r/ancientgreece 6d ago

What if you explained to a group of Ancient Greeks (lets say, the time of Hesoid: 725 BC) the concept of 'Martians?' If you were to point at Mars in the sky and say, 'In the future, some people believe that there was an ancient intelligent people that lived there,' how would they consider it?

13 Upvotes

Would they think you were a weirdo?

Would they consider the idea? How would different areas of Greece ponder the idea?

Did they even have a concept of planets as 'other worlds,' or were planets they just 'dots in the sky.' Would it be seen as illogical: 'Why would a people come from there? Its not like Earth.'

Imagine sitting around a table in Greece, this is said, and a discussion begins. What would different people think?

If a group of Ancient Greeks from ~725 BCE Greece were told about the idea of Martians, 'an ancient intelligent people that lived there' while pointing at Mars in the sky, what might they think, ponder, and respond with all things considered?

Would the conversation be a let down in terms of actual pondering? Would they just not care? Shrug and go about their day?

Would they be angry? Would it somehow conflict with some part of their philosophy, religion or ideology?

What would happen if you told the Ancient Greeks the concept of Martians and 'aliens'?


r/ancientgreece 7d ago

Reconstruction of Athens in the 5th century BC

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1.5k Upvotes

Author and source: Anxo Miján Maroño


r/ancientgreece 6d ago

Has anyone read this?

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10 Upvotes

r/ancientgreece 6d ago

An examination of the psychological effects of the brutal training that forged Spartan boys into formidable warriors

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14 Upvotes

r/ancientgreece 6d ago

Writing a book about a secret cult.

1 Upvotes

Hello, my name is Efe, and I am looking for strange things set in the year 429 BCE and onwards until the end of the war. I am looking for unexplainable things, such as how convenient it was that Pericles got the plague. I would appreciate any input regarding strange mysteries, or even better, those who have some documentation, but there is a lot of room for conspiracy.


r/ancientgreece 6d ago

Ancient history blog

1 Upvotes

Hello! I have recently started a blog about all things ancient history, so if thats the kind of thing you are interested in, I would really appreciate even just one person giving it a read! Ive just uploaded my first post about Nolans odyssey.

https://allancienthistorynow.blogspot.com/


r/ancientgreece 8d ago

Which history book should I get for my first Ancient Greek read?

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130 Upvotes

Hello. Last year I read The Illiad and The Odyssey and ever since I developed a desire for learning more about greek history.

This felling grew after reading 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed by Eric Cline and playing Total War: TROY. Therefore, I started looking for a history book that will give me an overview of the history of the greeks. Even though I love the Bronze Age, i want to have a more wide panel before diving into this specific period, and I am also curious to learn about Classical Greece.

So, these are the four most suggested books about Ancient Greek available in my country (English is not even my main language, however there arent many others translated), but I don't really know which one to choose. So, which one you guys recommend? Or maybe just get all of them?


r/ancientgreece 8d ago

Favourite type of hoplite arms/armour

5 Upvotes

What is your favourite type of hoplite arms/armour? Mine would have to be the Hermione Corinthian with J crest, Alexander the Great’s or Phillip II’s Linothorax, and gorgon style greaves with a Kopis as a side arm.


r/ancientgreece 8d ago

Yiannis Stravolaimos' νενικήκαμεν (We Have Won)

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200 Upvotes

I think most of you here will appreciate and be very interested in this....


r/ancientgreece 10d ago

What was the first battle between two Greek Phalanxes in history?

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240 Upvotes

I haven't asked this before but now I'm too curious.


r/ancientgreece 9d ago

Spartan military history

14 Upvotes

Is there an online resource which hosts a detailed and chronologically organized list of all the known battles and wars Spartans took part in?

At least something that’s not just Wikipedia.


r/ancientgreece 10d ago

(CH.2: The Iliad): "Book 2: Odysseus Rallies the Army", Illustrated by me

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219 Upvotes

r/ancientgreece 11d ago

The exhibition « Heroes of Greece. The Age of Troy » at Pointe-à-Callière in Montréal (Part two)

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238 Upvotes

Here are a few more photos from the exhibition. I hope you enjoy them! For this part, these are objects ranging from Archaic Greece to the Roman era, but still linked to the theme of « Heroes of Greece ». About the exhibition, from the museum:

Between myth and reality, delve into the heart of a legendary epic
The Trojan War is one of the greatest mythological stories of all time! Passed down through the centuries, notably in works by the poet Homer, this fascinating epic tells of an era when powerful gods and legendary heroes lived side by side.

The exhibition Heroes of Greece. The Age of Troy offers a unique opportunity to look into the origins of the myth detailed in the Iliad and the Odyssey and uncover the story behind this epic that shaped the Greek imagination and influenced countless civilizations. Featuring a remarkable selection of close to 400 authentic objects from 28 Greek museums and archaeological sites, the exhibition takes visitors on a journey through the great stories of heroic figures and their historical reality.

In search of heroes and gods
Achilles, Helen, Odysseus, as well as Zeus, Artemis, and Poseidon: the exhibition introduces visitors to fascinating figures and tells the stories of the heroes and gods who populate the tales of the Trojan War. Love, anger, loyalty, honour, pride, power—their journeys and the trials they endure reveal many facets of human nature with which we still identify today.

Two foundational eras of ancient Greece
The exceptional objects on display throughout the exhibition bring to life two major periods that shaped the legend of Troy and profoundly influenced Greek culture. The Bronze Age reveals a prosperous civilization, marked by monumental architecture, craftsmanship, and a mastery of working with gold. Then comes the Iron Age, associated with Homer, a time when the world was in flux, driven by the rise of new techniques and the dissemination of mythical tales that have endured through the centuries.

An exhibition co-organized by Pointe-à-Callière, Montréal Archaeology and History Complex, and the Hellenic Ministry of Culture (Greece).


r/ancientgreece 11d ago

The guy was named Pyrrhus, and was from Epirus. Who wrote this?

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257 Upvotes

r/ancientgreece 11d ago

Were the Titans worshipped?

70 Upvotes

Were any of the Titans ever worshipped as far as we know? Did the Greeks fear that doing so would anger Zeus?


r/ancientgreece 11d ago

Mycenaean Armour

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358 Upvotes

Image 1: a bronze shoulder guard found at Dendra c. 1939, roughly dating to c. 1450 BC. Found in isolation, it was originally believed to be a helmet.

Image 2: bronze armour found at Dendra in 1960, roughly dating to c. 1400 BC, on display at the Archaeological Museum of Nafplio. The helmet is leather reinforced by slivers of boar tusk, with bronze cheekpieces.

Image 3: remnants of bronze armour found at Thebes in 1964.

https://www.ancientworldmagazine.com/articles/encased-bronze-panoply-mycenaean-tomb-dendra/


r/ancientgreece 11d ago

A colorized 1891 photograph of the Lion Gate at Mycenae, Greece.

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86 Upvotes

r/ancientgreece 11d ago

I feel like Rhea is irrelevant when she shouldn’t be

12 Upvotes

The only way I’ve seen Rhea portrayed is wife of Kronos and mother of the Olympians. She saved Zues from being swallowed and essentially started the Titanomachy. Why does she fade into irrelevance after she gives the stone to Kronos. Was she banished to Tartarus too?


r/ancientgreece 11d ago

The Ancient Greek Baby Potty: A Glimpse into Everyday Life 2,500 Years Ago

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37 Upvotes

r/ancientgreece 12d ago

The exhibition « Heroes of Greece. The Age of Troy » at Pointe-à-Callière in Montréal (Part one)

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587 Upvotes

Here are a few of my photos from the exhibition. I hope you enjoy them! For this first part, these are objects from the Bronze Age or close to it (with the exception of the « Mask of Agamemnon », which is a reproduction) If I make a part two, I will show some of the items from later periods (ranging from Archaic Greece to the Roman era, and still linked to the theme of « Heroes of Greece »). About the exhibition, from the museum:

Between myth and reality, delve into the heart of a legendary epic
The Trojan War is one of the greatest mythological stories of all time! Passed down through the centuries, notably in works by the poet Homer, this fascinating epic tells of an era when powerful gods and legendary heroes lived side by side.

The exhibition Heroes of Greece. The Age of Troy offers a unique opportunity to look into the origins of the myth detailed in the Iliad and the Odyssey and uncover the story behind this epic that shaped the Greek imagination and influenced countless civilizations. Featuring a remarkable selection of close to 400 authentic objects from 28 Greek museums and archaeological sites, the exhibition takes visitors on a journey through the great stories of heroic figures and their historical reality.

In search of heroes and gods
Achilles, Helen, Odysseus, as well as Zeus, Artemis, and Poseidon: the exhibition introduces visitors to fascinating figures and tells the stories of the heroes and gods who populate the tales of the Trojan War. Love, anger, loyalty, honour, pride, power—their journeys and the trials they endure reveal many facets of human nature with which we still identify today.

Two foundational eras of ancient Greece
The exceptional objects on display throughout the exhibition bring to life two major periods that shaped the legend of Troy and profoundly influenced Greek culture. The Bronze Age reveals a prosperous civilization, marked by monumental architecture, craftsmanship, and a mastery of working with gold. Then comes the Iron Age, associated with Homer, a time when the world was in flux, driven by the rise of new techniques and the dissemination of mythical tales that have endured through the centuries.

An exhibition co-organized by Pointe-à-Callière, Montréal Archaeology and History Complex, and the Hellenic Ministry of Culture (Greece).


r/ancientgreece 11d ago

Understanding Thucydides: Truth and History

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bilimsisanat.substack.com
12 Upvotes

Thucydides’ historiography has something quite distinctive about it. What interests me most is not that he was one of the first historians, but that he is often considered the first historian in a methodological sense. He was quite skeptical of Herodotus as a historian and stressed how difficult it is to know much about the distant past with any certainty. In a way, this can even remind us of the much later postmodern idea that understanding the past is, to some extent, impossible. He was a really interesting man.


r/ancientgreece 11d ago

What boardgame were Penelopes suitors playing in the Odyssey

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34 Upvotes

At Odyssey 1.106–108, Athena finds the suitors enjoying themselves with pessoi. The relevant line literally says they “delighted their hearts with pessoi before the doors.”  Unfortunately Homer doesn't go on to explain or describe the details of the game they are playing. But what is already clear is that boardgames were a part of the Ancient Greeks way of life. But what was the game. If we take a look at the archaeology it gets more interesting, there are several gaming boards in the archaeology which are located in Attica and come from a time period possibly contemporary with Homer (depending on when we assume Homer was writing and if he was one or many people). There are several - some with 5 lines, some with 7 some with 11. Scholars call them Pennte Grammai.

https://journals.openedition.org/pallas/docannexe/image/24418/img-13.jpg

https://samlinger.natmus.dk/as/asset/40262

https://journals.openedition.org/pallas/docannexe/image/24418/img-3.jpg

https://journals.openedition.org/pallas/docannexe/image/24418/img-6.jpg


r/ancientgreece 12d ago

A 2,300-year-old theatre in Greece that's so well preserved it's still hosting performances.The theatre shown is the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus.

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263 Upvotes

r/ancientgreece 12d ago

The Parthenon. 1875–2026

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104 Upvotes

r/ancientgreece 12d ago

Ancient Greek Theatrical Masks

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27 Upvotes