Download The Rise of the Polis

Borrow money from a pessimist…
They don’t expect it back.
Early Aegean Civilization &
The Rise of Hellenic Civilization
Parthenon, Athens - 450 BC
•
Sir Arthur Evans, 1900
Theseus and the Minotaur
Theseus and the Minotaur
North entrance of Palace of Knossos
Sea themes on Cretan pottery
The Queen’s Room…
Minoan ladies, 1400
The Fisherman, Crete, c 1400
Prince With Lilies, c. 1500 BC
Bull leaping Mural, Palace at Knossos
The Palace at Knossos, 2200 -1400 BC
• The
Lion’s
Gate,
1350 BC
Kyriakos
Pittakis,
1841
The Treasury of Atreus, circa 1300 BC
Two sets of gravesites
were discovered at
Mycenae
•
Pottery, swords,
knives and 100’s
of gold
ornaments have
been found
Mycenaean Queen, c. 1350
12th C. : The Trojan Wars
The poet Homer: The Iliad and The Odyssey
Invasions usher in a “Dark Age.” (1100-800 BC)
Invasions usher in a “Dark Age.” (1100-800 BC)
• Mycenaean civilization disappeared- warfare,
poverty, insecurity and isolation.
• Extensive trade ceased
• The knowledge of writing was forgotten
• Palace workshops were abandoned
• Art reflected primitive forms
• Simple burials
• No massive buildings/architecture
• Fewer water wells were dug
How did life change after 800 BC?
• “The Greek Renaissance” 800 – 600 BC
• Writing again became part of Greek culture
(Phoenician script!)
• Population increased dramatically
• Urbanization quickened
• A merchant class emerged
• Colonies around the Mediterranean multiplied
• Overseas trade expanded
• Rise in use of metals
The poet Homer: broke with the traditional treatment of the heroes
of myth and legend
• Not just deeds and
actions, but added
what the hero
thought and felt
about his behavior
• Developed
characters who
were complex in
their motives, who
expressed emotions
such as anger,
vengeance, guilt,
remorse and
compassion.
Hesiod,
wrote
The Theogony
and
Works & Days
• The Polis… is the name for the
independent city-state of the ancient
Hellenes people.
• The polis
developed into
a self-governing
community that
expressed the
will of free
citizens, not the
desires of gods,
hereditary kings
or priests.
The great Greek contribution to political life:
• Individual members shared a sense
of belonging to and participating in
the polis.
• Community problems are caused by
human beings and require human
solutions.
• Laws expressed the rational mind of
the community to insure its will and
needs are met.
Sparta: the ultimate military state
Spartan warriors, c. 450 BC
The ruins of Ancient Sparta
Athens, cradle of democracy
Draco
620’sBC
Solon
570’sBC
Pisistratus,
540’s BC
Cleisthenes,
508 BC