Tools of the Ancient Greeks: A Kid's Guide to the History & Science of Life in Ancient Greece (Tools of Discovery series)

161 Pages·2006·13.22 MB·English

by  Kris Bordessa

TT
oooollss ooff tthhee
AA
nncciieenntt
GG
rreeeekkss
AA KKiidd’’ss GGuuiiddee ttoo tthhee HHiissttoorryy && SScciieennccee ooff LLiiffee iinn AAnncciieenntt GGrreeeeccee
Build
inventions,
monuments,
and works of art
15
Meet explore
the people the history of
whose ideas Hands-On Greek civilization
changed Activities with hands-on
the world activities
learn
how the discoveries
of ancient Greece
affect us today
Kris Bordessa
T
ools of The
A
ncienT
G
reeks
A Kid’s Guide to the History & Science of Life in Ancient Greece
Build
inventions,
monuments,
and works of art
15
Meet Explore

the people whose the history of Greek
Hands-On
ideas changed the civilization with
Activities
world hands-on activities
Learn
how the discoveries
of ancient Greece
affect us today
Kris Bordessa
Other titles in the Tools of Discovery series:
Tools of Navigation: A Kid’s Guide to the History and Science of Finding Your Way
by Rachel Dickinson

Tools of Timekeeping: A Kid’s Guide to the History and Science of Telling Time
by Linda Formichelli and W. Eric Martin

Tools of the Ancient Romans: A Kid’s Guide to the History and Science of Life in Ancient Rome
by Rachel Dickinson

Tools of Native Americans: A Kid’s Guide to the History and Culture of the First Americans
by Kim Kavin
Nomad Press
A division of Nomad Communications
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Copyright © 2006 by Nomad Press
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher,
except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review. The trademark “Nomad Press” and the
Nomad Press logo are trademarks of Nomad Communications, Inc. Printed in the United States.
ISBN: 0-9785037-1-6
Questions regarding the ordering of this book should be addressed to
Independent Publishers Group
814 N. Franklin St.
Chicago, IL 60610
www.ipgbook.com
Nomad Press
2456 Christian St.
White River Junction, VT 05001
www.nomadpress.net
Contents
Introduction ..........................................................................1
Chapter 1: Ancient Greece and the Beginnings of Democracy ...3
Chapter 2: Farming, Trade, and the Greek Way of Life ............ 19
Chapter 3: The Arts of the Ancient Greeks .............................. 37
Chapter 4: Greek Gods ......................................................... 55
Chapter 5: Sports and the Olympics ...................................... 69
Chapter 6: Philosophy .......................................................... 79
Chapter 7: Architecture ........................................................ 87
Chapter 8: Science, Math, and Medicine .............................. 101
Chapter 9: Mapping the World and the Stars ....................... 117
Chapter 10: Warfare in Ancient Greece ................................ 129
INTRODUCTION
hen we look at the modern world and try to figure out why we
live the way we do, we find ourselves turning again and again to a
small nation in the Mediterranean Sea,
and to events that took place there more than
2,000 years ago.
Much of the world around us has
been heavily influenced by people
we now call ancient Greeks. If you
find that hard to believe, just
look to the sky. Our constel-
lations go by names like Orion, Cassiopeia, Andromeda,
and Perseus. Those names come directly from ancient
Greek mythology. Even one of America’s space programs
was named for the Greek god, Apollo.
Some American cities sport Greek names—Athens, Geor-
gia, is one and Homer, Alaska, is another. Some of our most
famous buildings feature sweeping colonnades and imposing

Tools of the Ancient Greeks
columns—elements that were prominent in ancient Greek architecture.
The Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., is just one example:
it was modeled after the Greek Parthenon.
From our democratic society to our theater, and from our ar-
chitecture to our names for constellations, ancient Greek cul-
ture has influenced our lives today. When we measure, map,
and mold the world, we use tools that were invented
by the ancient Greeks. Even when we do something
simple like argue or run a race, we have the ancient
Greeks to thank for showing us how to do it best.
Tools of the Ancient Greeks will take you through
the intellectual triumphs and mechanical creations of
this long-gone, but not-forgotten civilization and show
how their world has influenced ours. Biology, astronomy,
athletics, democracy, logic, and reason—the Greeks laid the
groundwork in nearly every field of learning you can imag-
ine. With this book you can follow in their footsteps.

CHAPTER
1
Learn the names Explore ancient Compare the
and stories of Greek philosophy ancient Greek gov-
the ancient Greek and inventions ernment and way
populations of life to your own
Ancient Greece
and the Beginnings of Democracy
hen we talk about ancient Greece, we are referring to the time
period from about 800 BCE to 31 BCE. Those 800 years in an-
cient Greece produced some amazing ideas, inventions, dis-
coveries, and beliefs, many of which we use in our daily lives
today. But before we focus solely on
BCE? CE?
those clever Greeks, let’s take a quick
As you read, you will notice dates with the
look at how ancient Greece evolved.
letters BCE. This stands for Before Common
Era. The beginning of the Common Era is
The First Greeks
marked by the birth of Jesus and begins
Situated on the Aegean Sea, ancient
with the year 1 followed by the letters CE.
Greece is considered part of the Ae- Events that occurred prior to the first year
gean world. The Aegean world in- of the Common Era are classified as Before
cludes all of the civilizations in this Common Era. The years BCE may seem back-
ward, because as time passes, the years actu-
area. The Minoans were the first great
ally become smaller in number. A child born
civilization in the Aegean world.
in 300 BCE, for instance, would celebrate his
They lived a peaceful existence on
or her 10th birthday in the year 290 BCE.
the island of Crete, near mainland
Think of it as a countdown to Common Era.
Greece. Although much information

Tools of the Ancient Greeks
about the Minoan civilization is lost to history, we
do know that the Minoans lived on Crete for at least
750 years, and most historians think the first Minoans
came from Asia.
Archeologists have unearthed Minoan palaces
with elegant rooms and elaborate wall paintings,
Minoan. indicating that the Minoan culture was a wealthy
one. One interesting discovery about Minoan culture is
that they didn’t seem to have any military whatsoever.
The Minoans traded with other populations throughout
the Aegean world, including the Egyptians (they even
appear in Egyptian art), but archeologists and histori-
Mycenaean.

CHAPTER 1: Ancient Greece and the Beginning of Democracy
ans can’t find any evidence that the Minoans had There weren’t any Greeks
an army, or even soldiers. And although the Mino- in ancient Greece. That
ans were the forerunners of ancient Greece, they term was given to the
people of Greece genera-
didn’t speak Greek. In fact, no one is sure what
tions later by the Romans.
language the Minoans used to communicate.
The people we now know
Around 1450 BCE the island of Crete and the Mi-
as ancient Greeks called
noans fell under the power of the Mycenaeans, who
themselves Hellenes, after
did speak Greek. The Mycenaeans lived on the main-
Helen of Troy. Hellenic
land of Greece, and their nation was called Mycenae.
means Greek.
They were excellent craftspeople: they built elaborate
underground tombs, giant defensive walls, and the Lion Gate that still
stands today. Like the Minoans, the Mycenaeans were traders. Wealth
came to them through trade with other Q:
What language did
lands, such as Egypt and northern Europe.
the Minoans speak?
They traded items such as animal skins
and oil for papyrus, a paper-like What language did the
material made from Mycenaeans speak?
plant fibers, and am-
ber, a fossilized resin used in making jewelry. But
unlike the peaceful Minoans, the Mycenaeans
were a warlike people, always battle-ready.
Not only did they defend their own people,
they actually went looking for trouble. The
most famous Mycenaean battle of all is one
you’ll hear more about later: the battle of Troy in
the Trojan War.
The Trojan Horse.
words
to know
archeologist: someone who studies the buildings, graves, tools, and other objects
of people who lived in the past to learn about their culture

Tools of the Ancient Greeks
Know Your Ancient Greeks
Helen
According to legend, Helen was the most beautiful woman in the world. She was
the daughter of the Greek god, Zeus, and Leda, a mortal queen. Men came
from all over ancient Greece hoping to marry the Spartan princess. Helen had
to obey the wishes of her mortal father, Tyndarecus, and she mar-
ried a man named Menelaus, king of Sparta.
The goddess Aphrodite had other plans for Helen. Aphrodite
was in debt to a man named Paris because he had chosen her as the
most beautiful of three women in a contest. In payment, Aphrodite
offered up the beautiful Helen to Paris, and made Paris so attractive
that Helen wouldn’t be able to refuse him. While Menelaus was away, Paris
charmed Helen. People debate whether Paris kidnapped Helen or she ran
away with him, but in any case, Menelaus was not happy.
When Paris and Helen reached Troy, they were married. Menelaus and
his brother, Agamemnon, followed with an army of men to retrieve Helen.
And that’s how the Trojan War began in about 1200 BCE.
The mighty Mycenaeans fell under attack between 1200 and 1150
BCE. It isn’t known exactly what happened, but some historians be-
lieve the Mycenaeans were attacked by the Dorian people from the
north. In any case, in less than one hundred years, the Mycenaeans
abandoned their civilization, and left few clues as to how they lived.
This time period (from about 1100 to 800 BCE) is known as the Greek
dark age because all written language and signs of culture completely
The Iliad and Odyssey, Democracy, art, science,
legends written about literature, and philosophy
the Trojan War flourish during this time
Mycenaeans come Greek culture flourishes and
Minoans fall under under attack and their 776 BCE spreads but ancient Greece
power of Mycenaeans culture disappears First Olympic Games gradually loses its independence
Classical
Dark Age Period
Mycenaean Period Archaic Period Hellenistic
1,600 1,100 800 480 323 Period 31
All dates are BCE and
approximate in many cases Trojan War fought 900 BCE Greek city-states spread throughout
between early Greeks Worship of traditional the Aegean and Mediterranean
and city of Troy Greek gods begins world during this period