Grade 5 Links
Retrieved from PBS: http://www.pbs.org/empires/thegreeks/educational/research_links.html#cds
Ancient Greece
General Websites for Students
• Ancient Greek World: Introduction (University of Pennsylvania Museum) gives a good overview of ancient Greek history and culture. This presentation of life in ancient Greece has four major themes: Land and Time, Daily Life, Economy, and Religion and Death. Objects in the museum illustrate the history presented.
• Greek Civilization for Middle Schoolers (A.K.A. "Greek Civ for Kids" from Portland State University, 1999) These pages have been designed by Portland State sophomores primarily for the use of middle school students (ages 11-14) investigating Greek civilization of the Classical period. They include appropriate information and maps, links to other relevant sites on the World Wide Web, and suggestions for further reading.
• Ancient Greece (from Universal Artists) is a rich resource of links for history, mythology, art, culture, architecture and more.
• Ancient Greek Artifacts Virtual Tour of the British Museum with a description of Teachers' Resource Packs commercially available in the UK.
• Greek Mythology Link Catalogue of Images, by Carlos Parada. This site is a great resource for teachers and students who are trying to find information about and images of mythological characters for student reports. There are photographs of classical and modern statues and paintings. For example, see paintings of Theseus Slaying the Minotaur or Thetis dipping Achilles into the River Styx to protect him from death, or a statue of Athena springing from the head of Zeus, or a classical statue of Athena from the Parthenon. [Warning to teachers of younger students: several of the paintings and statues will present characters in the nude. If that is a problem for your classes, you might want to go through the list and bookmark those which are appropriate to your students. Teachers should also read the copyright notice at the top of the page which prohibits using the images for publication on the www.]
Greek Art
• The National Archaeological Museum of Athens is the most important archaeological museum in Greece and one of the richest in the world concerning ancient Greek art. The museum's collections include: Prehistoric items, Sculpture, Pottery and Minor art , and Bronzes (as well as a collection of Egyptian Art).
• The Acropolis Museum (Athens, Greece) has a collection of the art of the Acropolis. Click on the thumbnail photographs (small pictures) to get an enlargement.
• The Louvre Museum in Paris has an extensive collection of Greek and Hellenistic art. Click on a time period, then click on the thumbnail photographs (small pictures) to get enlargements. (Virtual tours of Greek rooms on the main floor are also available, but require Quicktime 4.)
• Ancient Greek Sculpture (limited collection) which shows the discus thrower, and some Roman copies of Greek art.
• Greek Art and Architecture (University of Colorado at Colorado Springs) has an extensive collection of images of architecture from various archeological sites (Crete, Athens, Olympia, Delphi and more), sculpture from early to late classical and through Hellenistic times.
• Emory University (in Atlanta, Georgia) has a Permanent Collection of Classical Art . It is introduced at this site. The text is rather advanced for middle and high school students, but it is accompanied by several good photographs from the collection.
• The Pergamon Great Altar (now in Berlin's Pergamon Museum) was taken from Pergamon, a Greek city-state in modern day Turkey. The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco recently showed friezes (carvings on walls) of the incredible Pergamon Altar and set up this online tour of the Telephos Friezes from the Great Altar. (Telephos was a son of Hercules and Auge, and the panels depicting the story of Telephos are presented at this site.) A New York tourist named Max Ule took these four photographs in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin: the courtyard display, part of the altar, work in progress, and friezes (figures are almost life-size). Hisashi Okamoto, a professor from Kyoto University, has added these beautiful pictures from the Pergamon Museum to the web.
• Looking at Art of Ancient Greece and Rome (Getty Museum). Compare the older, formal style of a Kouros (young man, about 530 B.C.) and the later more natural pose shown in a statue of a Victorious Youth (325 - 300 B.C.) This change was revolutionary and the older style died out. A Carteret Community College instructor says this newer style, first shown in a statue (The Kritios Boy) represents humanism, idealism, and rationalism and a break from the Egyptian style.
Architecture
The Acropolis, from The Greeks documentary
• 3D Modelling of Miletus (a project of the Foundation of the Hellenic World of Athens) includes views of 10 buildings of Miletus including a stadium, the Bouleuterion (Council House), a sacred gate, the Altar of Poseidon, and more.
• The Ancient City of Athens is a collection of pictures collected for Indiana University. [a Top 5% Site]
◦ Especially useful for teachers and students creating webpages is the section called "Sites and Monuments" which has more than 400 photographs of such famous sites as the Parthenon, Acropolis, temples, arches, and parts of the ancient city of Athens. For examples of these sites, see:
1 View of the Acropolis from the southwest, showing the Propylaia, the Temple of Athena Nike, part of the Erechtheion, and the Parthenon.
2 The South Porch or Caryatid Porch of the Erechtheion. "Caryatids" (or "Karyatids") are female figures used as architectural supports in place of columns -- a feature associated with Ionic architecture.
3 The Agora: The Commercial and Civic Center of Athens
• Ancient Sites Walking Tours of Athens offers three "virtual tours of ancient Athens" with high quality computer graphics and effective explanations of what you are seeing. One tour (approximately 5 minutes) is of an Athenian home. Another tour (15 minutes) takes you to the Acropolis with an architect in 415 B.C.E., and the third tour (10 minutes) takes you to the Acropolis with a philosopher in 415 B.C.E.
• "Restoring Virtual Ruins" The Digital Museum site (from Scientific American Magazine) shows how digital images can create computer models for reconstructions.
• The Acropolis of Athens briefly introduces this famous site and its ruins. (Hellenic Ministry of Culture)
• City of Knossos (Minoan Civilization) and the Palace of Knossos - This site includes an artist's conception of the ancient Palace of Knossos and an Image Gallery with 16 images of the Palace. Minos is the home of the mythological Minotaur killed by the hero Theseus, and where Daedalus built the labyrinth and escaped by learning how to fly - only to lose his son Icarus. The Minoan civilization flourished early in the history of ancient Greece. An artist's idea of The Palace of Knossos (Dilos Holiday World) is also shown at his site.
• Greek Temples are presented (in architectural plans and with photographs) and style (orders of Doric and Ionian columns and capitals) at this site from Japan entitled Greek Art and Archaeology.
• Period and Style for Designers: Greece has images of buildings, ornamentation and furniture of ancient Greece.
Literature and Drama
• "Ancient Greek Literature" from Hellas On-Line briefly identifies the famous writers and story tellers of ancient Greece, including Aesop (an African who became a slave in Greece), play writers such as Sophocles, Thucidites, Euripides, and more, and of course, Homer, the blind poet and story-teller of the Iliad and the Odyssey. This excellent website has links so that you can read the fables, plays, and epic poems. [Some literary works require a download with "ZipIt"]
• The Iliad and the Odyssey by Homer about 800 B.C. The Iliad tells of Helen, wife of a Greek king, who is taken to Troy. This starts a battle that went on for ten years until the Greeks used a wooden horse to trick the Trojans. Hiding inside the horse, they went into the city and the conquered the unsuspecting Trojans. Learn more about this famous story at "The Virtual Iliad", a summary of the Iliad for students, and see the background links. Also see "The Virtual Odyssey" and its background links. (Available From ThinkQuest.) Drama
◦ Ancient Greek Theater (part of The History Ring) by Elias Karayannako is an award-winning site. It tells about Ancient Greek Theater, The actors and the chorus, The organization of the tragic contests, Clothes and scenic appearance, Masks, and more. There are links to specific Greek plays and playwrights.
◦ Tragedy -
▪ Introduction to Greek Tragedy (from Brooklyn College, N.Y.) This is a difficult article for middle school students, but will help high school and college students to understand the forms of tragedies and early Greek theater. It tells about the actors, costumes and masks,the use of a chorus, and introduces several famous tragic plays of the early Greeks.
▪ More information on Greek Tragedy The "first actor" Thespis (from whom we get the name "thespian" or "actor") is briefly introduced.
▪ Study Guide for Sophocles' Oedipus the King (by Robin Mitchell-Boyask, Temple University) combines an online version of the play with links to graphics and explanations. Oedipus is a tragic hero. Before he was born, his father went to the Delphic Oracle to learn of the future of his child. The oracle said that the child would grow up to kill his father and marry his mother. For a short summary of the story, click [here]. For a longer explanation of the play for teachers who might want to produce it with high school students, see Howard's Lesson Plan, Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute.
▪ Sophocles' play Antigone is a critique of absolute power and unenlightened rule. The play details the disasters that befall a society in the midst of change, when long-accepted traditions conflict with interests of a new era, and gives us a view of the thinking of the people of Athens at that time.
▪ Aeschylus (information from Encarta Online), is considered "the father of the dramatic tragedy", 525?-456 B.C. He is the playwright of "The Persians" (written in 472 B.C., available on-line) which portrayed King Xerxes as a man destroyed by his own hubris, or pride. He also wrote Promethius Bound, Seven Against Thebes, and other plays. See a brief study guide with guiding questions by a professor at University of Idaho. Learn more about Aeschylus (Perseus Encyclopedia) which gives more information about his life, and tells of his importance and influence.
◦ Comedy
▪ Aristophanes 448?-380? B.C., (from InfoPlease, Columbia Encyclopedia) wrote plays entitled "The Clouds" which makes fun of philosophers like Socrates, and "Lysistrata" in which the Athenian women boycott their husbands to end a war, "Women in Politics" in which the women take over the government, "The Acharnians" which is an attack on the Peloponnesian War, and more. "The Birds" (online from Perseus Project) is widely regarded as Aristophanes' greatest play. Originally produced in 414 B.C.E in Athens at a time of tumultuous social upheaval and civil strife, "Birds" tells the story of two ordinary men in search of a better life as far as possible from the problems of the city, the choking law courts, corrupt politicians, and endless war. Our heroes conspire to persuade the Birds to join them in the creation of a new city .
◦ Satyr Plays - short, slapstick pieces characterized by a chorus of satyrs (half men, half beasts) who act as a farcical backdrop to the traditional mythological heroes oftragedy.
• Poetry
◦ Thomas Martin Overview of Archaic and Classical Greek History (Perseus Project) introduces ancient Greek poetry
◦ Ancient Greek Poetry is further introduced by Christian Rouillier. There is also a link to the mechanics of poetry (rhyme, meter, lyrics), and to Greek poets and some famous Greek poets.
◦ Sappho's Poetry - six of Sappho's poems are here after a brief introduction to her life. Twelve more are presented here at Athena Nike's Pages: Poetry of Sappho. Most of Sappho's poetry is either lost or fragmented. She was called the tenth Muse by Plato nearly twenty years after her death. She was from the Greek Isle of Lesbos.
History & Famous People
• Solon, the Lawgiver and Reformer of Ancient Athens (c. 600 - 563 B.C.E.) This is a short biography of the reformer (from Encarta Online). Solon (Compton's Encyclopedia Online) also gives a brief introduction. Also see Athens and Solon - Sparta (Tourist Guide of Greece) Solon was written about by Putarch, the Roman historian (15 Ancient Greek Heroes from Plutarch's Lives: Solon). There is an online glossary to help with difficult words.
• Pisistratus (information from on-line encyclopedia). Additional information about Pisistratus is found with Encarta Online.
• Homer and the Story of Troy (See "Literature" above)
◦ The Iliad
◦ The Odyssey
• Cleisthenes c. 572 - c. 485 B.C.E was generally regarded as the founder of Athenian democracy. (Information from on-line encyclopedia). The Reforms of Cleistenes is information for more advanced students, but summarized at Perseus Project: Cleisthenes' Reforms. Aristotle told of Cleistenes reforms, too. Democracy on Line has more information about Cleistenes. Read about the Government After the Changes Made By Cleistenes. This short article tells about how male citizens could participate in the early democracy.
• Themistocles (InfoPlease Encyclopedia Entry) tells that Themistocles was a brilliant general and leader of Athens who convinced the Atheneans to build up their navy to protect themselves against the advancing Persians. In the Battle of Salamis in 480 B.C. he won an tremendous victory. Later, however, he was exiled From Athens. Also see The Importance of Themistocles (an essay by Greg Ong).
• The First Marathon Run, The History of Phidippides (by Paul Ostapuk) tells of the messenger-runner who tried to get Sparta's help for a battle between Athens and the Persian invaders at Marathon and ran for about 140 miles to deliver the news, return, and then join the battle!
• Biography of Political Leaders of Athenian Democracy includes Cleistenes, Themistocles, Cimon, and Pericles. (This information was prepared by students at Portland State University for middle school students.)
• 15 Ancient Greek Heroes from Plutarch's Lives: Pericles gives a comprehensive biography of this famous leader. There is an online to help with difficult words.
• Pericles and the Golden Age of Athens
◦ Pericles - A biographical home page from Portland State's Greek Civ for Kids
◦ Pericles also from Portland State's Greek Civ for Kids
◦ Democracy On Line has more information of Pericles (495 - 429 B.C.E.)
◦ Pericles' Funeral Oration (a famous speech during the war with Sparta reported by the historian Thucydides). In this speech he tells his confidence in Athenian democracy which helped to create its Golden Age. (From the World Civilizations site by T. Hooker, Washington State University; The Funeral Oration is also found at Westminster College in Salt Lake City, Utah.)
◦ See his bust (statue) and learn more about him at this site from Westminster College.
• Asphasia - (Perseus encyclopedia) She was the intelligent consort of Pericles, praised by Socrates for her rhetoric (ability to speak and argue well) and her logic.
• Athens vs. Sparta (in the Pelopponesian Wars) is a full and rather difficult to read history of the conflicts between Athens and Sparta. (The reading level is for high school and beyond.)
• Thucidides (c.460 - c.400 B.C.) is called the creator of objective historical science because he wrote his 'History of the Peloponnesian War' arguing that victors in war were not determined by the gods, but by man-made natural causes. During the Peloponnesian War, he commanded part of the Athenian fleet. He lost a battle and he was exiled for 20 years. During this time, he visited all parts of Greece and wrote his history. (See more information from the Perseus Project.)
• Socrates is introduced as Athens' critic, for which he was condemned to death. (Evansville University site.)
• Philip of Macedon - father of Alexander the Great. This is a one page biography of Philip with links to Alexander. The father and son never got along very well.
• Alexander the Great - one of the world's greatest conquerors who also studied with Aristotle! This site gives much information about the life and legend of Alexander the Great.
• Alexander the Great (from ) gives information about this famous man.
• Another Alexander the Great site (project by John J. Popovic) is well illustrated with maps, photographs of artwork.
• Sappho's Poetry - six of Sappho's poems are here after a brief introduction to her life. Twelve more are presented here at Athena Nike's Pages: Poetry of Sappho. Most of Sappho's poetry is either lost or fragmented. She was deemed the tenth Muse by Plato nearly two decades after her death. She was from the Greek Isle of Lesbos.
Greek City States and Places
• Sparta (written by Jennifer Taylor, Minnesota State University, Mankato) is a good introduction and includes further information at The Culture of Sparta and Women of Sparta
• Athens (written by Jennifer Taylor, Minnesota State University, Mankato) is a good introduction and includes further information about classes of Athens and women of Athens.
• Enjoy the reenactment of battle by Spartan hoplite warriors at The Ancient Greeks (BBC)
• Learn more about the city states and the development of democracy. Visit Bouleuterion: Birthplace of Democracy (produced by the Foundation of the Hellenic World, 1996). This site includes a map from which you choose a place in which Greek City States developed. [StudyWeb Award Winning Site]
• Compare Sparta with Athens! See Athens and Solon - Sparta (Tourist Guide of Greece) and Sparta (World Civilization by Richard Hooker, Washington State University) is rather difficult to read, but very complete. Spartan Stories and How Lycurgus (king around 885 B.C.) set up the militaristic society. An Interactive View of the Peloponnesian War (by Simon Frank) presents background information on the two enemies: Sparta and Athens. Daily Life Ancient Greece by Mr. Donn (written for middle school and young students) allows you to compare city-states: Sparta, Athens, Corinth, Argos, and Megara.
• Everything Spartan, Lakonian and Messenian (by Holly, award winning site) has much information of Spartan women, art, poetry, photographs of Sparta, and more.
• Delphi, in central Greece, was home of the celebrated Delphic Oracle which supposedly could predict the future. (By Simpson) See images of a priestess and of Oedipus solving the riddle of the Syphx. The priestess of the Delphic oracle in ancient Greece may have delivered her prophecies under the influence of petrochemical fumes, says a geologist. The oracle's priestess, a woman called the Pythia, sat over the chasm and breathed this "divine afflatus", from which she drew powers of prophecy. Learn more about the priestess at Albany's site.
Mythology / Religion
• The Ancient Greek World - Religion and Death From the University of Pennsylvania Museum presents the religious practice of the ancient Greeks, including sacrifices, games, festivals, and burial practices.
• Ancient Greek religion is explained at "The Ancient Gods", part of Hellas On Line. This site includes a "family tree" and introduction to the Titans, the Olympian Gods, and Other Gods and Semi-Gods.
• Herakles (or "Hercules" to the Romans) is part of the Perseus Project: "Hercules: Greece's Greatest Hero". This excellent site gives the biography of Herakles, tells of his labors, his adventures, and more! For an interesting chart comparing Walt Disney's Hercules with Greek Mythology, see Greek Mythology Link. Learn more about Hercules at the Greek Mythology Link.
• The Greek Mythology Link is a collection of the Greek myths being written and published on line by Carlos Parada, author of the book Genealogical Guide to Greek Mythology. The material provided in the Greek Mythology Link includes texts, images, tables and maps. This site gives brief biographies of 117 Individuals (from Achilles to Zeus) and tells of an equally large number of mythological characters such as monsters (from Abraxas to Xanthus) and more! Information is in a grid format (not told as a story); Also see their Places and Peoples site to learn more about such places as the underworld, Troy, Athens, and more. Searching for relationships is easily done at this great site because of the links design.
• Other mythological characters and their stories:
◦ Pegasus from Flights of Fantasy - Pegasus, the Flying Horse - Advanced; a simple retelling of the story of Bellerophon and Pegasus for kids; also available with simpler text with illustrations for young children.)
◦ Phethon and the Chariot of the Sun - a simple retelling of the story about the son of Apollo who longs to drive his father's chariot across the sky (from Flights of Fantasy) with illustrations.
◦ Daedalus the Inventor (from Flights of Fantasy) is a simple retelling of the story of Daedalus and his son Icarus who try to escape from Crete by inventing wings for humans. This site includes illustrations.
◦ Jason and the Argonauts has several sections which explore the question "Was Jason's trip Fact or Fiction?" (for high school or higher)
• Calendar of Sacrifices of the 4th century BCE. Sacrifices were important in Greek religion. Look at a calendar of sacrifices to see what should be sacrificed to which god, and when.
• Windows to the Universe (University of Michigan). Text is available at beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels. Many of the Greek and Roman gods and goddesses were associated with the heavens, the sun, moon, planets or stars. (Modern scientists have continued to use Roman mythology as they name newly discovered planets and moons.) Learn more about Classic Mythology associated with the earth or heavens, which include:
◦ Gaea (or mother earth)
◦ Uranus
◦ Saturn (or Cronus to the Greeks)
▪ Moons of Saturn include Pan and Atlas
◦ Jupiter (or Jove to the Romans, Zeus to the Greeks)
▪ The Jovian System (Jupiter and its moons including Callisto, Europa, Ganymede, Leda and Io).
◦ Apollo (or Apollo or Sol to the Romans) See other images (statues, paintings) of Apollo.
▪ Other Myths about the Sun: This excellent site has mythology about the sun from several other cultures
◦ Mars (or Eres to the Greeks) was the god of war.
◦ Venus (Aphrodite to the Greeks) was the goddess of love and beauty.
◦ Mercury (Hermes to the Greeks) was the messenger god.
◦ Neptune (Poseidon to the Greeks) was the god of the sea.
◦ and more images of Diana (Artemis to the Romans) include:
◦ Pluto (Hades to the Greeks) and the story of Persephone
◦ Hercules (Herakles to the Greeks) is remembered in a constellation of stars and in stories of his 12 Labors.
◦ Orion the Hunter is also found in a constellation of stars.
◦ And more!
• Bulfinch's Mythology, 'The Age of Fable or Stories of Gods and Heroes' presents an online form of this popular book. You can search the text for key words, or find information by going to the index of the stories.
Sports and Recreation
• The Olympics - from the Perseus Project offers
1 An Introduction to the Ancient Olympics giving its history and descriptions all the events: Boxing, Equestrian events, Chariot racing, Riding, Pankration, Pentathlon, Running, and Wrestling.
2 A Tour of ancient Olympia (the original site of the games which started over 2,700 years ago)
3 Context of the Games and the Olympic Spirit tells of the athletes from all over the Mediterranean, the truce during the games, the spectators, and more.
• Portland State University's Greek Civilization for Kids: The Ancient Olympic Games
• Olympics Through Time (from the Foundation of the Hellenic World) tells of Greek sports in prehistoric times and in antiquity, as well as the modern revival of the Olympic Games.
• The Olympic Games - Events
◦ Wrestling and Pankration (an "anything goes" style of fighting which may include kicking, boxing, wrestling) For a gallery of images see Olympic Pankration Gallery showing statues and paintings on pottery of fighters
◦ Discus throwing is shown in a famous statue of Myron (4th century B.C.)
• Dartmouth University's "The Olympic Games in the Ancient Hellenic World" offers a "virtual museum" of the sports, history, athletes, a slide show, and more about the ancient Olympics. Their links to "The Location of Ancient Olympia" and "The Site of the Games" have good information and some photographs of Olympia.
• A brief history (or retelling of the legend) of the first marathon is told at the bottom of History of the Ancient Olympics (Australian site)
• Beyond the Olympics, there were "Other Games" (from ThinkQuest)
War, Warfare and Weapons
A Spartan Soldier looking out over Athens, from The Greeks documentary
• Ancient Greek Infantry (Portland University's Greek Civ for Kids) tells of tactical warfare, armor and weapons, military hierarchy, military pay, and military duty.
• Portland State University's Greek Civilization for Kids: War (written by college students to assist middle school students in research reports) tells briefly of the Greek army and navy, the Persian Wars, the Peloponnesian Wars between Athens and Sparta, and Alexander the Great.
• Hellas:Net tells about Warfare in Hellas (the Greek World) with many links describing weapons, battles, strategies, including naval warfare, and important battles in Greek history. Learn about the use of hoplites (heavily armed and armored foot-soldiers). Learn about the Battle of Marathon in 490 B.C.E.and the important Sea Battle of Salamis in 480 B.C.E. against the Persians. Learn about the use of elephants by Alexander the Great , and more!
• An Interactive View of the Peloponnesian War (by Simon Frank) presents background information on the two enemies: Sparta and Athens.
• Ancient Greek Boating and Shipping tells of the importance of boating and shipping to the ancient Greeks for trade, warfare, and colonization of other lands.
• History of Warfare (from the University of Pennsylvania Museum) briefly tells of the use of chariots in war, armor, and weapons as shown on pottery and through artifacts.
• Enjoy the reenactment of battle by Spartan hoplite warriors at The Ancient Greeks (BBC)
Science and Medicine
• Portland State University Greek Civilization for Kids Site: Environment (written by college students to assist middle school students in research reports) tell of geology, geography, weather, plants and animals, and more.
• Portland State University Greek Civilization for Kids Site: Science (written by college students to assist middle school students in research reports) tells of astronomy, biology, boats and ships, mathematics, numbers, metal, water supply, and medicine.
• Hippocrates (c.460-380 B.C.) is considered the "father of medicine". Learn more about him at Greek Physicians from Hellas On-Line. After a brief introduction, there are samples of his writings about health and disease, and his famous oath still taken by doctors today. He was a member of a group of physicians which traced its origins to Asclepius, the god of healing. Hippocrates was the most famous physician and teacher of medicine of his time. Over 60 medical treatises that have traditionally been attributed to him. They look for natural explanations and treatments of illness and reject sorcery, magic, and interference by gods. See a bust of him and read a brief biography.
• Greek and Roman Surgical Instruments are shown at this Indiana University site and Surgery of Ancient Rome (from University of Virginia) also displays classical surgical instruments.
• The Plague in Athens During the Peloponnesian War is explored at this Indiana University site. The author concludes that the plague may have been typhus. The plague was described by Thucydides, the famous Greek historian who survived the plague and described the growth of Athens up through the plague. A modern scientist compares the Athenian plague with the modern Ebola Virus (article from the U.S. Center of Disease Control, 1996) and quotes from Thucydides' history. The plague and the Peloponnesian War brought an end to the Golden Age of Athens according to the authors. (difficult - cut?) Medicine in Mythology and Literature (from the University of Virginia) tells of the the arrows of Apollo and Artemis as a plague against a woman who bragged about her own 14 children, and the healing arrows and practices of Apollo and Asclepius. (Apollo was father of the healing god Asclepius.)
• Archimedes is introduced at a site from Drexel University. (difficult )
• Ancient Greek Science Resources. A very extensive site for important Greek scientists, mathematicians, and philosophers. Unfortunately, many links have expired or are not available.
• Aristotle's life is described and there are links to his scientific and philosophical works, part of Hellas On-Line.
• Democritus proposed the theory of atoms which were microscopic and could not be seen. He also thought the Milky Way was a vast system of stars in an unending universe. (This is from a series of articles on Greek scientists From the University of Michigan. The information is presented at thr reading levels for beginning, intermediate, and advanced readers. The sites include graphics and links to gain more information.)
Mathematics
• Euclid (brief introduction From Encarta Online Encyclopedia) lived about 300 B.C., is known for h work in mathematics and geometry. Advanced students can explore Euclid's Elements (Clark University site for high school students) and Generalizing Euclid's Proof of Prime Numbers (Mathematical Musings of Mr.K. F. Kuhn)
• Pythagoras (580-520 B.C.) was known for his work with mathematics, astronomy and music (acoustics). (University of Michigan site for kids)
• Thales (624 - 546 BC). - first known Greek philosopher, scientist and mathematician. Also see Thales Materialism for a brief biography.
• Zeno of Elea - calculus
• [Teacher site: The Early Greeks Contribution to Geometry from Yale-New Haven Teachers lesson plan site] This site has links and activities to introduce students to geometry (use of the protractor, postulates, angles, etc.) and how the ancient Greeks contributed to these areas of geometry.
Philosophy
• Greek Philosophy (Portland State University's Greek Civilization for Kids, written by college students for middle school students) includes an introduction to Greek Philosophy, and highlights Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle.
• Thales (624 - 546 BC). was the first known Greek philosopher, scientist and mathematician. Also see a more extensive site also from Drury University.
• Socrates (469 - 399 B.C.) (from Encarta Online) was a philosopher who was condemned to death for his political views. His student, Plato, wrote about him and his philosophy.
• Plato (428?-347? BC) ( from Encarta Online) introduces Plato, a pupil of Socrates, famous as a philosopher whose writings we can read today. The Portland State University's Greek Civ for Kids site for Plato for the Young Inquirer has biographical information, his ideas and conclusions, how he impacts us today, a visit with a Plato expert (Professor Moor), and more! Professor Suzanne at Evansville University has written a summary of Plato and His Dialogs appropriate for high school and university students.
• Aristotle's life is described and there are links to his scientific and philosophical works, part of Hellas On-Line. Aristotle is known as a student of Plato and the teacher of Alexander the Great. [Also included at this site is Epictetus, the Stoic Philosopher, whose philosophy resembled Christianity in its love of good and hatred of evil.]
Music
• History of Ancient Greek Music (from a school in Greece) tells about the development of Greek music and the musical instruments used in ancient Greece.
• Ancient Greek Music - you can hear fragments of ancient Greek music over the computer!
• Homeric Singing (part of the Perseus Project)
• Ancient Greek Music (from Infoplease - Encyclopedia Entry) give some basic information about Greek music.
• Greek Gift of Music (Portland State's Greek Civilization for Kids) introduces Greek music which is further explained at Music Theory, Music and Religion, and Musical Instruments. [Examples of student research?]
• Image of a musical contest between Apollo and Marsyas (by Praxiteles, circa 320 BC)
• Musical instruments: legends about their invention. flute and double flute (aulos), pipes of Pan, lyre [kithara] of Apollo. The god of music and harmony was Apollo. He was the leader of the nine muses (or "fairy" daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne) which include music, dance, poetry, comedy, history, etc.
• Musical education (importance of)
• Music in myth - Orpheus vase scene
The Greek Alphabet (ancient Greek)
• The Greek Alphabet (from ThinkQuest) and The Greek Alphabet (University of Washington) shows the Greek alphabet by letter name in Greek, the letters (capital and small), and the sound.
Everyday Life
• The Ancient Greek World - Men's Life Index from the museum at the University of Pennsylvania tells about daily life of the men.
• The Ancient Greek World - Women's Life from the museum at the University of Pennsylvania tells about daily life of the women.
• The Ancient Greek World - The Greek House from the museum at the University of Pennsylvania tells about typical Greek homes.
• Portland State's Greek Civ for Kids: Everyday Life (written by college students to assist middle school students in research reports) tells of social classes, getting food, friends, family and marriage, women, clothes, education, and commerce.
• Learn about the ancient Greek money at Denominations of Ancient Greek Coins at F.J. Wagner's site.
• Daily Life Ancient Greece by Mr. Donn is written for middle school and young students. It addresses such topics as schools, family, food, houses, pets and toys; a section on the Olympics. You may also compare city-states: Sparta, Athens, Corinth, Argos, and Megara. [Also included are classroom lesson plans]
• Slavery in Ancient Greece (by Kirsten Brown of Portland State's Greek Civ for Kids) tells of slavery in everyday life.
• Women, Children and Men (by Marilyn A. Katz, from the Cambridge Illustrated History of Athens) was put on-line for college students at Wesleyan University in Connecticut. "The inhabitants of Athens included, besides its male citizens, a large number of male and female slaves, a population of male and female resident aliens or 'metics' roughly equal in number to citizens, and the wives and children of citizen men. Citizens' wives shared in citizen status, but this entitled them principally to bear sons who would become citizens or, daughters who would become the wives of citizens. Secondly, there were other areas of civic and communal life in the ancient polis besides the political one, and women, non-citizens, and even slaves played important parts in many of them: the religious and economic spheres, for example, as well as the various aspects of community in the demes or villages. And finally, the social ideal which consigned men to the public, and women to the private realm, was no more than that: an ideal. It figures very prominently in much of Greek art and literature, but when we examine more closely some of details of ancient Greek social and cultural practices, the reality looks quite different."
Food of Ancient Greece
• Portland State's Greek Civ for Kids: Greek Foods and How to Prepare Them (written by college students for middle school students do research projects) tells of common foods and provides some recipes which can be made by students.
• A brief introduction to ancient Greek diet and agriculture and to the animals which the hunted or fished is found at Portland State's Greek Civilization for Kids: Agriculture (plants & animals) with an additional site on Ancient Greek Agriculture. This was written by college students to assist middle school students in research reports.
• Ancient Cuisine (from Holly's Everything Spartan site) has both Greek and Roman cuisine. Doormice? Delicious! A recipe is included for Herodotos' Pudding.
Clothing, Hair Styles, Jewelry, and Make Up
• Portland State's Greek Civ for Kids: Clothing and Costume in Ancient Greece tells of the common fabrics used in Greek clothing, and the styles of clothing worn by the Greeks. There are links to Greek Costumes.
• Ancient Greek Costume Links includes images of jewelry, hair styles, clothing for men, women, soldiers, and more.
• Greek Jewellery - 5000 years of tradition - Ancient Greek Jewelry provides excellent photographs of necklaces, bracelets, belts, earrings, and more.
• Slide Shows of Classical Images. The first show has 38 photographs of people dressed up like ancient Greeks (even though some are wearing glasses or shoes and socks with their costumes!); the second show has 111 drawings of Greek costumes for women; the third is of Roman mosaics.
• Ancient Greek Women's Dress and Hair (The Costumer's Manifesto) has some pictures.
Maps, Travelers and Geography
• Index of maps of the Ancient Greek World by Bernard Suzanne, professor at University of Evansville, Indiana. One important map is the Map of the ancient Greek world
• Cultural Map of Hellas from the Ministry of Culture links from a map to important archeological sites. (This JAVA program may take a long time to download.)
• Ancient Greek Boating and Shipping tells of the importance of boating and shipping to the ancient Greeks for trade, warfare, and colonization of other lands.
• Cultural Map of Hellas (prepared by the Hellenic Ministry of Culture) lets you visit museums, archaeological sites and monuments of many regions of Greece.
• A Virtual Tour of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World (from CNN) takes you to many Greek and other places.
• Map of Greek Colonization of the Mediterranean 650 B.C.E. and Map of Major States and Empires in the Old World 350 B.C.E. (both from University of Calgary's History Department's Multimedia Tutorials)
• The Universe Viewed by Peoples of Ancient Times (NASDA) tells us about the ancient Greeks named Plato, Aristotle, Democritus, Hipparchus and Ptolemy who though the earth was the center of a planetary system, not the sun.
Important Animals
• Horses were used in war, for transportation and other activities. This site is from the University of Pennsylvania Museum.
Timelines
Chronological History of Greece in the Vth and IVth centuries B.C. (long and linky)
General History of Greece (also see intro to art, archit. etc. in part 2)
NM's Creative Impulse..Greece good links, general info.
Links in Spanish for Bilingual Classes
Páginas en español, Greek Mythology Link (based on Genealogical Guide to Greek Mythology by Carlos Parada) includes stories such as Medusa, Pandora, Afrodita, Perseo, y más.
CD's and Videos
The Magical Walk of Curious Julius at Delphi - Archaeology, Knowledge and Adventure
CD-ROM "The magical walk of Curious Julius at Delphi". This CD-ROM, aimed at over-11s, familiarizes them with the science of archaeology and gives them some idea of the history of Delphi, one of the principal sacred places in Antiquity. The leading hero, Curious Julius, a cartoon character of about the same age as the children using the CD-ROM, has a thirst for information, and his companion, the archaeologist Hector Excavator, conduct the user on an adventure of knowledge and entertainment.
The Odyssey - The Discovery Channel has a half-hour video (airing on TV and for sale at $34.95) with online lesson plans and activities related to U.S. National Standards.
ADDITIONAL TEACHER LESSON PLANS FOR UNITS ON ANCIENT GREECE & EXAMPLES OF STUDENT WORK
• See webpages created by sixth grade students in a San Jose, California school telling of "Everyday Life in Ancient Greece: Life as a Kid, a Father, A Mother, A Slave" and more.
• Wonderful World of Ancient Greece (ThinkQuest) has student reports on Arts, Battles & Heroes, Everday Life, First Olympics, Government, Religion and more. (By students grades 4-6.)
• Ancient Greek Olympics shows student work with tips from the teacher on setting up learning centers with computers. This is part of "Nuestra Tierra" Educational Technology Project.
• SCORE (Schools of California Online Resources for Education) has Resources and Activities for teachers at each grade level prepared by teachers. World History and Geography: Ancient Civilizations, 6th Grade. Resources for ancient Greece are rated on a scale of 1 (high) to 5 (low). California's sixth Grade Standards are also identified for teachers. Eight activities are found in the Greek section of SCORE including games, WebQuests, a model of a student created virtual museum, and more.
• Greek Travel Brochure project by Kevin Deutsch, teacher at Lux Middle School, Lincoln, Nebraska.
• Mr. Donn's Daily Life in Ancient Greece includes a few Ancient History Lesson Ideas by Mrs. Donn for elementary school students and Lesson Plans by Mr. Donn which include a simulation which asks students to compare the judicial system in ancient Athens and an American court (for students in grades 8 - 12), units on the Olympics (for sixth grade students?), mythology, and more.
• Lesson Plans from Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute. Search for more. Some are better developed than others, but here are some appropriate topics:
◦ "Remember the Time: An Exploration of History Through Drama" spends one week on Greek drama before moving into medieval drama. (Lesson Plan by Perrault, Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute.)
◦ "Euripides' Alcestis" Lesson Plan by O'Neil, Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute. Student read, discuss, and act out parts of the tragic plan, and are involved in other activities. (The unit is designed for the middle school student of varying reading levels. It is a six week course.)
◦ "Greek and Roman Mythology in the Classroom" by Garcia, Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute. (Purpose is to supplement the curricula of social and urban studies classes at the secondary level, by introducing Greek and Roman mythology and its influence in contemporary society. Designed for high school students, varying time periods required according to selected objectives.)
◦ "Hercules: Super Hero" by McGuire, Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute. (Drama class in conjunction with social studies class, with recommendations for elementary, middle and high school classes.)
◦ "The Origin of Life: A History of Ancient Greek Theories" (by Puglia, Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute) deals with science and philosophy (the love of knowledge) - giving background information on Aristotle and others as the students observe the development of frogs from eggs.
◦ "The Iliad - A Practical Approach" by Lesson Plan by Taylor, Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute, for high school students.
◦ "The Grouch (Dyskolos) by Menander: An Example of Greek New Comedy" Lesson Plan by Polio She developed this for limited English speaking students in the middle school.
ACADEMICS APPEARING IN ‘THE GREEKS: CRUCIBLE OF CIVILIZATION’
Paul Cartledge was the academic consultant for the series. A Reader in Greek History in the Faculty of Classics and a Fellow and Director of Studies in Classics at Clare College, he has just been made Professor of Greek History at Cambridge.
His past publications include ‘The Greeks: Portrait of Self and Others’, ‘Sparta and Lakonia’, ‘Political Thought in Ancient Greece’, and ‘Democritus’. He was also editor of ‘The Cambridge Illustrated History of Ancient Greece’.
Victor Hanson is Professor of Classics, California State University, Fresno, USA. He has contributed to ‘The Wars of Ancient Greece’, Volume II of the 24 volume ‘History of War’ series edited by John Keegan, published by Cassells, London, 1999. His most recent book ‘The Soul of Battle: From Ancient Times to the Present Day’ was published by the Free Press in October 1999.
Helen King is Reader in the History of Classical Medicine, University of Reading, UK. Her most recent book, ‘Hippocrates’ Women: Reading the Female Body in Ancient Greece’ was published in October 1998.
Alexander Nehamas is Professor of Philosophy and Comparative Literature, Princeton University, USA. He has just published two books on themes that are central to the third episode of the series: ‘The Art of Living: Socratic Reflections from Plato to Foucault’ by the University of California Press, and ‘Virtues of Authenticity: Essays on Plato and Socrates’ by Princeton. He has also published a number of important works on philosophy and literature.
Tony Podlecki is Emeritus Professor of Classics, Princeton University, USA. His published works include: ‘The Life of Themistocles’ ‘, McGill-Queen’s University, 1975.
Nigel Spivey is Fellow of Emmanuel College, Cambridge, UK.
Barry Strauss is Professor of History, Cornell University, USA. His previous publications include 'War and Democracy: The Peloponnesian War and the Korean War', co-edited with David Mcann, Armonk, N.Y: M.E.Sharpe (1999); 'Epilogue: On War and Society in the Pre-Modern World' with Victor Hanson in K.Raaflaub and N.Rosenstein (eds) in 'Warfare and Society in Antiquity and the Middle Ages' (forthcoming, Harvard Press); 'The Dark Ages Made Lighter: The Consequences of Two Defeats' in Robert Cowley (ed) 'What If: The Greatest Might Have Beens in Military History', New York, Putnam (1999); 'Western Civilization: The Continuing Experiment' co-author, Houghton Mifflin (1994); 'Fathers and Sons in Athens: Ideology and Society in the Era of the Peloponnesian War', Princeton University Press (1997); and 'Athens After the Peloponnesian War: Class, Faction and Policy 403 - 386 BC', Cornell University Press, (1987).
He has also edited numerous other books on history and warfare as well as being a frequent contributor to books, magazines and academic journals and among his current work in progress is an essay for the book 'Unmaking the West: Counterfactual Thought Experiments in History' entitled 'The Resilient West: Salamis without Themistocles, Classical Greece without Salamis, and the West without Greece.'
Josh Ober is the David Magie Professor of Ancient History and Chairman of the Classics Department at Princeton University where he teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in Greek history and political thought. His books include 'Mass and Elite in Democratic Athens' (1989), 'The Athenian Revolution' (1996), and most recently, 'Political Dissent in Democratic Athens (1998). He has been a resident Fellow at the National Humanities Center, the Center for Hellenic Studies, the University of New England (Australia), and Claire Hall (Cambridge, UK).
Donald Kagan is Hillhouse Professor of History and Classics, Yale University, USA.