Ancient Greece is rightly considered the cradle of modern European civilization. This state had a noticeable impact on the development of many areas of human life - science, medicine, politics, art and philosophy. Some monuments of ancient Greece have survived to this day. It is about them, as well as about the history of the once great power, that will be discussed in this article.
Ancient Greece and its historical significance
Under Ancient Greece, historians understand the totality of civilizations that existed for about 3000 years: from the third millennium BC to the 1st century AD. The very concept of "Ancient Greece" on the territory of the modern state is not used. In this country, this civilizational formation is called Hellas, and its inhabitants are called Hellenes.
Description of Ancient Greece should begin with its significance and role in the historical development of the entire Western civilization. Thus, historians rightly believe that it was in Ancient Greece that the foundation of European democracy was laid,philosophy, architecture and art. The ancient Greek state was conquered by Rome, however, along with this, the Roman Empire borrowed the main features of ancient Greek culture.
The real exploits of Ancient Greece are not world-famous beautiful myths, but discoveries in science and culture, philosophy and poetry, medicine and architecture. It is worth noting that geographically the territory of Ancient Greece does not coincide with the borders of the modern state. Under this term, historians often mean the expanses of other countries and regions: Turkey, Cyprus, the Crimea and even the Caucasus. Monuments of Ancient Greece have been preserved in all these territories. In addition, ancient Greek settlements (colonies) were once scattered along the shores of the Mediterranean, Black and Azov Seas.
Geography and Map of Ancient Greece
Hellas was not a single, monolithic state entity. On its foundation, more than a dozen separate city-states were formed (the most famous of them are Athens, Sparta, Piraeus, Samos, Corinth). All the states of Ancient Greece were the so-called "polises" (in other words, cities), with lands adjacent to them. Each of them had its own laws.
The central core of Ancient Hellas is the Balkan Peninsula, or rather, its southern part, the western tip of Asia Minor, as well as many islands located in this region. Ancient Greece consisted of three parts: Northern Greece, Middle Greece and the Peloponnese. In the north, the state bordered on Macedonia andIllyria.
The historical map of Ancient Greece is shown below.
Cities in Ancient Greece (policies)
What did cities look like in Ancient Greece?
It cannot be said that they had a chic and luxurious look, as they often like to illustrate in pictures. Actually, it's a myth. Only the main public buildings looked chic and pompous in the ancient Greek policies, but the houses of ordinary citizens were very modest.
The dwellings of the people were deprived of any comfort. Historians suggest that the ancient Greeks even slept outside, under porticos. The network of city streets was sloppy and ill-conceived, with most of them completely out of the sun.
Things were worst in Athens, about which many travelers of that time spoke with contempt. Nevertheless, comfort eventually penetrated into the homes of ordinary Greeks. So, a real revolution in urban planning and street planning at that time was made by the architect Hippodames of Miletus. It was he who first drew attention to the location of houses in the city and tried to build them in one line.
Architectural landmarks of Ancient Greece
Now it is worth dwelling on another important question: what did Ancient Hellas leave us, if we talk about material monuments?
Sights of Ancient Greece - temples, amphitheatres, remains of public buildings - have been preserved in many European countries. But most of all, of course, it is on the territory of the modern state of the same name.
The most important monuments of ancient material culture are ancient Greek temples. In Hellas, they were built everywhere, because it was believed that the gods themselves lived in them. These world-famous sights of Ancient Greece stand out from the rest of the architectural monuments of Ancient Hellas - the remains of Greek acropolises and other ancient ruins.
Parthenon
Perhaps the most famous monument of ancient Greek architecture is the Parthenon temple. It was built in 432 BC in Athens, and today is the most recognizable tourist symbol of modern Greece. It is known that the construction of this majestic Doric temple was led by the architects Kallikrat and Iktin, and it was built in honor of the goddess Athena, the patroness of the Athenian Acropolis.
To our time, the central part of the Parthenon with fifty columns has been quite well preserved. In the center of the temple you can see a copy of the sculpture of Athena, made at one time from ivory and gold by Phidias, the most famous ancient Greek artist and sculptor.
The frieze of the central facade of the building is generously decorated with various images, and the pediments of the temple are wonderful sculptural compositions.
Temple of Hera
The oldest temple in ancient Greece is the temple of the goddess Hera. Experts say that it was built in the sixth century BC. Unfortunately, the building was not preserved as well as the Parthenon: at the beginning of the fourth century, it was badly damaged byearthquakes.
The Temple of Hera is located in Olympia. According to legend, the inhabitants of Elis gave it to the Olympians. The foundation, steps, as well as several surviving columns - this is all that remains of the grandiose structure today. One can only imagine how it looked in those ancient times.
At one time, the temple of Hera was decorated with a statue of Hermes. Today the sculpture is kept in the archaeological museum of Olympia. It is known that the ancient Romans used the temple of Hera at Olympia as a sanctuary. Today, this place is famous primarily for the fact that the Olympic flame is lit here on the eve of the next Olympics.
Temple of Poseidon
The Temple of Poseidon, or rather its remains, are located on Cape Sounion. It was built in 455 BC. Only 15 columns have survived to this day, but they speak eloquently of the majesty of this structure. Scientists have established that on the site of this temple, long before the start of construction, there were already other places of worship. They are tentatively dated to the 7th century BC.
Everyone is well aware that the god Poseidon in ancient Greek mythology is the ruler of the seas and oceans. Therefore, it was not by chance that the ancient Greeks chose a place for the construction of this temple: on the sheer shore of the Aegean Sea. By the way, it was at this place that King Aegeus threw himself off a steep cliff when he saw in the distance the ship of his offspring Theseus with a black sail.
In conclusion…
Ancient Greece is reala phenomenon in the history of European civilization that had a huge impact on the development of European culture, science, art and architecture. The sights of Ancient Greece are numerous majestic temples, the remains of acropolises and picturesque ruins, which have survived in large numbers to this day. Today they attract a huge number of tourists from all over the world.
