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Gallery 21 • Greece and Rome Ancient People, ancient places The Greek and Roman worlds were not static – their boundaries and their very nature changed over time. The objects in this gallery span three and a half thousand years of history, encompassing the whole Mediterranean region. The Greek World The earliest civilisations represented here were based on the Aegean islands to the south and east of mainland Greece (Case 1). The Minoans, best known for their large ‘palaces’ on Crete, had trading contacts all around the Aegean. Minoan culture in turn influenced the Mycenaean civilisation, which emerged on mainland Greece. The Mycenaeans also formed widespread trade networks, supported by a complex administrative system. The Mycenaean civilisation came to an abrupt end 3000 years ago around 1100 BC, and for several centuries evidence is scarce. But by 700 BC the Greeks and their goods were once again spreading all over the Mediterranean. Greeks inhabited the west coast of modern Turkey, and established cities in Italy and Sicily, North Africa and the Black Sea coast. These cities were home to a mixture of Greeks from many areas and local people. The variety of Greek pottery found at Naukratis in Egypt (Case 2) shows the range of different people visiting this city, while the Greekstyle objects from Italy (Case 11) may have been made by Greek craftsmen living in Italy or by native Italian imitators. During this period Greece was not one unified country but many fragmented communities which gradually became powerful individual cities. Because the remains of fifth-century Athens are plentiful (e.g. Case 4), Classical Athens is the best known of these. Sparta was as powerful, but is relatively unknown, because its material and literary remains are far fewer (some Spartan objects are in Case 5). Only in the fourth century BC was Greece united under Philip II of Macedon; his son Alexander the Great extended his territories DA N UB E ARAL SEA BLACK SEA CAS MACEDONIA PELLA PIA NS ARMENIA EPHESOS OX U EA ATHENS S TIG MEDIA PH MEDITERRANEAN SEA ALEXANDRIA BACTRIA S EU RI MESOPOTAMIA CYPRUS PARTHIA RA TE S BUCEPHELA SYRIA DU S BABYLON SUSA IN EGYPT NIL E ARABIA INDIA PERSIA PE GEDROSIA RS IAN RED GU LF SEA ARABIAN SEA The extent of the Greek world under Alexander the Great, who ruled 336-323 BC. into Egypt and the Middle East as far as India in the east and Arabia in the south. Long after Alexander’s death in 323 BC his generals and their successors still controlled the Middle East. The Greek inscription recording honours that the people of Troy awarded Antiochos I (opposite Case 11) highlights the political extent of the Greek world at this time. Antiochos was the son of Seleucus, a general of Alexander, and his kingdom encompassed much of modern Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Greek culture also spread far beyond the boundaries of Greece. The statuettes of Aphrodite, Greek goddess of love (Case 8), both come from Egypt. The Roman World Rome in its turn was just the heart of a culture that extended far beyond Italy. Originally one of many small townships in Latium (objects from other Italian towns are in Case 11), Rome took control of her neighbours through conquest and alliance, before extending her domination overseas. After five centuries of the Republic, Augustus was declared the first Emperor in 27 BC. Three hundred years later the Empire was so large that it was divided in two. The Western Empire collapsed in AD 476, but the Eastern Empire survived until AD 1453. BRITAIN CAMBRIDGE RHINE GERMANIA COLOGNE BUDAPEST ATLANTIC OCEAN GAUL DACIA DAN U BE BLACK SEA ITALY THRACE ROME SPAIN SARDINIA BITHYNIA CAPPADOCIA CARTHAGE CORINTH MEDITERRANEAN SEA CRETE CYPRUS ALEXANDRIA AFRICA JERUSALEM EGYPT NILE The extent of the Roman empire under Emperor Trajan, who ruled AD 98-117. The boundaries of the Roman empire continually expanded and contracted. At its greatest extent, under the Emperor Trajan (AD 98-117), Roman territory included North Africa, Arabia, Syria, the Balkans, Greece, Spain, France, Germany and Britain. A shared visual and material culture was one way of unifying this vast empire, but at the same time the Romans also adopted many of the customs and cultures of the nations they conquered. The sculpture on the east side of the gallery and objects in Case 12 highlight the international nature of the Roman empire- although everything is ‘Roman’, very little was made in Italy. To download a printable version visit: www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/dept/ant/greeceandrome