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Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece was a very fascinating civilization! All of their beliefs and ceremonial traditions were so interesting, that I am going to do my report on them. I will talk about their geography, economy, agriculture, classes, everyday life, wars/major battles, families, and mythology.
Greece is located north of the Mediterranean Sea in Southern Europe. The main part of ancient Greece covered an area of about 30,000 square miles (just a little smaller than the state of Maine). Greece was also a very mountainous country and forests covered the mountain slopes. The Greeks mined copper, gold, lead, silver and a little iron. Most of the gold came from the islands of Siphnos and Thasos. The silver was supplied by Laureion and Maronea. The mountains were covered boars, deer and hare to provide the Greek hunters with food and sport, and the sea supplied numerous fish.
Greece had a very large population of eight million people, two million of which lived in Athens. The Greek currency was Drachma. Their flag was white and light blue, with a light blue cross in the top left corner.
The chief occupation for the Greeks was farming. The foods they grew were barley and wheat, which were harvested in the spring. Grapes and olives were harvested in the fall. They also grew apples, figs, and pomegranates. Most of the farmers raised sheep and goats. The work animals used by the Greeks were horses and cattle that carried heavy loads.
The ariston, which was the midmorning meal, was one of two meals eaten daily. It consisted of beans or peas, a raw onion or a roasted turnip. The evening meal, which was eaten around sunset, was called the deipnon. This meal consisted of fish or meat and included bread, cheese, olives and figs. Honey was used as their food sweetener because they had no sugar. Olive oil had three main uses: as a spread for bread, cooking grease, and soap. Wine and water were the main thirst quenchers; milk was considered fit only for animals and barbarians.
Approximately 25 inches of rain fell every year, mostly in the winter, which made for a mild and pleasant climate. During the summer, Greeks lived outdoors most of the time and even though the winters could get cold, public assemblies and entertainment were held out in the open air.
Each city-state in Greek society varied in classes. Three classes which existed in Athens were; (1) citizens, which were the majority; (2) slaves; and (3) resident aliens or metics. The three classes of Sparta were, (10 citizens; (2) helots, who were their majority; and (3) the non-citizens or perioeci. Citizenship was limited to those whose fathers were citizens. Government participation and land ownership were reserved only for citizens. Slaves were used in the city-states mines but were owned by individuals. Although Surfs could purchase their own land they could not move from the place where they were born. No political rights were given to the metics and perioedi but they were protected by law and had personal freedom.
Greeks built very simple homes around open courtyards in the cities. Each home had a pastas, or roofed hall, on one side of the home and there were no windows. From the courtyard smaller rooms would open to the other sides. Greeks built their homes out of stone or sun-dried brick, which were then covered with stucco. They burned charcoal in a pan to heat their homes in the winter. Farmers lived in small stone or brick homes and usually built stone-walls around their farmyards which included sheds for various animals. Men of women of Greece wore a chiton, which was a tunic that fell to the knees or the ankles. A woman�s chiton was gathered around the waist by a narrow belt. Most chitons were made of wool but those made of cotton or linen was only afforded by the richest of Greeks. For formal occasions they wore bleached white or brown for work. Himations, or cloaks, were draped over the arms or shoulders. The chlmyas, or a short cape, were worn only by young men and were fasten at the shoulder. The women might wear a variation of the chiton called a peplos. The Greeks usually went barefoot indoors and wore sandals indoors. They also wore nothing on their head.
As mentioned earlier the main occupation of the ancient Greeks was farming. However, they were also craftsmen and traders. Slaves and free men received the same amount of pay making metal objects, tiles, pottery and wooden textiles. The Greeks made the best-ranked pottery in the world. Athens and Megara were the most important cloth producing cities. The pottery was made primarily in Miletus, Athens, Rhodes and Corinth. Gold by worked by the people of Thasos and silver by Athens. In fact, Athens won much fame by silver. Bronze wear was produced by Corinth and Chalsis made copper goods. Most cities had small factories that made, kitchen utensils, furniture and armor. Some cities became famous for one special product. Silphium, a plant used for medicine, was produce by Cyreme. Purple dye was made by Cythera and Tanagra made clay statuettes of animals and people. The best olives were produced by Lesbos and Athens.
The Greeks economy depended upon three main products: grain, grapes and olives. Even though the people had enough olive oil for their needs they had to import large amounts of grain from Egypt, Scythia and Sicily. The Greeks exported manufactured goods, silver and wine.
It is not surprising that the temples of Ancient Greece were the biggest and most beautiful because their life was dominated by religion. Three architectural systems were developed by the Greeks, called orders, with each one having their own distinctive detailing and proportions. The orders are: Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian.
Doric The Doric style is rather sturdy and its top (the capital), is plain. This style was used in mainland Greece and the colonies in southern Italy and Sicily. Ionic The Ionic style is thinner and more elegant. Its capital is decorated with a scroll-like design (a volute). This style was found in eastern Greece and the islands. Corinthian The Corinthian style is seldom used in the Greek world, but often seen on Roman temples. Its capital is very elaborate and decorated with acanthus leaves.
The Greeks were the first to invent athletic competitions that were held to show honor to their gods. The Isthmos games were held every two years in Corinth and the Pythian games every four years near Delphi. But the most famous of games were those held at Olympia, southwest of Greece. The Olympics seem to have begun in early 700 BC, took place every four years and were held in honor of their god, Zeus. Women were not allowed to watch the games as ancient Greek pottery, dating from around 550 BC, shows men taking part in the games naked or wearing only a thong. The games began as a one-day festival of athletics and wrestling to, in 472 BC, five days with many events. The first day was for sacrifices. The second for the foot race. This took place in the stadium, an enclosed area with sloping banks of earth. The other days held boxing and wrestling, with the object being to throw your opponent to the ground three times. Boxing became more and more brutal; at first pugilists wound soft leather straps over their fingers to deaden the blows, but later, hard leather, weighted with metal was used. The most rigorous of the sports was the pancratium, which only ended when one person acknowledged defeat. Horseracing was confined to the wealthy but was nevertheless a popular attraction. The order of the events is not really known but was always concluded with the pentathlon, a series of five events: sprinting, long jumping, javelin hurling, discus throwing, and wrestling.
There were many important gods and goddesses in Greek mythology:
Aphrodite ---------- Goddess of Love Apollo ---------- God of light, medicine and poetry Ares ---------- God of war Artemis ---------- Goddess of hunting and childbirth Asclepius ---------- God of healing Athena ---------- Goddess of crafts, war and wisdom Cronus ---------- Ruler of Titans and father of Zeus Demeter ---------- Goddess of growing things Dionysus ---------- God of wine, fertility and wildness Eros ---------- God of love Gaea ---------- Mother and wife of Uranus Hephaestus ---------- God of fire and metalworking Hera ---------- Protector of marriage and women Hermes ---------- God of commerce and science Hestia ---------- Goddess of the hearth Hypons ---------- God of sleep Hades/Pluto ---------- God of the underworld Poseidon ---------- God of the sea Rhea ---------- Wife and sister of Cronus Uranus ---------- Father of the Titans Zeus ---------- Ruler of the gods
As you cans see there are many interesting things about ancient Greece and I have only described half of them. There is much more on ancient Greece and I encourage you to study and learn more about this wonderful civilization.
Bibliography:
World Book Encyclopedia 1988 edition by World Book Inc. Book �M� Pg. 984 By Rev. ed. Harper, 1983
World Book Encyclopedia 1978 edition by World Book-Childcraft International Inc. Book �G� Pgs. 358-366 By Donald Kagan
AncientGreece.com
Life World Library �Greece� 1963 by Time Inc. pgs. 10, 11, 14, 132 By Robert Graves, 1957
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