Download islandsof theEnglish handout

islands
of the
gods
English handout
1
mount olympus:
home of the gods
2
the acropolis of athens:
eternal freshness
In the north of Greece, on the Macedonian
border, lies Mount Olympus, home of the gods.
This enormous mountain range includes no
fewer than 59 peaks; the highest is 2,917 metres
in altitude. These summits are often shrouded in
clouds and mist. As the place where heaven and
earth meet, Olympus seemed to the Greeks like
the perfect place for the gods to live. According
to myth, the immortals ate ambrosia and drank
nectar there. The ruler of the gods was Zeus,
who casts great bolts of lightning down from
Olympus to punish the unjust and the godless.
When he moved, the entire mountain would
shake.
Greek culture reached its pinnacle in Athens
in the 5th century BC, when political and
intellectual freedom sent the arts soaring to
new heights. The booming economy and the
ambition to become the world’s most beautiful
city found their greatest expression in the
buildings on the sacred hill, the Acropolis.
In classical antiquity, the Acropolis was the
religious heart of the city. Athens honoured its
gods with majestic marble temples. The ancient
author Plutarch described the splendour of these
buildings: “They were created in a short time for
all time . . . In the freshness of their vigour they
seem newly made, even today.”
photograph View of the peaks of Mount
Olympus (Thessaly, northern Greece).
photograph View of the Acropolis
from the southwest.
family
A drama
Hephaestus, the son of Zeus and his wife Hera,
came into the world handicapped. His mother
rejected him and threw him off Mount Olympus.
He landed on the island of Lemnos. To take
revenge, he made his mother a golden throne
with magical powers. When Hera sat down on
it, she found herself unable to stand up again.
Hephaestus refused to return to Mount Olympus
to free his mother, saying, “I no longer have a
mother.” In desperation, the gods sent Dionysus,
the merry god of wine, to Lemnos. He got his
half-brother drunk and brought him back to
Olympus on a donkey. This vase painting shows
Hephaestus on the donkey’s back, wearing an
apron and carrying tongs and a hammer. A
satyr with an empty wineskin is making cheerful
music.
rater, red-figure pottery,
K
from Attica, 440–430 BC
warrior-goddess
B athena
Athena was the goddess not only of wisdom but
also of warfare and strategy. The Greeks believed
that tactical insight on the battlefield was
every bit as important as courage and physical
strength. On this amphora Athena is carrying a
shield and wearing a helmet. Her outstretched
right arm holds a large lance. This vase is a
prize amphora. Filled with olive oil, such vessels
were given to the winners of the Panathenaic
Games. The other side shows the sporting event
for which the prize was awarded – in this case,
boys’ horseracing. Next to Athena, we see two
roosters, symbols of fighting spirit in sports.
Another animal associated with the goddess is
the owl, a symbol of wisdom.
1 Prize amphora, black-figure pottery,
from Attica, c. 500 BC
2 Drinking bowl with owl decoration,
red-figure pottery, from Attica,
460–440 BC
3 Drinking bowl with owl decoration,
red-figure pottery, from southern Italy,
350–300 BC
3
cape sounion:
poseidon and the sea
At the southeastern tip of Attica, Cape Sounion
extends far into the sea. At its highest point,
almost 70 metres above sea level, a majestic
temple was built for the sea-god Poseidon in
440 BC. This building replaced an earlier temple
that had been destroyed by the Persians. Every
seafarer who approached Attica saw the new
temple rising in the distance like a beacon in
the sea. In the city of Sounion, a large festival
was held once every four years in honour of
Poseidon, with processions, sacrifices, and
performances. Seated on the hills along the
seaside, the onlookers enjoyed the magnificent
spectacle of naval exercises and re-enacted sea
battles.
photograph Cape Sounion with the Temple of
Poseidon.
the old man
c of the sea
The god Oceanus has survived in our word
“ocean”. In Greek myth, he lives in the ocean
surrounding the known world. He is married
to the nymph Tethys, and their children are
the seas, the rivers, the wells, and the springs.
Because Oceanus was the father of all the
water on earth, the Greeks regarded him as the
progenitor of life. This small well-head is fittingly
decorated with the head of Oceanus, who has a
thick beard and long, damp hair from which two
lobster claws are emerging. On either side of the
god, we find charming sea and riverside scenes.
Two putti in a small boat fish with a net, and a
solitary fisherman sits on a rock and casts his line
into the river.
ell-head with Oceanus, putti,
W
and a fisherman, marble, Roman,
2nd century AD
4
marathon:
athenian heroism
In the late summer of the year 490 BC, a small
army of Athenian warriors and the Persian
legions of King Darius waged a decisive battle on
the plain of Marathon. The impossible happened:
The Athenians, with the aid of their slaves and
the people of Plataea, defeated the enormous
Persian army. According to tradition, one of the
Greek soldiers, Pheidippides, ran 42 kilometres
to Athens to report the victory. After crying out,
“Rejoice, victory is ours!” he fell to the ground,
dead. The 192 Athenian soldiers who died in the
battle were laid to rest in a burial mound with
memorial stones and inscriptions, in the exact
spot where the battle took a critical turn.
photograph Burial mound of the Athenians
on the plain of Marathon.
d
weaponry
Before the lines clashed, ancient armies would
try to kill as many of their opponents as possible
by shooting arrows and throwing spears. These
projectiles would rain down furiously on their
enemies, who would try to protect themselves
with their helmets and shields. Because the
arrows were barbed, they often stuck in the
shields, making them difficult to use for the
remainder of the battle. In the days leading up
to the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC, there
were rumours that the Persian forces were far
superior in number. One soldier said, “When they
fire all their arrows, they will block out the sun.” A
Spartan responded, “Good. Then we will fight in
the shade.” This is an example of laconic humour,
which uses few words (named after the region of
Laconia, which included Sparta).
rrows and spearheads, bronze and iron,
A
various origins, c. 600–200 BC.
5
aulis:
victory above family
6
eleusis:
the cycle of life
From Aulis in the region of Boeotia, the Greek
armies planned to cross to Asia Minor by ship to
punish the Trojans for abducting the beautiful
Helen. But no wind blew, and the fleet could
not set sail. This was because the Mycenaean
king Agamemnon had incurred the wrath of the
goddess Artemis by killing a sacred stag. The
only way for him to appease the goddess was to
sacrifice his daughter Iphigeneia. Agamemnon
lured Iphigeneia to Aulis and placed her on the
altar. The girl disappeared into a cloud, and
Artemis brought Iphigeneia to the Temple of
Tauris, where she became a priestess. Later,
Iphigeneia returned to Mycenae with her brother
Orestes.
The sacred precincts of Eleusis were devoted
to the goddess Demeter and her daughter
Persephone. Abducted by Hades, the god of
the underworld, Persephone has to spend three
months a year in his realm. When she returns
in the spring, her mother’s happiness makes
the earth flourish again. In Eleusis, the death
and rebirth of nature were celebrated through
initiation ceremonies known as mysteries. For
days on end, the goddesses were worshipped
in processions and all-night feasts. The climax
of these secret rituals took place in a square hall
known as the Telesterion. In a trance, the more
than 3,000 initiates would learn the secrets of
life and death.
photograph View of the bay of Aulis from the
southwest; across the bridge lies Chalcis (Euboea).
photograph Aerial view of the sacred precincts of
Eleusis; in the centre is the Telesterion.
agriculture conquers
E the world
In Greek myth, Triptolemus is a young nobleman
who helps the goddess Demeter search for her
daughter Persephone. To show her gratitude,
Demeter herself initiates him into the Eleusinian
mysteries and makes him part of her retinue.
He becomes a demigod, and Demeter teaches
him the secrets of agriculture: ploughing,
sowing, and harvesting. He is told to spread
this knowledge throughout the world so that
humanity can become civilized. This amphora
shows the preparations for his departure.
Demeter and Triptolemus are offering a libation
of wine to the gods. The winged carriage
has already begun to rise into the air. During
Triptolemus’s travels around the world, the
savage Scythians attack him and damage his
carriage. Demeter responds by transforming the
Scythian king, Lyncus, into a predator named
after him: the lynx.
Amphora with Triptolemus and Demeter,
red-figure pottery, from Attica, 460–450 BC.
7
aegina:
the temple of aphaea
The island of Aegina lies 20 kilometres off the
coast of Attica. At the island’s highest point, its
inhabitants built a magnificent temple dedicated
to the local goddess Aphaea, with a cult statue
made of ivory and decorative scenes from the
Trojan War. The island grew wealthy thanks to
trade with Egypt and the western Mediterranean
region, and the first Greek coins were struck
there. The island was caught up in a fierce
rivalry with the city of Athens, culminating in the
capture of Aegina by the Athenians in 459 BC.
The original population was later banished, and
many were killed. The island’s heyday had ended.
The statue of Athena Aphaea is on the platform
in the middle of the room.
photograph The Temple of Aphaea on Aegina.
F
athena in all her glory
The sculptures from the Temple of Aphaea
on Aegina were discovered during excavations
in 1811. They represent the legendary battles
between the Greeks and the Trojans. On both
the west and east pediments, the goddess
Athena is the central and most prominent figure,
standing between the warring parties in full
armour. Athena sided with the Greeks in the
Trojan War and protected the legendary hero
Odysseus on his voyage home to Ithaca after the
war. The sculptures from Aegina were restored
in Rome and completed by the Danish sculptor
Bertel Thorvaldsen (1770–1844). Casts of these
sculptures were made for the National Museum
of Antiquities in Leiden in 1829. In Munich, where
the original sculptures are kept, Thorvaldsen’s
additions have since been removed.
Statue of Athena, plaster, 19th-century cast
of a Greek original from 510 BC.
8
a passage between
east and west
The narrowest point between the Greek
mainland and the Peloponnese peninsula is
known as the Isthmus of Corinth. Separating the
Saronic Gulf from the Gulf of Corinth, it is only 6
kilometres wide and 80 metres above sea level.
To protect the Peloponnese from invasion, walls
were constructed across the entire Isthmus at
several points in its history. Small vessels could
be pulled with ropes along an overland track
known as the Diolkos, or “passage across”. The
first plans to dig a canal were made in ancient
times by leaders such as Julius Caesar, Caligula,
and Nero. Today’s Corinth Canal was constructed
between 1881 and 1893 and varies in width from
21 to 24 metres.
photograph The Corinth Canal from the east.
G
helmets from corinth
In the 7th century BC, a type of helmet was
invented in Corinth that has gone down in history
as quintessentially Greek. This Corinthian helmet
was made from a single piece of bronze, with
almond-shaped openings for the eyes, a long
nose guard, and a vertical opening for the mouth.
Impressive panaches (plumes of feathers) could
be attached to the top. The cheeks and ears
were completely covered, and an inner lining
of cloth and leather made the helmet more
comfortable to wear. It offered considerable
protection, but also had serious disadvantages:
the ears were covered completely, and in the
heat of battle the temperature inside the helmet
could soar. In the 5th century BC, other types of
helmet were popular, with hinged cheek pieces
and openings for the ears. For many centuries
artists used Corinthian helmets to allude to the
heroic Greek past.
1 Corinthian helmet, bronze,
from southern Italy, 5th century BC
2 Corinthian wine jug showing a man
with a helmet on horseback, pottery,
625–600 BC
3 Corinthian oil flask in the shape of a
warrior with a helmet, pottery,
600–550 BC
9
ithaca:
island of odysseus?
Ithaca is one of the Ionian Islands, lying between
Cephalonia and the Greek mainland. It is known
for being the home of Odysseus, a hero in
Homer’s epic poems, who was honoured in a
shrine on the island called the Odysseion, as well
as in athletic competitions there, the Odysseia.
Nevertheless, it remains unclear whether modernday Ithaca was truly the home of Odysseus and
his beloved Penelope. Many details in Homer do
not fit the island as we know it. Are these simply
poetic liberties, or was ancient Ithaca a different
place? Cees Goekoop (1933–2011), the former
mayor of Leiden, proposed the hypothesis that
the original Ithaca was a peninsula on the large
island of Cephalonia, whose topography is a
surprisingly good match for Homer’s descriptions.
photograph View of the bay of Polis.
In the centre is the town of Stavros,
with the hill of Pelicata in the distance.
the odyssey
H in print
In the Middle Ages, Homer’s epics were committed to paper and copied in monasteries and
preserved in libraries. The first printed version of
the Iliad and the Odyssey, the editio princeps, was
published in Florence in 1488 and dedicated to
Lorenzo de’ Medici. This edition was the work of
the Greek scholar Demetrius Chalcondyles
(1423–1511), who was born in Athens but embarked
at a young age on a distinguished career as a professor of Greek and philosophy at the universities
of Padua, Perugia, Milan, and Florence. The Italian
humanists were delighted with the opportunity to
learn ancient Greek from a native speaker so that
they could read the works of Plato and Aristotle in
the original language. Chalcondyles was a popular
teacher. One of his students wrote, “It seems as
if all the wisdom, civility, and elegance of those
famous ancient Greeks are united in him.”
1 Homeri Odyssea, edition by Stephan Bergler,
Amsterdam 1707.
2 Emil Engelmann, Homers Odyssee in freier
Übersetzung für das Deutsche Haus,
Stuttgart 1891.
3 Kees Stip, Ballade van de honderd vrijers,
Haarlem 1951.
4 Karl Heinz Hansen-Bahia, Die Abenteuer
des Odysseus, Darmstadt 1962.
(Collection of J.T. Schulten, Leiden)
10
samothrace:
mysterious gods
Samothrace is an island in the northern Aegean
Sea, once part of nearby Thrace. It was renowned
for its mystery rites, which honoured the “Great
Gods”. These gods, also known as the Cabeiri,
have very ancient roots and are closely tied to
the cult of the earth, to fertility and nature. The
aerial photograph shows the sanctuary of the
Cabeiri. The largest circular temple in Greece, the
Arsinoeion, is clearly identifiable. Initiates in the
Cabeiri cult made offerings and confessed their
sins, and then underwent secret symbolic rituals.
The well-known sculpture Winged Victory of
Samothrace (depicting Nike, goddess of victory,
and now in the Louvre) was found next to a pool
in the sanctuary.
photograph The sanctuary of the Cabeiri viewed
from the west; a stream in the middle separated
the town of Samothrace (note the remains of the
wall at the top) from the sacred buildings.
I
nocturnal
amusements
To prepare initiates for the celebration of
the mysteries, the priests organized a strict
programme of events. This included ritual
cleansing, fasting, offerings, incubation (sleeping
in sacred places), nocturnal descents into
underground chambers, and a special diet.
It is possible that the “sacred food” given to
them contained hallucinogenic herbs, which
would have made the climactic moment in their
initiation even more intense. The secret rituals
took place at night. This Attic vase depicts one
such nocturnal celebration. In the centre is a
woman, who may be a priestess, carrying a
large lit torch and an offering dish. Four men are
moving around her, apparently in ecstasy.
Krater, red-figure pottery,
from Attica, 400–380 BC
11
thasos:
marble and metals
Thasos is the northernmost of the Greek islands,
just off the coast of Thrace. The island is rich
in minerals such as lead, iron, silver, and gold.
High-quality marble is quarried there, and there
is a well-developed wine industry. According
to myth, a group of Phoenicians led by Prince
Thassos came from the city of Tyre (in what
is now Lebanon) to settle the island, drawn
by its wealth of natural resources. The Greeks
later converted a temple to the Phoenician god
Melqart into a shrine to the Tyrian Heracles. The
Greeks colonized Thasos from the island of Paros
in the 7th century. The poet Archilochus spent
time on Thasos and had a love-hate relationship
with the island, which he described as “like a
donkey’s back, covered with wild forest”.
12
lemnos:
island of the lame god
Lemnos lies in the north of the Aegean Sea. The
island is rich in myths, one of which relates to its
volcanic nature. Lemnos is said to be the island
where the god Hephaestus, son of Zeus, fell to
earth after his mother Hera hurled him down
from Mount Olympus. The limping god grew up
on Lemnos, forging his iron in the volcanoes.
With the nymph Cabiro, he fathered a legendary
tribe, the Cabeiri, revered as the “Great Gods”
on Lemnos and elsewhere in Greece. Lemnos
was also where Dionysus and Ariadne went
after meeting on Naxos. Ariadne bore four
children there: Thoas, Staphylos, Oenopion, and
Peparethos.
photograph The Cabeirion of Lemnos with
the great Telesterion, the initiation hall.
photograph The acropolis of Thasos,
with the Temple of Athena in the foreground.
the
J cabeirion
The powerful Cabeiri had not only the temple
on Lemnos, but also a shrine in the region of
Boeotia, around Thebes. The cult and mysteries
there were closely connected to the worship
of the agricultural goddess Demeter and her
daughter Kore. The Greek geographer Pausanias
visited this temple: “Travelling 25 stades from
Thebes, you come to the grove of Demeter
Cabeiria and Kore. Only initiates may enter.”
Pausanias, who was an initiate, reported that the
Cabeiri had tremendous powers. When some
Persians from the army of Xerxes desecrated
the shrine, they were struck with madness and
jumped off a cliff into the sea. The large wine
vessels in this display case come from the
Cabeiri shrine, where they were used in rituals.
1 Cabeiri vessels, black-figure pottery,
from the Cabeirion of Thebes,
450–425 BC
2 Statuette of Hephaestus, bronze,
from Egypt, Roman period
13
lesbos: wine, beauty,
and poetry
Lesbos is one of the largest islands in the
Aegean Sea, famous for its wine, its poetry,
and the beauty of its women. The lyric verse of
poets such as Alcaeus, Terpander, Arion, and
Sappho was famous throughout the ancient
world. Sappho was an aristocratic woman who
gathered a group of young girls around her,
educating them in the fine arts and preparing
them for marriage. Her poetry is intimate and
expresses the deep feelings that she and her
young pupils had for each other: She left me,
weeping bitter tears . . . and I answered her, “Go
in joy, and think of me, for you know how much
we cared for you. All the beautiful experiences
that we had . . .” (Sappho, fragment 94).
photograph Remains of the Roman aqueduct
in Mytilene, the capital of Lesbos.
beauties
K of greece
The sculptures left by the ancient Greeks are not
the only way for us to learn about their vision
of the ideal woman. Greek poets never tire of
praising the charms of the fair sex. Women are
often compared to flowers: “A girl gave me
two apples . . . she herself was like a blossom.”
Marrying an attractive woman was the fondest
wish of many men: “Happy the man who sees
you, blissful he who hears you, a demigod he
who kisses you, immortal he who marries you!”
But beauty and infatuation also had their dark
sides. Women cost money: “I taste honey on
your lips, but when you ask for money, your sting
wounds me deeply!” And those beautiful eyes
sometimes strayed to other men: “You look,
without distinction, even at ordinary fellows!”
Fragments of Greek poetry from the Anthologia
Palatina (6th century BC–6th century AD)
Statuettes of women, terracotta, various origins,
300–150 BC
14
samos:
birthplace of hera
In the 6th century BC, the island of Samos was
one of the greatest naval powers of ancient
Greece. The island was home to poets, artists,
and scholars, such as the mathematician
Pythagoras. Under the rule of the tyrant
Polycrates, Samos allied itself with the Egyptian
pharaoh Amasis. Polycrates erected the Heraion,
a great temple dedicated to Hera. According
to legend, the goddess Hera had been born on
the island and grown up on the banks of the
river Imbrasos, near the sea. This ancient cult
site became the location of one of the largest
temples in ancient Greece, with a floor area of
123 by 60 metres. The section for the cult image
was surrounded by double and triple rows of
enormous columns.
photograph The Heraion of Polycrates at Samos.
To the left, the remains of smaller temples, altars,
and votive offerings are visible.
gifts of
L the pharaoh
Near the Heraion, the Temple of Hera at Samos,
a large number of votive offerings were present.
The kouroi, nude statues of young men several
metres in height, were particularly impressive.
Because of the international importance of
Samos in the 6th century BC, many foreigners
came to the island, and they too paid homage
to Hera. According to the historian Herodotus,
the Egyptian pharaoh Amasis dedicated two
sculptures to her. During recent excavations
in the Heraion, many Egyptian artefacts were
found, including some made from ivory and
ebony.
1 New year’s flask with palmetto motif and
the name Amasis, faience, from Egypt,
6th century BC
2 Button seal with cartouche of Amasis,
limestone, from Egypt, 6th century BC
3 Egyptian unguent bottle, alabaster,
found in the Heraion, 6th century BC
4 Bronze handle: nude young man with lions,
bronze, from Samos, 6th century BC
5 Miniature amphora, pottery, from Samos,
3rd–2nd century BC
15
icaria:
the tomb of Icarus
The small island of Icaria was known as Ikaros
in ancient times, after the son of Daedalus, who
according to myth had fallen into the sea nearby.
This part of the Mediterranean, still known as
the Icarian Sea, contains the islands of Samos,
Patmos, Leros, Kalymnos, Cos, and Icaria. In
the story, as they take off into the sky from the
island of Crete, Icarus’s father Daedalus warns
his son not to fly too low, because the seawater
will splash onto his artificial wings, making
them damp and heavy. But if he flies too high,
the heat of the sun will melt the wax that holds
the feathers in place. But Icarus is young and
impetuous, and so excited about flying that he
goes too high. The wings fall off and the poor
boy plummets to his death in the sea.
photograph View of Icaria and the Icarian Sea.
carried
M on wings
16
patmos: the island
of revelation
The island of Patmos lies off the coast of Asia
Minor to the southwest of Samos. It was of little
importance in the ancient world, suitable only
as a place of banishment. The most famous exile
to spend time there was John the Evangelist. In
the Cave of the Apocalypse, he wrote the Book
of Revelation, a prophetic book that became
the final section of the New Testament. Because
John had lived there, Patmos became a sacred
island. In 1088 the monk Christodoulos founded
the Monastery of St. John the Evangelist on
the island’s highest hill. This monastery holds
countless manuscripts and ecclesiastical
treasures, and in times of danger it could serve
as a fort.
photograph The Monastery of St. John
the Evangelist.
byzantine
N art
The myth of Icarus illustrates the human desire
to fly like a bird. In Greek mythology, several
gods have wings that enable them to fly. The
messengers of gods use this ability to carry
messages between earth and heaven, Hermes
with his winged sandals and Iris “with her golden
wings”, as Homer tells us. Winged gods can also
be flighty or fickle. You never know whether
the goddess of victory, Nike, will reward your
efforts or abandon you, and of course, the most
unpredictable god of all is Eros. As he flies about,
shooting his arrows, he leaves a trail of messy
love affairs behind him.
Byzantine art developed in the eastern
Mediterranean region between AD 500 and 1453,
the year when Constantinople was captured
by the Ottomans. The Byzantine Empire was
the continuation of the Roman Empire, and
Byzantine art can be regarded as the successor
to late classical art. Many artistic traditions
continued at a high level, such as mosaic art. In
smaller objects, too, the differences between the
late classical and Byzantine periods are subtle.
The most striking change is the appearance
of Christian symbols, such as the chrismon
(monogram of Christ) and the cross.
1 Statuette of Eros, terracotta,
from Smyrna, 2nd century BC
2 Statuette of Eros, terracotta,
from Smyrna, 150–100 BC
3 Statuette of Eros, terracotta,
from Myrina, 1st century BC
4 Statuette of Eros, terracotta,
from Priene, 2nd century BC
5 Statuette of Nike, terracotta,
from Canosa, 3rd century BC
1 Weights with Christian symbols, bronze,
from Ephesus, 8th century AD
2 Plaque with the archangel Michael, bronze,
from Smyrna, 10th–12th century AD
3 Plaque with John the Baptist and Christ,
bronze, from Smyrna, 10th–12th century AD
4 Angel heads with wings, bronze,
from Smyrna, 13th century AD
5 Crucifixes and reliquaries, bronze,
coast of Asia Minor, 10th–12th century AD
6 Lamps with cross decorations, bronze,
coast of Asia Minor, 5th–6th century AD
17
cos: the birth of
modern medicine
The inhabitants of the island of Cos belonged to
the Dorian people. The island was colonized from
the city of Epidaurus in the Peleponnese, and the
chief god worshipped on both Epidaurus and
Cos was Asclepius. Cos was home to a famous
medical school, the Asklepion, which flourished
under the leadership of Hippocrates, the father
of scientific medicine. Even today, physicians
take the Hippocratic Oath, and their symbol is the
Rod of Asclepius (a staff with a serpent around
it). The Asklepion had many purposes. It was a
sanctuary with a temple devoted to Asclepius, a
hospital with wards and consulting rooms, and a
cultural centre with areas for lectures and music.
The grand complex is situated on three terraces
connected by a monumental stairway.
photograph The three terraces of the sanctuary.
Below is the Temple of Asclepius, and on the right
the baths from the Roman era.
O
sickness and health
Beauty was a central concept in ancient
Greek thought. Artists portrayed people with
nearly perfect proportions, and beautiful was
almost synonymous with “good”. Of course,
the reality was different. Age and disease left
their marks on the body even in ancient times.
In the Hellenistic period (c. 330–50 BC), artists
became interested in imperfect bodies. This
terracotta head shows a man with a muscle
disease, what is now called Bell’s palsy. The
other sculpture represents a man with dwarfism
and hydrocephalus. Physicians used a range of
medical instruments to perform surgery (without
anaesthesia).
1 Man with muscle disease, terracotta,
from Asia Minor, Roman period
2 Man with dwarfism and hydrocephalus,
origin unknown, Roman period
3 Medical instruments, bronze,
various origins, Roman period
18
rhodes: island of
the sun god
Rhodes is the largest island in the Southern
Sporades The city of the same name was formed
in 408 BC by an alliance of the island’s three
existing towns: Lindos, Kameiros, and Ialyssos.
According to myth, the island rose from the
sea to provide a place to worship the sun god
Helios. Rhodes became a major hub of trade
and a magnet for artists and philosophers. Until
late in the Roman era, it was a centre for the
study of rhetoric, the art of persuasive speaking;
students there included Cato, Julius Caesar, and
Cicero. The most famous statue there was one
of the wonders of the world: a bronze Helios, 50
metres high. This statue was also known as the
Colossus of Rhodes. The island’s fortifications
and medieval architecture date from 1309, when
it was captured by the Knights of St. John.
photograph Rhodes: Port and medieval ramparts
from the days of the Knights of St. John.
rhodes, the flemish
P colonel, and the
national museum of
antiquities in leiden
Between 1824 and 1826, the Flemish colonel
Bernard Rottiers (1771–1857) undertook an
archaeological voyage of discovery in the Greek
islands, where he purchased many interesting
objects for the National Museum of Antiquities.
From January to May 1826, Rottiers stayed on
the island of Rhodes, studying the medieval
architecture of the Knights of St. John in the
company of the artist P.J. Witdoeck. The notes
and sketches were reworked and published in
1830 in the book Description des monumens de
Rhodes, dedicated to King William I. Witdoeck’s
engravings form an important source of
information about the architecture of Rhodes
and were used when the medieval city was
restored in the 20th century.
1 B.E.A. Rottiers, Description des monumens
de Rhodes, Brussels 1830.
2 Silver drachma, Rhodes, 304–67 BC
3 Silver half drachma, Rhodes, 167–88 BC
19
lindos:
the birth of athena
Lindos is one of the three ancient towns of
Rhodes. Before unification in 408 BC, the city
controlled the centre and south of the island.
Its geographical position is spectacular; the
acropolis rises straight up out of the sea to
a height of 116 metres. On this citadel is the
Temple of Athena Lindia, surrounded by squares
and stoas (walkways lined with columns). The
goddess Athena was said to have leapt from the
head of Zeus nearby. Even after Lindos lost its
independence, the city remained prosperous,
partly thanks to the popular sanctuary of Athena.
In the Middle Ages, the Knights of St. John
fortified the town with a large castle, the remains
of which can still be seen. Lindos also became
well-known for its wise leader Cleobulus, one of
the Seven Sages of Greece, known for saying,
“Moderation is the best thing.”
20
bull
knossos:
the labyrinth and the
The palace complex of Knossos was the leading
centre of Minoan Crete in the second millennium
BC. The palace included living areas, store
rooms, public spaces, and shrines. Official
sections were decorated with lively murals. The
figure of the bull was central to Minoan religion.
The palace and the Minoan bull had an enduring
influence on Greek mythology, in which the
sacred bull is said to have fathered the Minotaur
by Queen Pasiphae. The legendary architect
Daedalus builds the labyrinth, which was used to
hold the Minotaur by order of King Minos. And
in fact, the complex organization of the Knossos
site truly is reminiscent of a labyrinth.
photograph Aerial view of the Palace of Knossos,
with buildings surrounding the rectangular central
square.
photograph The Acropolis of Lindos
with the Temple of Athena Lindia;
subterranean shrines in the hill.
Q
theseus in the labyrinth
Ariadne, the daughter of King Minos, fell in
love with the hero Theseus in Crete. He had been
sent to enter the labyrinth and slay the creature
known as the Minotaur, which was part man and
part bull. Ariadne believed that Theseus had the
courage and strength to defeat the Minotaur, but
if he lost his way in the labyrinth, he was sure to
die. So she gave him a ball of wool thread that
he could unroll to trace his path through the
maze. Theseus promised to take her to Athens
after the adventure was over. After he defeated
the Minotaur, he was able to find his way back
thanks to Ariadne’s thread. This stamp shows
the Minotaur running. On the amphora, Theseus
deals a fatal blow to the monster.
1 Seal, volcanic stone, from Cos, 1550–1100 BC
2 Amphora with Theseus and the Minotaur,
black-figure pottery, from Athens, 560–550 BC
21
phaistos:
palace on the hill
Along with Knossos, Phaistos was one of the
most significant Cretan palaces of the Minoan
era. It lies in the south of Crete in a spur from
a range of hills. The first palace was built there
around 1850 BC, but it was destroyed several
times. The building went up in flames around
1400 BC and was not rebuilt again. In the Minoan
period, Phaistos was important mainly because
it traded with Egypt and the Near East. The
ceramics produced there were among the finest
in all of Crete. Around the palace was a large
settlement, which remained inhabited until the
Byzantine era. Italian archaeologists excavated
the famous Phaistos Disc here, which is covered
with cryptic symbols.
photograph Hill plateau with the excavations of
the Palace of Phaistos.
adoration
R on Crete
22
thera:
on the rim of the volcano
The island of Thera (Santorini), rising high
above the sea, is the remains of an enormous
volcano that erupted several times between
1500 and 1450 BC. These natural disasters set off
earthquakes and tsunamis, which brought an end
to the Minoan civilization on the island of Crete.
In excavations on Thera, ruins of houses were
found that suggest a highly advanced culture.
The wall paintings show many scenes from
everyday life: boys playing sports, fishermen, and
girls of exceptional beauty. Household objects
and frescoes were well preserved beneath the
volcanic ash that buried the island’s houses.
Thera could be called the Pompeii of the Aegean.
photograph Caldera (crater) of Thera with port
and winding path leading upward.
grief on
S thera
This figurine of a man in prayer was found at
Phaistos. “Adorants” like this one were brought
to shrines on Crete as votive offerings to the
gods. The figurine is made of solid bronze with
an unpolished surface. The man is leaning far
back with his arms tensed in front of his chest.
His swollen biceps clearly show the intensity
of his prayer. He wears a loincloth around his
slender waist and a round, soft cap on his head.
Bronze and terracotta statuettes of this type
usually have one arm raised, with the hand to
the head. The two-armed pose seen here is less
common, and the round hat is a unique feature.
The items in this display case were found on
the island of Thera. The pottery dates from
the island’s second period of flourishing, in the
9th century BC, and is decorated with simple
geometric patterns. The small funerary relief
was given to the National Museum of Antiquities
in 1830 by the Baron van Zuylen van Nyevelt,
Dutch consul on Thera. The piece dates from the
Roman period and commemorates a boy who
died at the age of four. The inscription reads,
“Passer-by, my name is Alexandros. My mother’s
name is Eutychia. I am the son of my father
Achilles. My death caused them great pain.”
Figurine of an adorant,
found in Phaistos, c. 1580–1474 BC
1 Geometric dishes, pottery,
from Thera, 850–800 BC
2 Funerary relief of Alexandros,
marble, from Thera, 200–300 AD
23
naxos:
island of dionysus
Naxos is the largest island in the Cyclades, a
circular island group. The island is central to
myths about Dionysus, god of wine, who was
said to have been born there from the thigh of
his father Zeus. Naxos was also where Dionysus
later found his bride Ariadne, who had been
abandoned by Theseus. The island has an ideal
climate for wine growing, and Dionysus was
traditionally the most important god there.
Along with wine, marble was another major
export. In the north, large marble quarries
were discovered. It is interesting to see the
columns and sculptures left lying unfinished
in these quarries. One of these marble blocks
was supposed to become a kouros, a statue of
a young man more than ten metres high. The
Dionysus statues are on the platform in the
middle of the room.
24
delos:
most sacred of islands
In very ancient times, there was a mother
goddess called Leto, worshipped mainly in
Lycia (Asia Minor). In Greek mythology, she is
Zeus’s mistress. When Hera, the wife of Zeus,
notices that Leto is pregnant, she drives the girl
away and makes it impossible for her to give
birth on solid ground. Leto finally gives birth
to her daughter Artemis and son Apollo on the
floating island of Delos. Zeus then anchors the
island. Delos was a major centre for cult rituals,
so sacred and pure that no one could be born or
die there. It became the site of shrines to Apollo,
theatres, and treasuries in which the gifts to the
god were stored.
photograph View of the islands of Delos,
Rheneia, Tinos, and Gyaros.
photograph Marble quarries on Naxos
dionysus,
T god of wine
Dionysus lost his mother Semele even before he
was born. Semele went up in flames when she
saw her lover Zeus in his full glory, a sight never
meant for mortal eyes. Zeus took the foetus
from her womb and sewed it into his thigh. Born
on the island of Naxos, Dionysus soon vanished
into the east, where he learned the secrets of
winemaking. He later returned to Greece as the
god of wine, dance, and ecstasy. King Pentheus
of Thebes opposed the god and his licentious
followers and paid for it with his life. Dionysus is
a two-sided figure; his wine can provide comfort
and inspiration, but can also bring on a mad
frenzy. As the ancient Greeks said, “Nothing in
excess.”
Sculptural group of Dionysus with satyr,
marble, from Italy, 2nd century AD.
the palm tree
U of delos
In Greek myth, Artemis and Apollo are born
underneath a palm tree. Artemis is born first and
assists her mother during the birth of her twin
brother Apollo. The palm was the sacred tree of
the island of Delos, and by the Temple of Apollo
there was a votive offering in the form of a huge
bronze palm. This tree fell in 417 BC, severely
damaging the statue of Apollo (a kouros from
the 7th century BC). The front and back of this
amphora show Apollo and Artemis under the
palm tree. Apollo, the god of the fine arts, is
playing on his kithara, an instrument with seven
strings and a large sound box. Artemis, goddess
of the hunt, caresses a fawn.
Amphora, black-figure pottery,
from Attica, 510–500 BC
25
melos:
wealth from the volcano
Melos is part of the group of islands known as
the Cyclades. The volcanic island surrounds a
bay that makes an excellent natural harbour.
Since the early bronze age, the island has been
inhabited and its resources have been exploited.
Melos was the leading centre of trade in sulphur
and obsidian, volcanic glass used in all sorts
of weapons and household objects. Tools
made from obsidian have been found as far
away as inner Anatolia. In the ruins of the main
settlement, Phylakopi, beautiful wall paintings
have been found, with subjects including flying
fish.
photograph Mining area near Phylakopi
at home
V on melos
Little remains of the ancient architecture of the
Cyclades, apart from the foundations of some
buildings. The most significant archaeological
site in Melos is known as Phylakopi. A few
architectural models have been found in Melos
and give us some idea of how its houses looked.
The model shown here is of a building with an
entrance gate and a central courtyard. Around
the courtyard are seven cylindrical structures,
which can be interpreted as silos for grain or
other agricultural produce. The decorative
circular motifs on the outside are also found on
pottery from Melos. The four legs supporting the
model are ornamental elements.
1 Model of a house, plaster cast of schist
original, c. 2200–2000 BC
2 Cycladic potsherds, from Melos,
3rd–2nd millennium BC
3 Blades, obsidian (volcanic glass),
from Melos, 3rd millennium BC
26
melos:
neutral to the end
In the 6th and 5th centuries BC, Melos went
through a period of phenomenal growth. The
island’s sheltered harbour made it a centre of
international trade. This golden age was ended
by the Peloponnesian War between Athens
and Sparta (431–404 BC). Melos did not want
to take sides but was dragged into the conflict
by Athens. After a long siege, the island was
captured by the Athenians, who slaughtered
the male inhabitants and sold the women and
children into slavery. Despite this catastrophe,
Melos flourished again in the 4th and 3rd
centuries BC, as attested by the breathtaking
sculpture of the goddess Aphrodite now known
as the Venus de Milo, which is on display in the
Louvre.
rottiers
W in melos
The Flemish colonel Bernard Rottiers (1771–1857)
conducted excavations in 1825 on the site where
the famous Venus de Milo had been found some
years earlier. There he found a marble portrait
head of a priest and an altar decorated with the
heads of bulls. His greatest find was a mosaic
floor depicting Dionysus, satyrs, a panther, and
fish. During his stay in Melos he also bought
marble objects from the Roman period, the
function of which is unclear. One hypothesis
is that they are models of women’s breasts,
intended as votive offerings to a deity.
1 Drawing of the mosaic floor in Melos,
ink and paper, 19th century
2 Remains of the mosaic floor, taken by Colonel
Rottiers, stone, from Melos, Roman period
3 Models of women’s breasts, marble,
from Melos, Roman period
27
mykonos: granite rocks
and bald heads
The Giants were the sons and daughters of the
earth mother Gaia. Large, fierce, and strong, they
wanted to replace the gods as divine rulers. In
their epic struggle, the Gigantomachy, the gods
eventually defeated the Giants. According to
mythology, the Giants were buried under the
granite rocks of the isle of Mykonos. Beehive
tombs from the Mycenaean period (14th–11th
century BC) have been found there, but Mykonos
has not played a central historical role. In
ancient texts, the island is described as a dipolis,
meaning that there were two cities there. The
inhabitants of Mykonos had a poor reputation
in the ancient world; they were thought to be
dumb, narrow-minded, stingy, and bald by
nature.
photograph Mykonos with harbour and town
marble from
X the cyclades
In February 1825, Colonel Rottiers bought three
marble vessels from a resident of Mykonos who
told him that they had been found on the island
of Delos. The bowl-shaped dish has one long
vertical handle. The rounded vases with bases
have four vertical handles with holes in them
on their bodies. Rope could be run through the
holes to hold the lid in place. This type of vessel
is known as a kandila (lamp) in Greece, because
it resembles the lamps used in Greek Orthodox
churches. The stylized human figures are called
idols, after the Greek word eidolon, meaning
“image”.
1 Dish, marble, purchased on Mykonos,
Early Cycladic I, 2800–2700 BC
2 Two kandiles, marble, purchased on Mykonos,
Early Cycladic I, 3200–2700 BC
3 Louros-type idol, origin unknown,
Early Cycladic I, 2800–2700 BC
4 Spedos-type idol, origin unknown,
Early Cycladic II, 2700–2300 BC
28
thalassa:
greece and the sea
Around 400 BC the Athenian general Xenophon
led a Greek army of 10,000 soldiers back from
Persia to their homeland. After many hardships,
the men were passing over a mountain near the
town of Trapezounta (now Trabzon, Turkey)
when they suddenly saw the sea. They began to
cheer, Thalassa! Thalassa!! (“The sea! The sea!!”).
This event symbolizes the intense bond between
the Greeks and the sea. Ships are depicted on
the very earliest wall paintings from the 2nd
millennium BC. Sea routes brought prosperity
through trade and the exchange of knowledge
and talent. The sea carried Greek culture to
distant parts of Europe and Asia, and brought
Xenophon and his men safely home.
photograph The island of Fourni,
to the south of Samos
transport
Y by sea
In ancient times, people used ceramic vessels
known as amphorae to transport goods. They
could be used for various commodities, such as
oil, wine, fish sauce, grain, and olives. Rows of
amphorae were stacked in the holds of ships.
On amphorae, we find stamps, graffiti, and
traces of paint. The stamps generally indicate
who made them. The contents and destination
were scratched into the amphora or painted on.
These inscriptions provide information about
the economy and transport routes of the ancient
world. Many ships did not reach their final
destination; the bottom of the Mediterranean is
littered with shipwrecks – and amphorae.
Amphora, Chian type, pottery,
origin unknown, 350–330 BC
The griffin is one of the best-known legendary
creatures in Greek mythology: a cross-breeding
between a lion and eagle, which were thought
to be the most powerful creatures in the world.
It was said that griffins lived on the fringes of
the civilized world, among fearsome peoples
like the Scythians, and guarded the gold mined
in those regions. Georg Gerster’s photographs
show Greece as it might have looked to a griffin
in flight. The mosaic is on the platform in the
middle of the room.
Griffin with flower motifs, Byzantine mosaic,
origin unknown, c. AD 1000.
please leave this handout at
the museum after using.
Thank you.
heaven
Z and earth