Ancient Greek Achievements

Ancient Greek Culture was the birthplace of Western civilisation about 4000
years ago. Ancient Greece produced many magnificent achievements in areas of
government, science, philosophy and the arts that still influence our lives.

Democracy
Sciences

Philosophy

Art

Architecture

Olympic Games

Democracy
Greece, and especially Athens, is the cradle of democracy in the western civilization.
Athens owes the first penal and civil law code to Draco. An outstanding statesman
and poet called Solon acted in Athens at the same time as Draco. In 594 BC he was
elected the first archon the highest state official who today could be compared to a
prime minister. The difference between a prime minister and an archon lies in the
fact that the latter was elected annually and had executive and judicial power, was in
command of the army and performed priestly functions. The main Solon's credit was
that he prepared basis for political changes in Athens. He divided citizens into four
groups based on agricultural output, established the so-called Council of 400, the
jury court, standardized the system of measures and weights and considerably
increased rights of ekklesia assembly of all citizens of Athens over 20. In 510 BC
Cleisthenes introduced profound reforms which made democracy exist as a system of
government for the first time in the world. In general reforms were to diminish the
role of aristocracy, eliminate financial differences and mix the society.
Athenian democracy was established as a result of continuous reorganizations. The
name comes from demos-people and kratos-power, so literally power of the people.
Apart from many smaller changes, it was mainly based on the opportunity for all
citizens over 20 to take part in governing the country. One of the main advantages of
Athenian democracy was that the archon and his eight assistants were elected
annually. It was possible to prolong the rule for the next term but in case of any
abnormalities a quick change of government took place. The biggest advantage of
democracy in polis was the general possibility of taking part in public life for all free
citizens. Undoubtedly it helped the citizens of Athens to broaden their minds, their
cultural awareness and, what was probably most important, to develop intellectually
Sciences
Greece has importantly influenced the Western science in many ways. The Ancient
Greeks especially contributed many things to the scientific world, from medicine to
astronomy. The most famous ancient Greek scientists and their work are briefly
described
below.

Thales of Miletus (640-610 to ca 548-545 BC) had travelled widely in quest of

knowledge, visiting Crete, Phoenicia, and Egypt. e brought Phoenician navigational
techniques into Miletus. Thales is also said to have tried to revise the calendar. He
also brought Babylonian mathematical knowledge to Greece and used geometry to
solve problems such as calculating the height of pyramids and the distance of ships
from the shore. He studied astronomy in Babylonia, and after his return to Miletus
gained great fame by predicting an eclipse of the sun (28.5.585 BC, Julian Calendar
or 22.5.584 BC Gregorian Calendar Famous Eclipse). He was first noted as an
inventor and an engineer. Thales was also interested in heavenly bodies. He is
credited with the discovery of the electrical properties of amber (or electron from
which also the name electricity was derived). He was one of the Seven Sages of
Greece.
Pythagoras (569 to 475 BC) was the Greek philosopher and mathematician. He
studied astronomy, logistics and geometry and founded the mystic Pythagorean cult.
The cult he founded was devoted to the study of numbers, which the Pythagoreans
saw as concrete, material objects, and became for them the ultimate principle of all
proportion, order, and harmony in the universe. Pythagoras also investigated the
ratios of lengths corresponding to musical harmonies, and developed methods of
geometric proof. In geometry the great discovery of Pythagoreans was the
hypotenuse theorem or Pythagorean theorem. Pythagoreans were the first to
consider the earth as a globe revolving with the other planets around a central fire
and
mathematicize
the
universe.
Democritus (460 BC - 370 BC) was a pre-Socratic Greek materialist philosopher, a
student of Leucippus and co-originator of the belief that all matter is made up of
various imperishable, indivisible elements which he called atoma or "indivisible
units", from which we get the English word atom. Democritus agreed that everything
which is must be eternal, but denied that "the void" can be equated with nothing.
This makes him the first thinker on record to argue the existence of an entirely empty
"void". He was also a pioneer of mathematics and geometry in particular. He was
among the first to observe that a cone or pyramid has one-third the volume of a
cylinder or prism respectively with the same base and height. He also proposed that
the universe contains many worlds; some of them inhabited and conducted research
on
minerals
and
plants.
Euclid (323 BC283 BC), also known as the "Father of Geometry", was a Greek
mathematician of the Hellenistic period who was active in Alexandria, almost
certainly during the reign of Ptolemy I. His Elements, a reorganized compilation of
geometrical proofs including new proofs and a much earlier essay on the foundations
of arithmetic, is the most successful textbook in the history of mathematics. In it, the
principles of what is now called Euclidean geometry are deduced from a small set of
axioms. Elements conclude with the construction of Plato's five regular solids.
Euclidean space has no natural edge, and is thus infinite. Euclid also wrote works on
perspective, conic sections, spherical geometry, and rigor. In his Optica, he noted
that light travels in straight lines and described the law of reflection.
Archimedes of Syracuse (287 BC 212 BC) was a Greek mathematician,
physicist, engineer, inventor, and astronomer. He is regarded as one of the leading
scientists in classical antiquity. Among his advances in physics are the foundations of
hydrostatics
and the explanation of the principle of the lever. He is credited with

designing innovative machines, including siege engines and the screw pump that
bears his name. Archimedes is considered to be one of the greatest mathematicians
of all time. He used the method of exhaustion to calculate the area under the arc of a
parabola with the summation of an infinite series, and gave a remarkably accurate
approximation of Pi. He also defined the spiral bearing his name, formulas for the
volumes of surfaces of revolution and an ingenious system for expressing very large
numbers. Archimedes had proved that the sphere has two thirds of the volume and
surface area of the cylinder (including the bases of the latter), and regarded this as
the greatest of his mathematical achievements.
Philosophy
Ancient Greek philosophy focused on the role of reason and inquiry. It had an
important influence on modern philosophy, as well as modern science. The influence
from ancient Greek and Hellenistic philosophers was expanded to medieval Muslim
philosophers and scientists, to the European Renaissance and Enlightenment, to the
modern
natural
sciences
and
technology.
Socrates was a classical Greek philosopher. Considered one of the founders of
Western philosophy, he strongly influenced Plato, and Aristotle. He made his most
important contribution to Western thought through his method of inquiry. He is
principally renowned for his contribution to the field of ethics; Socrates also lends his
name to the concepts of Socratic irony and the Socratic Method. Socrates also made
important and lasting contributions to the fields of epistemology and logic, and the
influence of his ideas and approach, remains strong in providing a foundation for
much
western
philosophy
which
followed.
Plato has the reputation of one of the most influential philosophers in Western
thought. He wrote several dozen philosophical dialogues arguments in the form of
conversations and a few letters. Though the early dialogues deal mainly with
methods of acquiring knowledge, and most of the last ones with justice and practical
ethics, his most famous works expressed a synoptic view of ethics, metaphysics,
reason, knowledge, and human life. One can view Plato, with qualification, as an
idealist
and
a
rationalist.
Aristotle placed much more value on knowledge gained from the senses, and would
correspondingly better earn the modern label of empiricist. Thus Aristotle set the
stage for what would eventually develop into the scientific method centuries later.
The works of Aristotle that still exist today appear in treatise form. The most
important include Physics, Metaphysics, Ethics, Politics, De Anima (On the
Soul), Poetics, and many others. Aristotle was a great thinker and philosopher, and
his philosophy was crucial in governing intellectual thought in the Western world.
His views and approaches dominated early Western science for almost 2000 years.
Aristotle was a formidable inventor, and is credited with many significant inventions
and observations.
Art

The art of ancient Greece has exercised an enormous influence on the culture of
many countries from ancient times until the present. There are three scholarly
distinctions of Greek art that correspond roughly with historical periods of the same
names. These are the Archaic (700 - 480 BC), the Classical (480 - 323 BC) and the
Hellenistic (323 31 BC) periods. The main physical categories of Greek art are
sculpture, pottery, coin design and architecture.
The Greeks used many different types of materials in their sculptures including
stone, marble and limestone as these were abundant in Greece. Other materials such
as clay were also used but due to their brittle nature very few have survived. Greek
sculptures are very important as the vast majority of them tell us a story about Gods,
Heroes, Events, Mythical Creatures and Greek culture in general. Examples of Greek
sculpture that survive and receive worldwide recognition are: the Parthenon
Marbles, Agamemnon's Death Mask, stone statues of humans, such as the
limestone Kouros (male) and Kore (female) statues (c.590 BC), Discobolos (The
Discus Thrower) by Myron, the Venus de Miloand the Winged Victory of
Samothrace.
The Ancient Greeks made pottery for everyday use, not for display; the trophies
won at games, such as the Panathenaic Amphorae (wine decanters), are the
exception. Most surviving pottery consists of drinking vessels such as amphorae,
kraters (bowls for mixing wine and water), hydria (water jars), libation bowls,
jugs and cups. Painted funeral urns have also been found. Miniatures were also
produced in large numbers, mainly for use as offerings at temples.
Coins were mostly small disk-shaped lumps of gold, silver, or bronze, stamped with
a geometric designs, symbols -to indicate its city of origin or the god they were sacred
to-, and portraits of gods or heroes.
Architecture
Ancient Greek architects strove for the precision and excellence of workmanship that
are the hallmarks of Greek art in general. The formulas they invented as early as the
sixth century B.C. have influenced the architecture of the past two millennia.
Although the ancient Greeks erected buildings of many types, the
Greek Temple best exemplifies the aims and methods of Greek architecture. The
two principal orders in Archaic and Classical Greek temples architecture are the
Doric and the Ionic.A third order of Greek architecture, known as the Corinthian,
mostly common in the Hellenistic and Roman periods. Representative temple of the
Doric order is Parthenon, of the Ionic order is Erechtheum and of the Corinthian
order is the temple of Zeus, all these temples sited in Athens.
The Greek Theater was a central place of formal gatherings in ancient Greece. Every
Greek town had a theater. These were used for both public meetings as well as
dramatic performances. These performances originated as religious ceremonies; they
went on to assume their Classical status as the highest form of Greek culture by the
6th century BC. The theatre was usually set in a hillside outside the town, and had
rows of tiered seating set in a semi-circle around the central performance area, the

orchestra. Behind the orchestra was a low building called the skene, which served as
a store-room, a dressing-room, and also as a backdrop to the action taking place in
the orchestra. A number of Greek theatres survive almost intact, the best known
being
at
the
Ancient
Theater
of
Epidaurus.
The architectural typology of the modern stadium derives from the classical
prototype of the Greek Stadium. The Greek Stadium was the open space where
footraces and other athletic contests took place in ancient Greece. The stadiums were
usually U-shaped, the curve being opposite to the starting point. The courses were
generally 600 Greek feet long (1 stadium), although the length varied according to
local variations of the measuring unit. Natural slopes where used where possible to
support the seats. The best known ancient Greek stadium is Kallimarmaron
(Panathinaikon Stadium), sited in Athens.
Olympic Games
According to historical records, the first ancient Olympic Games can be traced back
to 776 BC. They were dedicated to the Olympian gods and were staged on the ancient
plains of Olympia, in the western part of the Peloponnese. They continued for nearly
12 centuries, until Emperor Theodosius decreed in 393 A.D. that all such pagan
cults be banned.
The Olympic Games were closely linked to the religious festivals of the cult of Zeus,
but were not an integral part of a rite. Indeed, they had a secular character and aimed
to show the physical qualities and evolution of the performances accomplished by
young people, as well as encouraging good relations between the cities of Greece.
According to specialists, the Olympic Games owed their purity and importance to
religion.
The ancient Olympic Games included the following events: pentathlon, running,
jumping, discus throw, wrestling, boxing, pankration and equestrian events.
All free male Greek citizens were entitled to participate in the ancient Olympic
Games, regardless of their social status. Married women were not allowed to
participate in, or to watch, the ancient Olympic Games. However, unmarried women
could
attend
the
competition.
In 1859 Evangelos Zappas, a wealthy Greek philanthropist, sponsored the first
modern international Olympic Games that were held in an Athens city square, with
athletes from two countries: Greece and the Ottoman Empire. In June 23, 1894
Baron Pierre de Coubertin founded the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and
it was decided that the first IOC Olympic Games would take place in 1896 in Athens,
as they did.
Father of History
The mission of Herodotus, also known as the father of history, was to make sure
that human achievement may be spared the ravages of time, and that everything

great and astounding, and all the glory of those exploits which served to display
Greeks and barbarians alike to such effect, be kept alive and additionally, and most
importantly, to give the reason they went to war. Born around 484 BC in
Halicarnassus, Herodotus was banned from his homeland by the tyrant Lygdamis
and spent much of his time traveling and gathering the stories of others before he
returned. He was one of the first writers to not only collect stories of ancient Greece,
but also have them survive for others to read.
It was the first place to bring trial by jury into the courtroom.
Athens is also the home of the original trial by jury practice. While any one citizen
could raise charges against another in an ancient Greek courtroom, they were not
allowed to select the jurors for their own trial. Their juries proved far larger than
those used today it wasnt uncommon for the courts to use up to 500 citizens for
any given case, and even to surpass 1,500 when it came to issues of death, exile and
property seizure. Each decision was made via majority rule to keep the courtroom as
reasonable as possible. The tradition of ensuring that all who serve receive a days
pay also originated in ancient Greece.