More than 1,500 objects tell the story of the development of the Greek world from the Archaic and Classical periods.
Gods appeared in human form in ancient Greek art. Some statues of gods, like Aphrodite, goddess of love, become the epitome of a new approach in depicting feminine beauty.
Striking red-figure and black-figure ware, decorated with scenes of gods, myths and Greek daily life, were used as everyday tableware.
Walk amongst statues, and examine more than 1,500 objects that tell the story of the development of the Greek world from the Archaic and Classical periods.
This model of the famous but now lost statue of Athena Parthenos, made by Pheidias to stand in the Parthenon on the Athenian Acropolis, is the first accurate model of this statue ever produced. It was based on ancient evidence and is still referred to today by experts the world over.
Where Western culture begins.
Ancient Greece is considered by many to be the birthplace of western culture. It was home to some of the greatest artists and thinkers of the western world including the historian Herodotus, the dramatist Euripides and the philosophers Socrates and Plato. Greek civilisation spread far beyond the boundaries of modern Greece to encompass the whole Mediterranean, and at its centre was the city of Athens, where democracy began. Later, with the conquests of Alexander the Great of Macedon, the Greek world expanded to the very borders of India.
This gallery tells the story of the development of the Greek world from the Archaic and Classical periods, when the individual Greek cities competed for power, wealth and influence, through the Hellenistic period, when Alexander the Great consolidated and expanded the Greek empire, until Greece was conquered by the Romans.
About the Gallery
What?
More than 1,500 objects, presented in chronological themed displays including Day-to-Day Activities, Entertainment, War and Hunting, and Politics.
Where?
Greece and the Mediterranean region including Italy to the west and coastal Turkey to the east.
When?
Approximately 700 – c 30 BC.