The End of the Dark Age (c.750-700 BC)

C8th Greek society underwent rapid changes Developments in art and culture were the result of an

acceleration of the existing pattern of growth. Other changes RADICAL break with the past in economic

and political relationships. Radical developments that mark the end of the Dark Age have

earned it the title of the eighth-century renaissance Some view the last half of the C8th as the beginning of the

Archaic Age ( 750-490BC) This was the period in which the social and cultural

movements reached maturity.

Population Growth Major factor of change was a widespread rise in population in the early

eighth century. Disagreement among scholars concerning the rate of growth but

concurrence that there were more people in Greece at this time. Population would continue to rise for the next 200 years Reason for increase remains debateable. Material and social conditions were favourable for population

increase Population rise was related to a SHIFT from an animal economy to

an agricultural economy More effective use of the land in terms of sustenance yield per acre

= extension of farmland More intensive methods of farming to increase yield and variety of

crop By the C7th an agrarian economy was in place and DOMINATED by

an aristocracy of large landowners

Rise of a Landowning Aristocracy We do not know HOW the class of large proprietors came

into being. Possibly

The leading households were most active in converting pastureland into agricultural land.

Grazing land nominally open to all BUT the chieftain families had kept the best land for themselves

Generations of use had given them exclusive grazing rights As arable land became precious, the chiefs and other

prominent family heads came to own a disproportionate amount of it.

In 2-3 generations they transformed themselves into large-scale farmers, with smaller flocks and herds

The rest of the population continued to live off their small medium size farm plots and the raising of sheep and goats.

Effects of the Rise of a Landowning Aristocracy

The growing disparity in land distribution had a SEVERE effect as the rising population and the custom of dividing the KLEROS equally among sons made family plots smaller

Kleros

Effects of the Rise of a Landowning Aristocracy

Early sign of land hunger was emigration starting in the second half of the C8th of mainland and island Greece into southern Italy and Sicily

Effects of the Rise of a Landowning Aristocracy

This began a long wave of colonisation that planted many Greek communities from Spain to the shores of the Black Sea and beyond.

Reasons for colonisation:-Trade and profits-Promise of a good sized kleros on good soil-Who would this appeal to? All who were landless!!!!!-Others seeking a better livelihood than their land at home could

give them.

Trade and Commerce

Early colonisation connected to widening contacts with the Near East and western Europe

Long distance seaborne trade had been increasing in the C10/9th however it expanded in the C8th.

Earliest evidence of serious Greek involvement in overseas trade is the settlement of the Euboean Greeks c.825, Al Mina in northern Syria

Greek trading colony founded c. 800 at Pithecusae in southern Italy

By C7th Greeks important part of trade in the Aegean and Mediterranean

Competing with the PHONECIANS

Trade and Commerce

The new need for raw materials, especially METAL drove long distance trade

Imports copper, tin, iron and gold increased Imports of rare and expensive materials also increased: ivory,

amber, dyes, and object made of them Greeks exporting: fine pottery, woollen good, cattle hides,

leather and metalwork C7th production of wine and olive oil for overseas markets

also building stone, marble and silver Trade at a local or regional level within Greece contained

within a few hundred miles. Craft goods consisted of plain pottery and utilitarian metal

manufactures e.g. iron axes and spear points

Trade and Commerce A large variety of local produce would have been exchanged Staples of grain, wine and olive oil Barter of honey, fruit, cheeses, a cow, a goat, a catch of fish

or a load of lumber Primary means of transport was by sea, however goods were

hauled on land The steady increase in commerce and trade in the C8th

brought new opportunities for farmers, craftsmen, sailors, shipbuilders and outfitters and carters.

Main beneficiaries were the big land holders who could produce large surpluses for the market and could subsidize the cost and bear the losses of long sea voyages

For wealthy families, foreign and domestic manufacture remained the emblems of status.

Gold cups and silver plates, bronze tripods and horses were the ritual coinage of elite social relationships

Coinage not introduced until c. 600

The Alphabet and Writing Most significant cultural development

of the Dark Ages was the Greek alphabet developed through contact with the East.

Greeks borrowed letters from the Phoenician alphabet, to represent the consonant sounds of Greek.

Other Phoenician letters were used to represent vowel sounds

Creating a truly phonetic alphabet Alphabet generally believed to be

developed around 800 Debate over the development of the

alphabet at this time. Some reasons debated: writing down epic poetry or commercial reasons

http://www.unil.ch/esag/page26197.html

Graffito on the shoulder of a small jug discovered in the Sanctuary of Apollo Daphnephoros. 2nd half of the 8th c. BC. The text must be read from right to left: [ ], Lebes owns me.

losbornSticky NotePhoenicia was an ancient civilization composed of independent city-states which lay along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea stretching through what is now Syria, Lebanon and northern Israel.

The Alphabet and Writing

The development of the Greek Alphabet from the Phoenician one

http://www.mfa.gr/images/photos/greece/living/read_greek/alphabet.gif

The Alphabet and Writing Earliest known examples of Greek words are

bits of epic type verse scratched onto vases Once writing was established it was used to

record not only poetry but many other things Earliest specimen of civic writing is a stone

inscription of the laws from Dreros in Crete c. 650

Writing spread quickly but not as a uniform script but as numerous local scripts.

The Alphabet and Writing Greek alphabet was a huge advance over the

Linear B syllabic system of 28 signs Because each letter represented a SINGLE

spoken sound This made it simple to learn to read and write Reading and writing were accessible to most

people thus it could not become an instrument of power and control by rulers over the people.

http://www.duke.edu/~rkl7/Images/Linear%20B%20tablet%202.jpg

The Alphabet and Writing Impact of literacy on Greek cultural development

ENORMOUS Many of the achievements for which the Greeks

are most famous, -history, drama, philosophy, mathematics, science, law and medicine could NOT have evolved without writing

Progress towards general literacy was slow Greece in the C8th and C7th was almost

completely oral-aural. Only a small % of Greeks would ever read or

write to any great extent Orality coexisted with literacy throughout Greek

history

Art and Architecture Changes in Pottery - a good example of the

creative energy of this period Transition from Middle Geometric( c. 850-750)

Late Geometric ( 750-700) pottery was smooth Represents a new direction in vase painting Greek vases were essentially without images

from the C11th-C8th Major decorative innovation was the

reappearance of group scenes that told a story such as battles, shipwrecks, funerals and chariot processions.

Amphora used as a grave marker c.750. A scene of the woman lying in state occupies the area of the belly of the pot, while the rest is covered by abstract geometric designs

losbornSticky Notetype of container of a characteristic shape and size.

used in vast numbers for the transport and storage of various products, both liquid and dry, but mostly for wine.

Art and Architecture Static geometric shapes evolved to become

more decorative borders for the pictorial narrative.

The figures of animals, humans , and objects became more naturalistic

Another artistic innovation was the depiction of scenes from Greek legends painted on vases or engraved on metalwork

We witness an increase of distinctive regional, local and even individual styles

Craftsman experimented with mixed, copied, adapted and abandoned both home grown and imported styles and techniques

Near Eastern or orientalizing period became prominent around 730 or 720

This exemplifies the importance of Near Eastern models in the development of Greek culture

losbornSticky NoteThe ancient Near East was the home of early civilizations within a region roughly corresponding to the modern Middle East: Mesopotamia (modern Iraq, southeast Turkey, southwest Iran, northeastern Syria and Kuwait), ancient Egypt, ancient Iran (Elam, Media, Parthia and Persia), Anatolia/Asia Minor

Architecture

The monumental temple signature' Greek architectural form emerged in the C8th

Earliest known examples c. 800BC Small, with mud brick walls, wooden columns and

thatched roofs and looked like regular houses Temple to Hera on the island of Samos, was the first to

make a clear distinction between the divine and human houses.

Same materials used, however, it was several times larger. Later a wooden colonnade or peristyle was built around

the long and narrow shell, the build assumed the form of the Greek temple as we know it.

By 700 there were many major and minor temples built along similar lines

losbornSticky Noterefers to large man-made structures of stone or earth. These generally are used as public buildings or spaces.

losbornSticky Notea row of columns surrounding a space within a building such as a court or internal garden or edging a veranda or porch.

Architecture Appearance of large temples indicate that people wanted

to spend their wealth, time and labour on projects to the whole community

In Athens, expensive VOTIVE offerings notably bronze tripods and cauldrons, figurines and bronze dress pins were placed in temple

Giving to the community was a new way of conspicuous display by the elite.

Sanctuaries located both within the polis and also the countryside

Many see this as a sign of growing civic unity- a deliberate strengthening of the religious bonds for the purpose of uniting the demos

Religious processions from the town to rural sanctuaries symbolically LINKED INHABITANTS OF THE CITY AND THE COUNTRYSIDE

Temples at borders of territory marked out territorial claims

losbornSticky NoteAn offering to gain favour with the gods

losbornSticky NoteSanctuaries were sacred placed in the ancient world that could be in natural surroundings, like the interior of caves or tops of hills, or in man-made shrines

Architecture Thick brick and stone defensive wall, another major

architectural feature of Greek towns, first appear in Greek Asia Minor and the Aegean islands.

On the mainland the earliest circuit walls date to just before 700

Increasing use of defensive wall possibly indicate that all out warfare between communities as opposed to raiding expeditions became more frequent

Panhellenism Rise in religious sanctuaries and festivals that were not

merely local but were Panhellenic (pan= all) attracting worshipers from all over the Greek

world. Panhellenic shrines and festivals celebrated and

reinforced the idea that Greeks everywhere belonged to a single cultural group sharing the same heritage, language, customs and religion.

The most famous early panhellenic sanctuaries were those of Zeus and Hera at Olympia

Panhellenism Rise in religious sanctuaries and festivals that were not

merely local but were Panhellenic (pan= all) attracting worshipers from all over the Greek

world. Panhellenic shrines and festivals celebrated and

reinforced the idea that Greeks everywhere belonged to a single cultural group sharing the same heritage, language, customs and religion.

The most famous early panhellenic sanctuaries were those of Zeus and Hera at Olympia

Panhellenism Apollo and Artemis at Delos Oracles (places of divine prophecy) at the shrines of Zeus at Dodona Apollo at Delphi

losbornSticky NoteSanctuaryy at Delos-the birth palce of Apollo and atremis

Apollo: son of Zeus and and the twin of Artemis. He was the god of prophecy, medicine, music, art, law, beauty, and wisdom.

Artemis virgin goddess of the hunt and moon

PanhellenismApollo Theatre above the temple of Apollo-Delphi

Panhellenism

All these sites show cult activity from the Late bronze Age but they emerged as Panhellenic centres in the C8th

Worshippers participated in common rituals and sacrifices and at some sanctuaries took part in athletic contests

Most famous was the festival of Zeus at Olympia The games were inaugurated in 776BC Initially only contestants and visitors came from the vicinity

this however, evolved to include Greeks from all over the Greek world.

The Heroic Revival Closely related to Panhellenism, around 750 the Greeks began to

express their connection to the heroic past in new and dramatic ways

Ancient tombs of the Mycenaean period previously neglected began to receive votive offerings, an indication of hero worship.

Creation of new hero cults Celebrated not at graves but at shrines set up in honour of

legendary heroic figures Agamemnon at Mycenae Menelaus and Helen at Sparta Belief that men and women of the Heroic Age had power in death to

protect and to help people Like gods they were given animal sacrifices and divine honours

losbornSticky Notehero-cults, rituals performed at the tomb of a man or woman, usually from the distant past, whose remains were thought to retain special power

The Heroic Revival We see the rise of heroic style burials, most notable in Attica,

Euboea and Cyprus. Burials resemble the funerals of heroes in epic poetry. Vases depicting events from the heroic Age begin to turn up

in these graves. Evidence from Athens suggests that wealthy familles had

began to group their graves in enclosures that held both contemporary and Mycenaean graves.

Meaning that the familles were proclaiming descent from the heroes of old.

Summation The Dark Age was thus the cradle of the city-state society and

culture that was to follow

The basic structures and institutions of later Greek society were firmly in place well before 800BC

We witness the emergence of Greece during the C8th, from the Dark Age into the renaissance of the Archaic period.

Thus the Archaic period is now viewed as a rapid response to rapidly changing conditions rather than a sudden and revolutionary phenomenon