Greece in 6th and 8th Centuries BC
Greece in 6th and 8th Centuries
Greece
Greece is found in the Southern part of Europe and its capital city is Athens. The Aegean Sea is located to the East of Greece and due to this location. ‘Greece 'dominates both the sea and the southern route to the Turkish Strait’ (Maps of World 2015). Other geographical features bordering Greece include the Ionian Sea in the west and the Mediterranean Sea in the South. Greece is the 97th largest country in the world as it covers an area of 131,957 km and also has a coastline which is about 13, 676 km long. The total population of Greece as of 2012 stood at 10, 816,286 people (Maps of World 2015). The official language spoken in Greece is Greek and the currency used is the Euro.
Brief History of Greece
Greece is inhabited by Greek people and they refer to themselves as the Hellenes and Greece Hellas (Jones 2010). The Greek-speaking people had been moved all over ‘Mediterranean, from the black sea, Turkey, to North Africa, Italy France, and Spain’ (Jones 2010, n.p.). It all started with the Stone Age hunters, then came the early farmers and Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations, and what followed were wars and invasions; a period known as the Middle Ages (Agathe.gr n.d.). A look at Greece in the fifth Century will give a better base for discussing the changes that took place in the 6th Century. Classical Greeks had already gathered and formed independent citizen states (known as polis) which included Athens, Sparta, Ephesus, Byzanation, and Marseilles (Jones 2010). These states had different laws, currency, and governance but they constantly fought against each other over domination.
There are various aspects of Greece that are entertaining and they were in existence even in the centuries Before Christ. One of these aspects is the mythology that entails gods, deeds, heroes, deeds, and mortals (Ancient-Greece.org, n.d.). The myths and legends contribute largely in art and literature. There are historical features which are identified with Greece and they include the Acropolis of Athens, Agora of Athens, the town of Delphi, and Dodona. In the 8th Century the town of Delphi was internationally famous for the Oracular powers of Pythia (Ancient-Greece, org, n.d.). There are other issues that are important in Greece’s history such as the Minoan Crete History and culture and the Olympic history and games (Ancient-Greece.org, nd).
Changes that took place in Greece in the 6th Century
Greece underwent through various time periods namely the Archaic, Ancient, and the Classical period. The Classical Period was of much significance in Greece history as this was the time when the country reached into a pinnacle comparing to the rest of the world. This occurrence took place between 6th and 4th Centuries BC and it was the Golden Age that was famous worldwide (Greek History n.d.). During this period there lived many philosophers and mathematicians in Greece. Among the changes that took place in the 6th Century BC was the construction of the famous Parthenon on the Acropolis in Athens (Greek History n.d.). Change can either be positive or negative. During the 6th Century Greece experienced political and military tension that ensued between Athens and Sparta, the main superpowers in the Greece in those days (Greek History n.d.).
Cultural accomplishments were experienced during the classical period and they had great impact on both the mainland Greece and the islands (Greek History n.d.). The Peloponnesian War that was between Athens and Sparta contributed largely in shaping the current Greece as it resulted to alliances and conflicts. According to Times Map (2017), groups of city- states came together to form alliances. There were some positive changes in art and poetry in Greece during the classical period. The 6th Century saw the emergence of Sappho who used the beauty of language in his love poems to bring out personal feelings; and Pindar who praised athletes, gods and mourning the dead through his lyrical poems (Time Maps 2017).
Many changes took place in the last quarter of the 6th Century. The sector that experienced much growth was the cultural entity of the Berezan settlement mostly within the ceramics industry (Tsetskhladze 2001). There was a considerable increase in pottery, cooking ware, and tableware (THE MET 2007). Most of the items mentioned in the latter statement were mass-produced in Athenian workshops (Tsetskhladze 2001). It was during the 6th Century that bronze articles such as arrowheads, needles, jewellery, grindstones, knives, and grain crushers were made. Before the introduction of these ceramics, the inhabitants in the said settlement used Ionian pottery which was faced out by the ceramics in areas such as ‘Samos, Chios, and Clazomenae’ (Tsetskhladze 2001, pg 132).
Spiritual life change which was experienced by the inhabitants of Borysthenes was also of significance. The inhabitants took over some Greek characteristics such as the religious cults (Tsetskhladze 2001). According to Rusyaeva (1986), the most pronounced evidence of the religious cults was ‘the letters on lead plates and the bone plaques with the oracle of Apollo at Diyma’ (Tsetskhladze 2001, p.123). Other religious structures used during the same period included a goddess sitting on a throne and a proteome depicting Demeter (Tsetskhladze, p.101). The figurine of Silenus is believed to have been made in Rhodes in the 6th Century BC. It can be seen that the greatest flowering of Berezan happened at the end of the 6th Century. According to Kutaisov 1990, the first ever Greek settlement to happen in the north-western Crimea was founded in the 6th Century BC – which is Kerkinitis town where by Evpatoria stands today (Tsetskhladze 2001, p. 152).
Change cannot be said to take place wholly if no construction is involved. Therefore in Greece much construction took place with the built environment experiencing massive changes in the 6th Century BC (Gates 2013). Most of the developments that took place and the designs that were developed during this period still stand even today, although some of them underwent minor changes during the Hellenistic period. According to Gates, (2013) the Romans could take some of the designs into their architectural repertoires and pass the same to the Europeans and Islam. The eastern Aegean city and other Greek centers flourished during the 6th Century BC. People started using currency long before the coming of Christ. The art of making coins which can be referred to as Coinage started in Greece in the late 7th Century. The Sardians had learnt to separate gold from silver by mid 6th Century (Gates 2013).
The Greek society preserved the best materials for the honor and worship of their gods and thus the architectural changes were most experienced in religious circles (Gates 2013). The Greek Acropolis town was becoming a religious sanctuary, the home of Athena, the city’s patron goddess, and a home to many other deities (Gates 2013, p. 218). There are several temples that can be associated with the 6th Century; the two predecessors to the famous Parthenon, a Temple to Athena Polis, and a number of treasuries (Gates 2013). The Temple to Athena Polis was built by the tyrant Peisistratos.
Changes that took place in Greece in the 8th Century BC
Greece experienced a time period known as the Dark Age which ran from 1050-800 BC (Curtis 1995). During this period Greece experienced downfall in main cultures of the Near East. The art of literature had flourished in the previous centuries but it suffered a major blow due to the fall of the Mycenaean palaces (Curtis 1995). When a city or a nation experiences dark moments, the citizens free to safer area for the sake of their survival. They live behind whatever it is they had built and run for their lives. Due to the downfall of Greece in the Dark Age, its population decreased rapidly as people migrated to other areas; the country also experienced cultural decline and stagnation (Curtis 1995). People started living in small communities in areas that were remote and subsistence farming was their only source of food. Once a nation is face with challenges as those of the Dark Age, the trade ties and international relationships break. Greece was no exceptional in the 8th Century as trades and contacts with cultures in areas such as the Near East and other nations broke (Curtis 1995).
Negative changes come hand in hand with positive changes. Therefore Greece experienced some positive changes in the 8th Century (Crystalinks n.d.). The development of the Greek alphabet took place in the 8th Century BC and it led to the strengthening of links between all Greeks (History world n.d.). Greece is a country rich in literature which had started long before the 8th Century. Some literary works were however developed during this century such as the Homeric epics. Religion as seen in the 6th Century was also a major step in the 8th Century. According to History World (n.d.), the Greek communities had local gods but in the 8th Century BC they had a central pantheon that was shared by all its inhabitants; the two shrines are in Apollo; one on the Delos island and the other at Delphi which is marked with a stone known as the Omphalos or the navel.
As discussed earlier Greece transformed through time periods such as the classical period. According to Barrett, ‘the seeds of classical period were sown in the 8th Century (n.d.). The writing of Homer, Illiad, and the Odyssey were all fruits of the 8th Century and they created an ethnic recognition of the Greeks. The works of the heroes such as Odysseus, Achillies, and Achaeans helped shape the Greeks behavior both positively and negatively; mostly in the battle field and in competition. Sports and culture are signs of change in any given country. During the 8th Century, Olympic Games and the Oracle of Apollo situated in Delphi emerged (Barrett n.d.). The Spartans are a group of great people in the history of Greece and they were founded by Lycurgus at around 8th Century BC (Barrett n.d.).
The Geometric Period which ran between 9th and 8th Centuries saw the Renaissance of Ancient Greek and the major changes that took place were; the creation of the Greek City-States, development of the Greek alphabet, and the compilation of the Homeric epics (Hellenic Republic 2017). The Greeks were overcoming the difficulties they had passed through in the Dark Age and it was rebirth time for the Greece inhabitants.
Greeks carried out burial customs and there were certain pottery used in the process. Information gathered from graves that have been found all over Greece in Kerameikeos and Areopagus, Athens shows that bodies were; cremated, burned on a pyre, placed in a pot which was buried in a pit together with gifts and possessions (Wilson 2013). According to Wilson, activities such as the construction of the temples started late in the 8th Century (2013). In conclusion, it can be seen that the only major change that took place in Greece during the 8th Century BC was its rebirth. Greece had come from the Dark Age Period into the Geometric Period. The 8th Century was partly in the Dark Age and partially in the Geometric Period. There is no much change expected to take place in a state recovering from dark moments characterized by broken trade ties and cultures, citizens migrating to other areas, and other misfortunes.
Which was the time of greater change in Greece the 8th or the 6th Century?
Change can be measured according to the developments that took place in a given place during a certain period of time. From the facts discussed earlier on in this article, it can be seen that most of the changes that took place in Greece happened in the 6th Century. Among the developments that were experienced by the Greeks in the 6th Century BC were; improvement in art and poetry, construction, and use of coins. Secondly, Greece reached its pinnacle in the 6th century and this time period was known as the Golden Age, giving Greece a glorious moment. The construction industry also experienced change during the Classical period which falls into the 6th Century. One of the major structures built was the Parthenon on the Acropolis in Athens. While compared with the 8th Century, it can be seen that Greece experienced much change in the 6th Century.
The mainland Greece and the islands experienced change as a result of cultural accomplishments that took place during the 6th Century. Art was also practiced during the 8th Century but the impact it had on Greece was not as great as compared to that of the 6th Century BC. The Berezan settlement experienced cultural growth mostly in the ceramic industry during the 6th Century. There was increment in pottery, cooking ware, and table ware; a change that was not evident in Greece during the 8th Century.
Spiritually, Greece experienced much change in the 6th Century as compared to the 8th Century. The inhabitants of Borysthenes took over Greek characteristics such as the religious cults and they even came up with the oracle of Apollo at Diyma. The period during the 6th Century saw the construction of various temples which marked a significance change in Greece. There were temples that were built in the 8th Century but they were not many as compared to those put up in the 6th Century BC. During the 8th Century, Greece had come from a dark age and it was therefore recovering. Much change could therefore, not be expected to take place in Greek land during this century.
Another change that took place in Greece during the 6th Century and was never experienced in the 8th Century was the emergence of architectural designs that still stand to this day. These designs were developed by great people whose names are still mentioned in modern times. The Romans even took some of these architectural designs to their own museums.
Conclusion
Greece has been seen to go through various changes during various periods. These time periods included the Archaic, Ancient, Classical, Dark Age, and Geometric period among others. Many changes occurred in Greece during the mentioned periods and some of those changes fall under the 6th and the 8th Centuries. It is during the 6th Century that Greece experienced most of the changes ranging from improvement in ceramic industry to the use of coins. Greeks were able to differentiate between bronze and silver coins by mid 6th Century BC. The question on the time in which Greece experienced greater change between the 6th and the 8th Century can therefore be answered without dispute. From the facts discussed in this article, it is evident that Greece experienced greater change in the 6th Century. The Greek people had not been faced with a major problem in the 6th Century as they were in the 8th Century. Much of the change that took place in the 8th Century was the resettlement of its people who had migrated to other areas following the Dark Age.
References
Agathe.gr. nd. The Athenian Aristocracy. [Online] Available at: http://www.agathe.gr/democracy/the_athenian_aristocracy.html
Ancient-Greece.org. nd. Greek History. [Online] Available at: http://ancient-greece.org/history.html
Barrett M. nd. History of Greece: The Golden Age of Greece. [Online]. Available at: http://www.ahistoryofgreece.com/goldenage.htm
Crystalinks.com. 2012. History of Ancient Greece. [Online] Available at: http://www.crystalinks.com/greekhistory.html
Curtis G, E. 1995. Greece: A Country Study. Ed. 4. Washington, DC: Federal Research Divieion of the Library of Congress.
Gates C. 2013. Ancient Cities: The Archeology of Urban Life in the Ancient Near East and Egypt, Greece and Rome. London: Routledge.
Greek History. n.d. The History of Greece. Hellenic Foundation. [Online]. Available at: http://www.hellenicfoundation.com/History.htm
Hellenic Republic. 2017. The Greek Antiquity. [Online]. Available at: http://www.mfa.gr/missionsabroad/en/about-greece/history-and-culture/history.html
History World. nd. History of Greece; The Greek identity: from the 8th Century BC. [Online]. Available at: http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?ParagraphID=ceo
Jones P. 2010. A brief history of Greece; From the cradle of democracy to 20th-century violence. The Guardian. [Online] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/may/06/brief-history-greece-peter-jones
Maps of the world. 2015. Where is Greece? [online] Available at: http://www.mapsofworld.com/greece/greece-location-map.html
THE MET. 2007. Ancient Greek Colonization and Trade and their Influence on Greek Art. [Online]. Available at: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/angk/hd_angk.htm
Time Maps. 2017. The civilization of Ancient Greece was one of the most brilliant world history. Time Maps. [Online]. Available at: http://www.timemaps.com/civilization-ancient-greeks
Tsetskhladze G, R. 2001. North Pontic Archaeology: Recent Discoveries and Studies. Brill, 2001 – Social Science.
Wilson N. 2013. Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece. London: Routledge.
