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Ancient Greece Poster -
The British Museum

Images and text about Games, Language and Literature, and Mythology through the Bronze Age, Geometric, Orientalizing, Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic Periods.

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The Greeks
(2000 B.C. – 323 B.C.)

Ancient Greece was one of the world's greatest civilizations. The Greeks made many important and lasting contributions to humanity – including the idea of democracy and the art of drama. They were also the first people to study medicine, geometry, physics and philosophy. But the ancient Greeks also place a high value on physical fitness. They loved sports and games. The Greeks invented the Olympic Games, which are still popular today.

Greek civilization developed on a rocky peninsula that sticks out into the Mediterranean Sea, and on the many islands surrounding the peninsula. Ancient Greece was not really a single country. It was made up of many smaller, independent communities called city-states. These city-states did not always get along, and many wars were fought between them. Most people in ancient Greece made their living by farming. The Greeks grew crops like wheat, barley, olives, and grapes. Ancient Greek artists produced some of the most beautiful objects ever made. They were especially gifted at making pottery.

The Greeks built marvelous cities, the greatest of which was Athens. The statue shown here depicts Pericles, who ruled Athens during its greatest period. Athens was named for Athena, one of the many gods and goddesses worshipped by the ancient Greeks. Everywhere in Greece, you can find the ruins of wondrous temples built by the ancient Greeks to honor their gods. Ancient Greek civilization reached its peak from 461 B.C. to 323 B.C. During these years, Greek writers, teachers, and artists produced some of their greatest works. In later years, invasions and wars began to destroy Greek civilization. In 146 B. C., Greece officially became a part of the next great civilization – the Roman Empire.

Artwork depicts the bust of Pericles, ruler of Athens, and the Parthenon on the Acropolis.

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• History Pockets: Ancient Greece

A rhyton is a ceremonial drinking cup, here in the shape of a bull's head, from Knossos, Crete, Minoan, 1700-1400 BC (marble and gold)

The Throne Room of King Minos, 1500-1400 BC

Funerary mask from Mycenae, formerly thought to be that of Agamemnon (gold)

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Lion Gate over the entrance to the Palace of Mycenae, Greece, 15th century BC

Mount Olympus, the highest mountain in Greece, was considered the home of the gods by the Ancient Greeks.

Ulysses and His Companions Gouging Out the Eye of the Cyclops Polyphemus

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The Acropolis of Athens, a high flat topped rock, has evidence of of habitation there since the Early Neolithic period (6th millennium BC). It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Athena's most famous temple is the Parthenon, located on the Acropolis of Athens. Built in the 5th century BC, the Parthenon is the most important surviving building of Classical Greece.

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Epidaurus was the birthplace of Apollo's son Asclepius, the god of medicine and healing. The theatre at Epidaurus was built from the proceeds of the many people who visited seeking a cure for their illness.

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Bust of Pericles, statesman, orator & general
c.430 BC, (Marble Roman copy of a Greek original)

Marble kouros, so-called Strangford Apollo possibly Cyclades, c.500 BC

The Euthydikos Kore, from the Acropolis, c.490 BC (marble)

Statue of Hermes and the Infant Dionysus, c.330 BC, Praxiteles

The Venus de Milo was acquired by French naval officer and explorer, Jules Dumont d'Urville, in 1819.