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Period: 1700 BCE to 1200 BCE
Late Bronze Age
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1650 BCE
References
Morris, Ian, and Barry B. Powell. The Greeks: History, Culture, and Society . 2nd ed., Pearson, 2010. All images come from lectures 2-12 -
1600 BCE
Uluburun Shipwreck 1300 BC
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1600 BCE
Cremation Burial in Athenian Agora 850 BC
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1600 BCE
Bull-leaping Fresco from Knossos 1500 BC
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1600 BCE
Late Geometric Krater 735-700 BC
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1600 BCE
Spartan Black-figure Pottery 550-540 BC
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1500 BCE
Bull-leaping Fresco from Knossos
It was a fresco at Knossos, depicting a bull-leaping game that was played in the Minoan palaces. This artefact shows the strong fictional ties between the Minoan civilisation and the mythical stories of the Minotaur. History and fiction are often interwoven, and modern historians should be aware of this when examining historical evidences. -
1300 BCE
Uluburun Shipwreck
It was a shipwreck found off the coast of Turkey carrying expensive goods and materials. This shows the importance of trade to the elites and regular people during the time. The artefact gives modern historians a rare glimpse into what the trade and craft industry was like in the Late Bronze Age. -
1200 BCE
Collapse of the Mycenaean Palatial Civilisation
The Mycenaean citadels and other Near Eastern kingdoms were destroyed. This signifies a gradual end to the Late Bronze Age, and the rise of the Early Iron Age in Greece. -
Period: 1200 BCE to 800 BCE
Early Iron Age
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1000 BCE
The Lefkandi Heroon
It was a funerary site on Euboea, commemorating two people buried with expensive goods and four horses. This artfefact signifies that art and culture was gradually regaining importance in the Early Iron Age. -
850 BCE
Cremation Burial of a Rich Athenian Woman
One of the grave goods of the Athenian lady found in the Athenian Agora was a necklace decorated with Near Eastern techniques, filigree and granulation. Like the burial gifts at Heroon, crafts and trade became more prominent in a period when art was not popular. Furthermore, it shows the strong influence of the Near East on Greek culture, and how that influence continues into later periods. -
Period: 800 BCE to 500 BCE
Archaic Period
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776 BCE
First Olympic Games
It was a series of athletic competitions held at the Panhellenic sanctuaries of Delphi, Olympia, Isthmia, and Nemea. This shows one way of competing (in a non-violent way) and showing off (winners were a source of pride and glory for the city-states) in Archaic Greece. -
740 BCE
The 'Cup of Nestor' from Pithekoussai
c. 740-10 BC
It was a cup with jokes about the Homeric poems engraved on it, found in the settlement of Pithekoussai on island of Ischia (off the coast of Italy). This shows that the first use of the newly invented Greek alphabet was for frivolous matters, such as writing poetry. -
735 BCE
Late Geometric Krater
c. 735-700 BC
It is a Late Geometric krater made in the Athenian Agora. This artefact shows how display of wealth was limited to uniform grave markers. Showing off was characteristic of the Archaic period, but a socially tolerable of display emerged to assuage the elite competition. -
550 BCE
Spartan Black-figure Pottery
c. 550-540 BC
This pottery depicts a scene from the Homeric epics, where Odysseus blinds the cyclops Polyphemus. It destabilises the Spartan Mirage, and proves that Sparta did specialise in art and crafts. This artefact is a reminder not to confuse primary evidence with myth. -
525 BCE
The Siphnian Treasury
It was an expensive building that was a votive offering from the city Siphnos, located at the Delphi Sanctuary. This artefact shows the display of wealth in a socially acceptable way during the Archaic period. -
Period: 500 BCE to 420 BCE
Classical Period
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490 BCE
Battle of Marathon
It was the first battle between the Greeks and the Persians, led by King Darius. This event glorifies Athens as the saviour of Greece, and foreshadows the return of the Persians a decade later. -
480 BCE
Battle of Himera
When the Carthaginians invaded Sicily, Gelon of Syracuse and his father-in-law Theron of Acragas defeated them in battle. This signifies the power of the Sicilian tyrants. Also, it may be because of fighting the Carthaginian enemy that Sicily did not participate in Greece's battle against the Persians. -
480 BCE
Battle of Salamis
Persian ships and the Athenian navy fleet battled it out in front of the island of Salamis; the latter is triumphant in the sea battle. Athens claims the victory, and this foreshadows the rise of the 'Athenian Empire.' -
479 BCE
The Delphi Charioteer
479-474 BC
It was a victory monument dedicated by the tyrant of Gela, Sicily at the Delphi Sanctuary to celebrate a chariot race win. This artefact signifies the importance of showing off and commemorating victories in public spaces for people in the Greek world and beyond to see. -
475 BCE
The Tyrannicides
A statue in the Athenian Agora honouring the tyrant-slayers, Harmodius and Aristogeiton, for putting Hipparchus, the Athenian tyrant, to death. This signifies the rise of democracy in Athens, and the involvement of the people in political affairs. -
454 BCE
Treasury of the Delian League moved to Athens
The tributes of the 'voluntary allies' of the Delian League stored on the neutral island of Delos was moved to Athens. This signifies Athens seizing control of power and wealth, the beginning of their imperial democracy. -
450 BCE
Peloponnesian War
450-404 BC
It was an internal Greek conflict between Athens (and her allies) and Sparta (and her allies). This event signifies a major divide between the Greek city-states that were previously unified against the Persian enemy. It also serves as an opportunity for Athens and Sparta to propagandise their political systems on cities they took over (the former is pro-democracy, the latter is pro-oligarchy). -
447 BCE
The 'Periclean' Parthenon
447-432 BC
It was a grand building on the Athenian Acropolis that was constructed during Athenian general Pericles' rule. This shows the visual representation of the city's dominance and affluence, and marks Athens as the top city of the Classical Period. -
Period: 420 BCE to 30 BCE
Hellenistic Period
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394 BCE
The Dexilaos Monument
It was a grave stone located in the Kerameikos Cemetery in Athens, in honour of Dexiloas, a young man who died in battle at Corinth. This artefact is an extraneous effort to commemorate an individual, whose name already appeared on the public grave monument. Displaying the achievements of the individual relates to the idea of personal showing off in Classical Greece. -
338 BCE
Battle of Chaeronea
King Philip II of Macedonia defeated the Greek army led by Athens and Thebes at Chaeronea, Boeotia. This signifies an important transition of Greece from independent city-states to a league under Philip's rule. -
333 BCE
Battle of Issus
At the second battle in Persia, Alexander the Great and his troops defeated the Persians, forcing King Darius III to escape. Despite being a small army, the Greeks compensated their numbers with discipline and organised strength. Historically, this signified that Persia was no longer a threat to Greece as it was a few centuries ago. -
305 BCE
The Coin of Lysimachus showing Alexander the Great
305-281 BC
Lysimachus, king of Thrace, put the image of Alexander onto his coins. Lysimachus is drawing a connection to Alexander; thus, claiming his legitimacy as the ruler of his kingdom. -
197 BCE
The Altar of Pergamon
197-159 BC
The Altar of Zeus was built at Pergamon by Eumenes II (descendent of Attalus I). The gigantomachy myth (Gods vs. Giants) on the altar signifies the importance of showing the civilised against the uncivilised barbarians. Furthermore, it legitimises the ruler's position with connections to the local land and Greek culture. -
196 BCE
The Rosetta Stone
It was a decree written in three different languages: ancient Greek, Egyptian demotic and hieroglyphs, on a slab of stone (it is now in the British Museum). This artefact shows assimilation of the local and Greek culture. -
30 BCE
Battle of Actium
This was the end of the Ptolemy dynasty (Cleopatra VII and Mark Anthony) when the Romans took over Egypt. This signified the end of the Hellenistic period.
