that
Artemis, Poseidon, and they depict goddesses.
Dionysus, who were wor-
shipped by later Greeks. At Priests were an important part of Mycenaean
Pylos, Poseidon, the sea god society, and they would have carried out the reli-
who was the brother of gious rituals, which included sacrificing animals to
Zeus, was an important deity the gods.The priests would also have conducted
who was depicted in the burials, and it is evident from the grave goods
form of a horse.The name of found in royal tombs from the period that the
Dionysus, the god of wine, is Mycenaeans believed that their kings would have
also found on Mycenaean a life after death.
tablets, which suggests that
he too may have been worshipped at this time.

The Mycenaeans tended not to build temples to
their gods. Instead, the people worshipped the
gods at small shrines, some of which may have
been located outdoors but most of which were
found inside houses. Small terra-cotta idols in the
shape of female figures have been recovered from
Mycenae and other places, suggesting that the cult
of the goddess was widespread. However, larger
idols of both female and male figures have also
been found, and it is possible that these idols rep-
resent the Greek gods.

34

army wore heavy armor made of bronze This Mycenaean MYCENAE AND TROY
and leather helmets made fearsome with jar is decorated
the addition of boar’s tusks.The infantry with a picture of ed on the edge of Lake Kopaïs in
wore tunics of leather and carried an octopus. Boeotia. This fortress had walls 2 miles
shields, swords, and daggers. Chariots, (3.2 km) long and covered a total area of
which usually carried two men and were 50 acres (202,343 m2). In comparison,
drawn by two horses, played an impor- Mycenae had walls slightly over 0.5 miles
tant role in the army. Chariots were used (0.8 km) long encircling an area of 7.5
both to lead charges in battle and to acres (30,351 m2).The fortress at Gla was
carry information back to headquarters. probably intended to be a central refuge
for the entire surrounding area, at a time
The Mycenaeans came to dominate when Mycenaeans all over Greece were
most of the Aegean area, subjugating apparently feeling a threat of invasion.
Knossos on Crete and occupying other
parts of the island. The influence of the This theory is borne out by clay
Mycenaeans reached to all corners of tablets found at Pylos, which mention
their world—Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt, sending sentinels to the coast, drafting
southern Italy, and the Mediterranean soldiers, and hiring rowers. One of the
islands of Sicily, Cyprus, and Sardinia. tablets refers to an unprecedented sacri-
fice of 13 golden vases and 10 people,
From the 1600s BCE onward, the obviously an attempt to secure the favor
Mycenaeans dominated sea trade in the of the gods at a time of great emergency.
Mediterranean.Trading posts were set up
in southern Italy and Anatolia, and That the threat was not imaginary
Mycenaean merchants traded goods such was proved by the widespread destruc-
as cloth, pottery, grain, and oil with tion that took place after 1250 BCE.
countries as far away as North Africa, This destruction has frequently been
Scandinavia, and the Middle East. explained as the result of an invasion by
the Dorians, a tribe from the Balkans and
Decline and fall northern Greece.The Dorians are said to
have annihilated the Mycenaean civiliza-
Over the course of the 13th century tion, but this idea is flawed. There is no
BCE, the Mycenaeans carried out a gap in the archaeological record that
significant amount of construction in would correspond to the arrival of a
their territory. Many new buildings
were erected, and the fortresses huge group of newcomers. On the
of Tiryns, Mycenae, and contrary, the overall impression is
Athens were expanded one of continuity after the
and reinforced. Even in destruction. Many of the
Pylos, where there former settlements were
were no surrounding rebuilt, and the existing
walls, the palace was Mycenaean culture
modified to make it simply continued.
less open. Storerooms However, the size
were enlarged and of the population
measures were taken to dropped dramatical-
secure supplies of drink- ly, and society as a
ing water. whole descended to a
lower cultural plane.
At the same time, in central So what caused the
Greece, a gigantic fortress was decline if it was not the
being erected near Gla, which is locat- Dorians? The whole eastern
Mediterranean area was in ferment

35

ANCIENT GREECE

This cup, which at this time. The Hittites disappeared have looked. The city was supposed to
was found in a from Asia Minor while the Egyptians have been encircled by a massive wall,
Mycenaean tomb were battling with the Sea Peoples. It punctuated by towers, and to have been
on the island of may be that these enemies of Egypt the site of the Trojan War, the subject of
Rhodes, was made swept through the Mycenaean palaces, or the Iliad.
between 1350 and there may have been civil war between
1300 BCE. the Mycenaean kingdoms. There may Troy did in fact exist more than 5,000
have been natural disasters, such as earth- years ago. Bronze Age Troy was situated
quakes, or the administrative and political at the entrance to the Dardanelles, the
systems may simply have collapsed as a route for ships passing between the
result of famine or the cutting off of Aegean Sea and the Black Sea. The city
trade routes. Whatever the reason, the also occupied a crucial position on the
Mycenaean civilization disintegrated, land route between Europe and Asia. For
and the so-called Dark Age dawned these reasons, Troy became a prosperous
in Greece. mercantile city and a center of culture. In
the third and second millennia BCE,
Troy it was the leading city of the region,
with a royal house ruling over the
While the Mycenaean culture was surrounding farming villages. Troy con-
dominant on the mainland of Greece, a tinued to prosper until the middle of the
city was flourishing in northwestern 11th century BCE.
Anatolia. This city was Troy, the
legendary adversary of Greece. As with Schliemann’s excavation
Mycenae, much of what is known about
Troy is the result of work carried out by The true history of Troy was unknown
the archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann. in the mid-19th century CE, but several
archaeologists, including Frank Calvert
The legendary city of Troy had fasci- (1828–1908), were interested in discov-
nated Schliemann since boyhood, when ering the site of ancient Troy (if it in fact
his father had told him the stories of the existed). Calvert was an English amateur
Iliad and the Odyssey (see box, page 38) archaeologist working as a consular offi-
and Schliemann had come across an cial in the Dardanelles area. He had read
illustration of how the ancient city might a book by Charles Maclaren (published
in 1822) that suggested that a hill called
Hissarlik on the Aegean coast of western
Turkey might be the site of the city.
Calvert’s brother Frederick, who was also
based in the area, bought a farm in 1847
that extended over 2,000 acres (8 km2)
and took in part of Mount Hissarlik.
Over the next few years, Frank made
some exploratory excavations on his
brother’s land.

Since his retirement from the world
of business around 1860, Heinrich
Schliemann had been busy. He had stud-
ied archaeology, written a book on Troy,
and traveled widely to visit sites of
archaeological interest. In 1868, he met
Frank Calvert in Turkey and learned of

36

MYCENAE AND TROY

the preliminary excavations at Hissarlik. unearthed a cache of golden objects,
However, a full-scale excavation of the including bracelets, earrings, diadems,
site would require considerable financ- and many gold rings. The Schliemanns
ing, which Calvert could not provide. hid the treasure and smuggled it off the
Schliemann could, and he persuaded site and, eventually, out of Turkey. When
Calvert to let him take over the excava- news of the find leaked out, the Turkish
tions on the Calvert half of the Hissarlik. authorities were outraged at the decep-
Schliemann also obtained permission tion. Schliemann had to pay a very heavy
from the Turkish government to dig on fine before he was allowed to continue
the other half of the mound, as long as excavating. Although Schliemann
any discovered treasure was shared with remained convinced he had discovered
the government.
the treasure of King Priam, later
Schliemann hired 70 local research established that the
workmen and started digging in golden horde dated from
1871. Very soon, he uncov- more than a thousand years
ered an ancient wall, built before the time of the
of immense boulders, just Trojan War.
15 feet (4.5 m) below Believing that the
the surface. Encouraged Troy of Homer
by this discovery, he would probably lie at
then sank shafts and almost the lowest
dug trenches into the level, Schliemann
hillside. To his amaze- hired more men
ment, he discovered to dig down to that
the remains of not just level. Unfortunately,
one city, but nine cities, since Schliemann un-
each built on the ruins of derstood nothing of
the last. the scientific method of
archaeology, much valu-
The treasure of Priam Neoptolemus is able evidence was destroyed
given the armor of during the dig. Later archaeolo-
Schliemann had certainly discov- his father Achilles
ered an important archaeological site, by the Greek hero gists established that Homer’s Troy
but was it Troy? Although he called him- Odysseus.This vase lay at a much higher level.
self an archaeologist, Schliemann was illustration dates to
primarily a treasure hunter. Later, at around the eighth The nine cities
Mycenae, he would hope to unearth century BCE.
treasure belonging to Agamemnon. At The nine levels of Troy start with the first
the supposed site of Troy, he longed to Troy, which was a small fortified citadel
find what he called “the treasure of dating from around 3000 BCE. This
Priam.” Convinced that the Trojan War citadel would have provided a safe
was grounded in historical fact, shelter for the surrounding villagers
Schliemann felt sure that King Priam had when danger threatened. The second
hidden his treasures to save them from level was Troy II, dating from around
the Greeks. 2600 BCE. The town was much larger
and became wealthy by trading with the
Around noon on a day in June 1873, Mycenaeans of mainland Greece. The
Schliemann spotted the gleam of gold at evidence points to Troy II being
the base of a wall in the excavations. destroyed by fire, which was why
Schliemann and his wife, Sophia, Schliemann believed it was the Troy of

37

ANCIENT GREECE

THE ILIAD AND THE ODYSSEY

The background to the story of the Iliad is the The Iliad ends with the burial of Patroclus and the
siege of Troy by a coalition of Greeks, called return of Hector’s body to his father, King Priam.
Achaeans in the poem.The reason for the war is
that Helen, the beautiful wife of Menelaus, king of The Odyssey, a sequel to the Iliad, deals with the
Sparta, has been abducted by Paris, a Trojan difficult voyage home of one of the Greek
prince.When Menelaus discovers that his wife is princes, Odysseus of Ithaca.The tale opens with
gone, he and his brother Agamemnon, king of the stress that his prolonged absence has caused
Mycenae, call upon the princes of Achaea to assist his household. Since no word has been heard
in punishing Troy and bringing Helen home. A fleet from him for 10 years, Odysseus is assumed to be
is prepared, and the warriors sail for Troy, where dead. Greedy suitors are ruining his property as
a drawn-out siege follows. they court his wife, Penelope.

In the Greek camp outside Troy, a dispute arises Odysseus himself then relates his adventures to
between the Greek prince Achilles and the supreme the king and queen of Scheria. Among other
commander, Agamemnon, who has abused his escapades, Odysseus tells them of his encounter
authority by taking a beautiful slave away from with the man-eating giant Polyphemus and the
Achilles. Achilles, deeply insulted, refuses to con- temptations of the goddess Calypso, who offered
tinue fighting.Without Achilles, the Greeks prove Odysseus immortality.
to be weaker than the Trojans, and disaster
threatens. Achilles finally agrees to allow his The Odyssey ends with the return of Odysseus
friend, Patroclus, to take part in the conflict, and to the island of Ithaca, where the hero discovers
Hector, the Trojan commander, kills Patroclus.The what has been going on in his absence. He kills
grieving Achilles feels compelled to avenge the the suitors who have been besieging his supposed
death of his friend and in turn kills Hector, which widow and is reunited with his wife, son, and aged
heralds the beginning of the end for the Trojans. father.

This Roman
mosaic depicts
Odysseus being
tempted by
the sirens.

38

MYCENAE AND TROY

The walls of the
ancient city of
Troy stand in
northwestern
Anatolia.

Homer.The three succeeding Troys were attacked and taken by the Romans, who
each larger than the one before. then built Troy IX, which became an
important trading city until it was
TroyVI was heavily influenced by the eclipsed by Constantinople in the fourth
Mycenaeans and attracted many new set- century CE.Around 400 CE, the site was
tlers. It was destroyed around 1300 BCE, finally abandoned and gradually disap-
to be succeeded by what is called Troy peared under the mound of Hissarlik,
VIIa. Most archaeologists now believe until the cities were finally rediscovered
that this is the Homeric Troy. Fragments by Schliemann.
of pottery found at this level indicate that
the city dates from the mid-13th centu- Schliemann died in 1890, and the
ry BCE. Some human remains, one of work at Hissarlik was carried on by his
which is a human skeleton showing assistant, Wilhelm Dorpfeld, who made
injuries to the head and a broken jaw- further excavations in 1893 and 1894.
bone, have been found in the streets, After that point, nothing more was done
which suggests the city was destroyed by until the 1930s, when the American
war.There is also evidence that Troy VIIa archaeologist Carl Blegen (1887–1971)
was put to the torch. The next city, Troy carried out careful excavations over a
VIIb, also seems to have been destroyed seven-year period, from 1932 to 1938.
by fire. Historians believe this destruction He took many photographs and was
happened around 1050 BCE. instrumental in establishing much of the
chronology of the city. In particular, it
The fall of Troy was Blegen who established that the Troy
of Homeric legend was almost certainly
After the destruction of Troy VIIb, the Troy VIIa.
city seems to have been abandoned for
several centuries, but at the start of the See also:
seventh century BCE, the site was reoc-
cupied by Greeks and became known as Bronze Age Greece (page 6) • The Minoans
Ilium. Around 85 BCE, this city was (page 14)

39

THE DARK AGE AND
GREEK EXPANSION

TIME LINE A fter the fall of the Mycenaean civilization, Greece entered
a period that is now known as the Dark Age. Gradually,
c. 1250 BCE however, Greece emerged from this era, and exiles from the
Influx of Dorian country founded colonies all around the Mediterranean region.
invaders from
north heralds By the mid-13th century BCE, the cities grounds declined sharply, while the
beginning of and palaces of mainland Greece were primitive style of buildings and earthen-
end of Mycenaean feeling under threat. New construction ware show that the people lived in great
culture. surrounded many of the cities with poverty. The complete disappearance of
strong fortified walls, and measures were the complex society once centered on
c. 1100 BCE taken to protect underground water sup- the palaces meant that writing skills were
Greece enters plies, suggesting that imminent invasion also lost.The social organization seems to
Dark Age, period was feared. This fear seems not to have have broken down into small communi-
marked by been misplaced. By the end of the centu- ties, each led by a basileus. In the palace
poverty and ry, all the palaces had been burned, and hierarchy, this title had been used for a
depopulation. the once great Mycenaean civilization subordinate figure, but in the Dark Age,
was in terminal decline. the title referred to a powerful chieftain
c. 850 BCE who held independent authority.
Greeks begin The cause of this collapse was a vast
migrations to influx of Dorian peoples from central It seems that the population increased
Cyprus, Crete, Asia. These aggressive tribesmen swept again in the ninth century BCE, possibly
Aegean islands, down mainland Greece from the north, due to a reduction in mortality or an
and Anatolia. traveling in ox-drawn covered wagons increase in migration. What is certain is
and inspiring terror with their horned that the Greeks began to migrate from
c. 750 BCE helmets. By 1100 BCE, all the main the mainland around this time, some to
Beginning of Mycenaean centers had fallen to these Cyprus, Crete, and the Aegean islands,
Archaic period; invaders, and for the next few centuries, others to Anatolia. Over the course of
developments Greece entered what is called the Dark the ninth century, representatives of three
include Age, about which very little is known. main dialect groups (see box, page 44)
reintroduction settled in much of the coastal region of
of writing, An age of poverty Anatolia and on the islands off this coast.
increased trade, Those speaking the Aeolic dialect settled
and emergence Archaeological excavations suggest that on the island of Lesbos and in the region
of poleis. Greece became impoverished and par- from north of the Dardanelles on the
tially depopulated in the turbulent peri- northwest coast of Anatolia down to
c. 700 BCE od following the collapse of the
New style of Mycenaean culture. The arrival of the The Temple of Hera on the island of Samos
poetry emerges Dorians resulted in a change in the spo-
in works of ken dialect and in iron being used in in the Aegean Sea. Samos was settled by
Hesiod and preference to bronze, but the number
Archilochus; and size of both settlements and burial Ionians during the Dark Age and later
poems contrast
with epics of became an important trading center.
Homer.

40



ANCIENT GREECE

Smyrna. Ionians settled Massilia Alailia
on the central part of
the coast from Smyrna Emporion CORSICA
to Miletus and on the
islands of Chios and SARDINIA
Samos. Dorians set-
tled in the southern Palma
part from Hali- Hemeroskopeion
carnassus down to
This terra-cotta the southernmost During the Archaic period, increased
figurine, known as coast and on the islands contact with the east brought the Greeks
the Lefkandi of Rhodes and Cos. new ideas regarding pottery, sculpture,
Centaur, was found Some of the many set- architecture, mythology, religion, and the
on the island of tlements created on use of iron and bronze. Most important
Euboea.The figurine these islands and in the of all was the reintroduction of writing,
dates to the 10th coastal regions devel- this time using an alphabet derived from
century BCE and is oped into important Phoenician examples (see box, page 46).
a rare relic from the cities—in particular, It is not clear exactly when the Greeks
Dark Age. the 12 Ionian settle- started to adapt the Semitic alphabet to
ments called the dodeca their own needs, but the oldest inscrip-
poleis (the 12 cities). tions using the new alphabet date from
The migration to the second half of the eighth century
the various islands and BCE. After that, the use of the alphabet
to Anatolia stimulated spread rapidly, making it possible to
further exploration, record the Iliad and the Odyssey; these
and the former trading

routes with the east
were soon restored. Linking
large parts of the Mediterranean world
with the Greek world, these routes had
declined during the Dark Age but
had never been completely severed.
Toward the end of the ninth century
BCE, Greek seafarers could once again
be found in the harbors of northern
Syria and Phoenicia.

The Archaic period

The restoration of trade with the east
had momentous results for the Greeks.
The Greek world emerged from its tem-
porary isolation and began to experience
such great changes that a new era is
defined as beginning around 750 BCE.
The new world that was developing bore
little resemblance to the old Bronze Age
civilization. Historians call this new era
the Archaic period.

42

THE DARK AGE AND GREEK EXPANSION

THE GREEK WORLD IN THE DARK AGE

Olbia
Tyras

Black Sea Phasis
ASSYRIA
THRACE Sinope
ANATOLIA
MACEDON Thasos Dardanelles
Soloi
Pithekoussai Aegean LYDIA Side
Sea
Mylai GREECE LESBOS CYPRUS
SICILY
CHIOS Smyrna

ATTICA Thebes SAMOS Miletus
Corinth AthensEVVOIA
Halicarnassus
ARCADIA Argos
COS

Sparta RHODES

CRETE

Mediterranean Sea

Cyrene

EGYPT Memphis

two epics were almost certainly first least one settlement that was called a KEY
composed in the oral tradition. city (also, confusingly, called a polis), no
matter how small or unlike a city it The Greek world in
The beginning of the Archaic period actually was. 900 BCE
also saw the emergence of the polis (plu-
ral: poleis), which was an autonomous Each polis was completely independ- Coast under
political unit covering a small territory, ent. In theory, all the freemen who were Greek influence by
usually averaging between 50 and 100 its citizens organized the political affairs of around 500 BCE
square miles (260 km2), with a popula- the polis (from which the term politics is
tion of between 2,500 and 4,500. Some derived) in community assemblies, but in
poleis were larger than this, particularly fact, much of the real power rested with
those of Sparta, Argos, Corinth, Athens, the aristocracy. The basileus, who in the
and Thebes. There were also some very Dark Age had ruled as a king, was
small units covering a territory of no replaced in most cases by magistrates who
more than 15 square miles (39 km2) and were elected annually from the ranks of
having a population of only around 250. the nobles. These aristocrats owed their
However large or small, each polis had at dominant position to a combination of

43

ANCIENT GREECE

THE GREEK DIALECT GROUPS

Dialect was a significant factor in the Greek the Peloponnese and on Cyprus, is closely related
migrations of the ninth century BCE because to Mycenaean Greek, in which the Linear B
people tended to settle into linguistic groups. inscriptions were written.This affinity to Linear
Doric was the dialect of northwest Greece. It B may be due to the fact that there was little
was also spoken along the west of Greece and on migrant influence in the wild and rugged Arcadian
the islands of Crete, Cos, and Rhodes as a result region and that Cyprus had served as a haven
of Dorian conquests between 1200 and 1000 for refugees from the mainland during the time
BCE. Doric spread to Anatolia as Dorian speakers of the invasions.
settled there in the ninth century BCE.
The greatest differences were those between the
The non-Doric dialects were Ionic, Aeolic, and Dorians and the Ionians, two groups who spoke
Arcado-Cyprian. Ionic was the language of Attica different tongues, had different customs and
and the island of Evvoia, while Aeolic was spoken religious practices, and who each built up a
in the northeast and center of mainland Greece. position of power.These differences led to the
Arcado-Cyprian, the dialect spoken in Arcadia on Peloponnesian War (431–404 BCE).

This portrait from
a Roman mosaic
is believed to
depict the
poetess Sappho,
who wrote in the
Aeolic dialect.

44

THE DARK AGE AND GREEK EXPANSION

These gold earrings
were found at
Lefkandi on Euboea
and date to the mid-
ninth century BCE.

power and wealth, which, in the early Greek world. Within the poleis, social This sixth-century-
Archaic period, was often expressed in the relations were changing as some citizens BCE Greek vase
number of horses one owned. After 700 became a great deal richer than others. painting shows Ajax
BCE, the possession of bronze armor was An elite of aristocrats and wealthy citi- carrying the body of
another indicator of status. zens emerged as a result of trading with Achilles.The tales of
the east. In several poleis, these small Homer were not
Colonization groups of aristocrats managed to seize written down until
control and end the community assem- the Archaic period.
The emergence of the poleis took place blies, thereby undermining the funda-
during a time of rapid population mental principle of the poleis. As the
growth.This rise in population led to the majority of the citizens still had to work
conquest of sparsely populated regions to survive, they were often forced into a
and to armed conflicts between neigh-
boring poleis in attempts to expand their
territories.The rise also encouraged fur-
ther emigration of Greeks from the
mainland. In the eighth century BCE,
Sparta subjected the region of Laconia
and began the conquest of neighboring
Messenia. Argos extended its power over
the Argolis region, while Athens united
the peninsula of Attica into one polis.
The emigration of many Greeks to set-
tlements on the Mediterranean and
Black Sea coasts led to what is called the
Archaic colonization.

Developments such as colonization
and the subsequent flourishing of trade,
the growing contact between the various
poleis, and the use of writing to record
the laws and decrees of a polis commu-
nity all had an influence on the relations
between the many small states of the

ANCIENT GREECE

THE GREEK ALPHABETS

The word alphabet comes from the first two consisted of a cuneiform (wedge-shaped) alphabet
letters of the Greek alphabet—alpha and of 30 characters. One of the principal variants
beta—and denotes a writing system in which a was the Northwest Semitic alphabet, from which
single character (grapheme) represents a single nearly all alphabetic scripts in use today are
sound (phoneme). Non-alphabetic systems of ultimately descended. A short version, using 22
writing use signs that represent whole words or letters, was being used to write the Phoenician
syllables.The Mesopotamian cuneiform system language from the 11th century BCE, and from
used a combination of word and syllable signs, Phoenicia it spread to neighboring regions in
while Egyptian hieroglyphs used signs that the Middle East.
represented words together with signs that
represented a group of consonants or a single The Greeks adopted this short Phoenician
consonant.Around 1500 BCE, elements of the alphabet in the eighth century BCE and modified
Egyptian hieroglyphic script were adapted to it by adding two or more consonant symbols.
create a script in which each individual sound They also began to use some of the symbols
of a language (apart from vowel sounds) was to represent vowel sounds. For a time, they
represented by a single symbol—that is, an experimented with writing from left to right and
alphabet.This adaptation took place somewhere from right to left, but by around 500 BCE, they
in the Syro-Palestinian region, and the inventors settled on left to right. As the Greek alphabet
of the new script spoke a Semitic language. spread, it was adopted and modified by various
Mediterranean peoples, including the Etruscans,
The new alphabetic script soon took on different the Umbrians, the Oscans, and the Romans.The
forms as its use spread among different peoples last were to be the most influential, since the
over the course of the following centuries. One Roman alphabet, used to write Latin, was
script developed in the 14th and 13th centuries subsequently to be used by all the languages
BCE in the city of Ugarit on the coast of Syria of western Europe.

This tablet found
on the island of
Pylos is inscribed
with Linear B
script.The Greeks
later adopted
the Phoenician
alphabet.

46

THE DARK AGE AND GREEK EXPANSION

The Temple of
Ceres at Paestum.
Paestum, a Greek
colony in southern
Italy, was founded
around the
beginning of
the seventh
century BCE.

dependent relationship with rich land- Greek expansion
holders. Many of the poorer citizens
were exploited, and if they got into debt, The period of Greek overseas settlement
they could be sold into slavery. that began in the middle of the eighth
century BCE lasted for more than 200
In Sparta, attempts were made to years. During that time, Greeks founded
resolve the internal tensions by making dozens of settlements on the fringes of
all citizens equal, at the expense of an the Aegean, Mediterranean, and Black
underprivileged group that was excluded seas. The impetus behind this colonizing
from citizenship and left with no rights movement may have originally been
at all. In Athens and Corinth, rivalry trade, but the settlements soon became
between aristocrats led to internal polit- new, independent states. These colonies
ical conflict. In some cases, an aristocrat (not a strictly accurate term for the
would succeed in seizing absolute power settlements) inherited various social and
and set himself up as an all-powerful sov- political aspects—such as religious cults,
ereign—this was a new kind of monarch political organizations, and spoken
that the Greeks called a tyrannis (tyrant). dialect—from their metropolis (parent
city), but the colonies themselves were
After the horrors of the Dark Age, the completely independent entities.
Archaic period saw the Greeks emerging
into an era of prosperity that in turn led An overseas polis often started as a
to a flowering of new ideas and artistic trading post (emporion), which then
achievement.The spread of writing had a developed into a settlement as colonists
profound effect on law and government. followed. Trade was certainly the moti-
Because the results of law suits could vating factor in some of the very early
now be recorded, leading to the estab- Greek colonies, such as Al Mina in Syria
lishment of legal codes, any citizen could and Pithekoussai in Italy. Greek traders
appeal against an arbitrary ruling by a were looking to buy iron ore, silver, and
corrupt magistrate and cite legal prece- slaves, while offering wine and olive oil
dent to uphold the appeal. This change in return. A trading post that turned into
led to more rational government and the a colony was called an apoikia, meaning a
rule of law. “settlement elsewhere.” Most apoikiai

47

ANCIENT GREECE

The Sicilian town of started with no more than one or two land to support farming.The Greek pres-
Syracuse, the site of hundred people, to be joined by other ence there became so dominant that the
this ancient Greek colonists at a later stage.The new colony area was called Magna Grecia (Great
theater, was settled would always hold its parent metropolis Greece). In the fifth century BCE,
by exiles from in esteem and would preserve the reli- Syracuse on Sicily became the most
Corinth in the gious customs of the parent city despite highly populated of all Greek cities.
eighth century BCE. any political differences. The metropolis Other new settlements were situated on
and satellite polis would send official the Aegean islands along the northern
envoys to each other’s religious festivals, coast of the Aegean Sea; on the northern
and the special relationship was some- coast of Anatolia along the Hellespont
times demonstrated by the provision of and the Bosporus; around the Black Sea;
military aid by the parent to the colony. on the north African coast in Cyrenaica
For example, Corinth helped the city of (present-day Libya); and on the south
Syracuse to fight the Athenians during coast of France and the northeastern
the Peloponnesian War, because Syracuse coast of Spain.
was Corinth’s colony.
The Greek colonists avoided areas
The spread of settlements where other peoples had a significant
presence. These areas included the east-
Colonies fanned out in all directions ern coast of the Mediterranean, which
from the Greek mainland. Some of the was already well occupied, and the
earliest settlements were on Sicily and in northeast African coast, which was large-
southern Italy, where the colonists were ly avoided because of the dominance of
attracted by the good harbors and fertile Egypt in the area. The African coast to

THE DARK AGE AND GREEK EXPANSION

Elea, the ruins of
which are shown
here, was a Greek
colony on the
mainland of Italy.
The colony was
founded in the sixth
century BCE.

the west of Cyrenaica was entirely in the wanted to go and had consulted an ora-
hands of the Phoenicians, as was the cle before setting out to ensure a favor-
western part of Sicily, the whole of able outcome to the voyage. At least,
Sardinia, most of the smaller islands in that is what they were supposed to do.
the western Mediterranean, and a large Colonies that did not possess the text of
part of the Spanish coast. an oracle, or that could not point out
the tomb of an original founder, often
Adventurous colonists produced forgeries in order to ensure
their standing.
Why the Greek colonists wanted to leave
the mother country is not completely When the immigrants disembarked at
clear.The theory that they were escaping their destination, the first thing they did
overpopulation on the mainland has was to drive away the native population,
been largely discredited, but they may if there was one. It is not known whether
have been fleeing from an unsatisfactory it was common practice to subdue the
political situation at home, or seeking original inhabitants and bind them in
land of their own, or simply searching for servitude to the Greeks, but this
adventure. When a group of emigrants undoubtedly happened from time to
boarded a ship or—as some sources time. The second task was to find a site
imply—were taken aboard forcibly, the where the new city could be built and
people were already well prepared for divide the surrounding land equally
their enterprise. They knew where they among the colonists.This practice served

49