Athens Articles

Alabastron (pl. alabastra) - a small jar for storing perfumes, named after the material (alabaster) the first examples were made from. They were often carried by a string looped around the neck of the vessel. Amphora (pl. amphorae) - one of the most common forms in Greek pottery, various shapes, always with two vertical neck-handles and... [continue reading]

Aspasia was born around 470 BCE in Miletus in Asia Minor. She was likely born into a wealthy family because she was known to have been highly educated.. How she arrived in Athens is the source of some debate among scholars. A few sources suggest that she traveled there when her older sister married Alcibiades, who had been ostracized from Athens... [continue reading]

Introduction Genocide is often viewed as a particular feature of our own current age. This perception largely stems from the terrible events which took place during World War Two in the 20th century CE in the parts of Europe occupied by the Nazis. However, there are certain occasions in the ancient world which could also be possibly considered... [continue reading]

Although the male citizen, with his full legal status, right to vote, hold public office and own property, may well have dominated Greek Society, the social groups which made up the population of a typical Greek city-state or polis were remarkably diverse. Women, children, immigrants (both Greek and foreign), labourers and slaves all had defined roles... [continue reading]

Trade was a fundamental aspect of the ancient Greek world and following territorial expansion, an increase in population movements and innovations in transport, goods could be bought, sold and exchanged in one part of the Mediterranean which had their origin in a completely different and far distant region. Food, raw materials and manufactured goods... [continue reading]

Inscribed on Augustus’ mausoleum after his death in AD 14, the Res Gestae Divi Augusti, the Achievements of the Divine Augustus, includes an extensive description of Augustus’ monumental building in the city of Rome. Monumental building provided a means of converting economic capital into a symbolic reminder of one’s success. Augustus... [continue reading]

The roles of Athenian women in the fifth century B.C. were primarily those of wife and mother. The Athenians, in their patriarchal society, selected models for women based on the divine and heroic orders. The divine order subjected the female duties to their male counterparts. The heroic order depicted Penelope as the absolute role model for Greek-Athenian... [continue reading]

This dissertation examines the origin, purpose, and function of the Athenian ephebeia during the Lycurgan period (334/3-322/1 B.C.). The ephebeia, a compulsory two-year long state-funded and organized program of military service for eighteen and nineteen year old citizens called ephebes, did not exist as a formal institution prior to 334/3 B.C., the... [continue reading]

A primary motive for certain Athenian rule changes in the direction of increased legal access and impartiality in the fourth century B.C. was Athenian awareness of the increased instrumental value of foreigners. New Athenian rules were aimed at persuading foreigners to do business in Athens. Foreigners gained greater access to some Athenian institutions... [continue reading]

Socrates was both a loyal citizen (by his own lights) and a critic of the democratic community’s way of doing things. This led to a crisis in 339 B.C. In order to understand Socrates’ and the Athenian community’s actions (as reported by Plato and Xenophon) it is necessary to understand the historical and legal contexts, the democratic state’s... [continue reading]