Download Ancient People, ancient places

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