The Greek Renaissance: The History and Legacy of the Era Leading to Ancient Greece’s Archaic Age

*Includes pictures
*Includes a bibliography for further reading
*Includes a table of contents

When people think of ancient Greece, images of philosophers such as Plato or Socrates often come to mind, as do great warriors like Pericles and Alexander the Great, but hundreds of years before Athens became a city, a Greek culture flourished and spread its tentacles throughout the western Mediterranean region via trade and warfare. Scholars have termed this pre-Classical Greek culture the Mycenaean culture, which existed from about 2000-1200 BCE, when Greece, along with much of the eastern Mediterranean, was thrust into a centuries long Dark Ages. Before the Mycenaean culture collapsed, it was a vital part of the late Bronze Age Mediterranean system and stood on equal footing with some of the great powers of the region, such as the Egyptians and Hittites.

The Greek Dark Ages, sometimes referred to as the Homeric Age or the Geometric Period, spans the era of Greek history from the end of the Mycenaean civilization around 1100 BCE and the emergence of the Greek poleis in the 9th century BCE. It is an era that has provided little in terms of extant archaeological evidence, which in part explains the name “Dark Ages,” but this lack of evidence has led some archaeologists and historians to make the very great assumption that little of any real significance occurred during these 200 years. Instead, they view it as a sort of hiatus between the collapse of the Mycenaean culture and the emergence of Archaic Greece. As with other so-called “Dark Ages,” this assessment is simplified, and an absence of evidence should never be assumed as evidence of absence.

If anything, the collapse of the Mycenaeans was a drawn-out affair, and while the early centuries of the Dark Ages might be seen as a continuation of this trend, even in the worst years, there was a degree of continuity and even some innovations. These changes including the beginnings of the use of iron as an alternative to bronze and some religious practices that continued to be observed. Furthermore, enough remained to form the basis of a recovery in economic, cultural, and artistic aspects of life in the later stage of the era, and in the political sphere, changes necessitated by the collapse in the economic system certainly paved the way for the rise of the polis, which would prove so fundamental in Greece in the centuries that followed. The relative success of the Aegean settlements was also crucial to recovery, as well as all major developments in politics, economics, international relations, warfare, and culture that created the structures and framework that developed during the later Classical period (480 BCE.-323 BCE).

This laid the groundwork for the Greek Renaissance of the 8th century. During that time, the Greek alphabet developed and the earliest surviving Greek literature was composed, while in terms of art and architecture, sculptures and red-figure pottery began. Warfare changed significantly as well when the hoplite became the core infantry. Put simply, none of these developments could have occurred if the basis for these changes had not been secured during what came to be known as the Greek Renaissance, which bridged the gap between the Dark Ages and Archaic Greece.

The Greek Renaissance: The History and Legacy of the Era Leading to Ancient Greece’s Archaic Age examines this crucial time, what life was like during it, and how it facilitated the rise of the famous poleis. Along with pictures depicting important people, places, and events, you will learn about the Greek Renaissance like never before.