54-55. This era saw the transformation of the Greece society from a localized and city-states approach to a more extrovert and open culture mainly due to the cosmopolitan nature of the kings who ruled these regions. The Hellenistic states of Asia and Egypt were run by an occupying imperial elite of Greco-Macedonian administrators and governors propped up by a standing army of mercenaries and a small core of Greco-Macedonian settlers. Koine. [137][failed verification] Similarly complex devices were also developed by other Muslim engineers and astronomers during the Middle Ages. In doing so, he caused an unspoken rift in the Roman Empire. [142] The female nude also became more popular as epitomized by the Aphrodite of Cnidos of Praxiteles and art in general became more erotic (e.g., Leda and the Swan and Scopa's Pothos). Though some of these regions were not ruled by Greeks or even Greek speaking elites, certain Hellenistic influences can be seen in the historical record and material culture of these regions. The term Hellenistic culture has been defined as "Greek-like" culture because it was a mixture of Greek and other cultures. Their rulers established ruler cults in the manner of Hellenistic kings and often used Hellenistic royal epithets. Hellenistic Culture: Philosophy, Literature and Art Hellenistic philosophy went through a peculiar evolution—or retrogression, it might almost be better to say. [98] Alexander had planned to settle the eastern shores of the Persian Gulf with Greek colonists, and although it is not clear that this happened on the scale he envisaged, Tylos was very much part of the Hellenised world: the language of the upper classes was Greek (although Aramaic was in everyday use), while Zeus was worshipped in the form of the Arabian sun-god Shams. Antigonus II Gonatas invaded Thrace in the summer of 277 and defeated a large force of 18,000 Gauls. Though the Nabateans originally worshipped their traditional gods in symbolic form such as stone blocks or pillars, during the Hellenistic period they began to identify their gods with Greek gods and depict them in figurative forms influenced by Greek sculpture. The Sophists proclaimed the centrality of humanity and agnosticism; the belief in Euhemerism (the view that the gods were simply ancient kings and heroes), became popular. Alexander respected the local cultures he conquered, and allowed their customs to continue. Green, Peter; Alexander to Actium, the historical evolution of the Hellenistic age, page 117–118. Although Greece was a captured territory, however, Romans respected and indeed emulated many aspects of Greek culture. The rest of the army was made up of native troops. Cicero was educated in Athens and Mark Antony in Rhodes. See the range of examples of influences on page 167. This was primarily a result of the over-ambition of the Macedonian kings, and their unintended provocation of Rome, though Rome was quick to exploit the situation. Hellenistic culture was the world-wide Greek culture that followed the conquests of Alexander the Great. Despite their initial reluctance, the Successors seem to have later deliberately naturalized themselves to their different regions, presumably in order to help maintain control of the population. After the death of Pyrrhus, Epirus remained a minor power. The center of Hellenistic Culture was Alexandria (Egypt) The center of Hellenistic Culture was … the Tobiads). Hellenistic Geometers such as Archimedes (c. 287–212 BC), Apollonius of Perga (c. 262 – c. 190 BC), and Euclid (c. 325–265 BC), whose Elements became the most important textbook in Western mathematics until the 19th century AD, built upon the work of the Hellenic-era Pythagoreans. Hellenistic sculpture reflected a new awareness of personality and introspection by showing realism and human emotion, rather than the detached idealism evident in the art of the Classical period (5th and 4th centuries B.C.E.). [59][61][62][63] The Greek population of the cities who formed the dominant elite were reinforced by emigration from Greece. Bugh, Glenn R. (editor). Afterwards he invaded southern Greece, and was killed in battle against Argos in 272 BC. Athens was then occupied by Macedonian troops, and run by Macedonian officials. Antiochus III ("the Great") conducted several vigorous campaigns to retake all the lost provinces of the empire since the death of Seleucus I. The Attalids ruled Pergamon until Attalus III bequeathed the kingdom to the Roman Republic in 133 BC[70] to avoid a likely succession crisis. The league was conquered by Rome in the Third Macedonian War (171–168 BC). [121] The rise of philosophy and the sciences had removed the gods from many of their traditional domains such as their role in the movement of the heavenly bodies and natural disasters. [15] His Histories eventually grew to a length of forty books, covering the years 220 to 167 BC. Meanwhile, Lysimachus took over Ionia, Seleucus took Cilicia, and Ptolemy captured Cyprus. Undoubtedly Greek influence did spread through the Hellenistic realms, but to what extent, and whether this was a deliberate policy or mere cultural diffusion, have been hotly debated. greek culture blended with egyptian, persian, and indian influences. [93] The peoples around Pontic Olbia, known as the Callipidae, were intermixed and Hellenized Greco-Scythians. In 247 BC, following the death of Antiochus II Theos, Andragoras, the Seleucid governor of Parthia, proclaimed his independence and began minting coins showing himself wearing a royal diadem and claiming kingship. Art and architecture define a specific culture or community. Tension between Macedon and Rome increased when the young king of Macedon, Philip V, harbored one of the chief pirates, Demetrius of Pharos[103] (a former client of Rome). The renewal of the historiographical approach as well as some recent discoveries, such as the tombs of Vergina, allow a better appreciation of this period's artistic richness. The third war of the Diadochi broke out because of the growing power and ambition of Antigonus. civilization as a whole, this was never more apparent than during the second and. During the reign of Tigranes the Great (95–55 BC), the kingdom of Armenia reached its greatest extent, containing many Greek cities, including the entire Syrian tetrapolis. Commercial relations between different places improved in this period. Attalus severely defeated the Gauls, forcing them to confine themselves to Galatia. These cults were usually associated with a specific temple in honor of the ruler such as the Ptolemaieia at Alexandria and had their own festivals and theatrical performances. After holding out for one year under siege by Demetrius Poliorcetes (305–304 BC), the Rhodians built the Colossus of Rhodes to commemorate their victory. Influenced by Philinus of Cos (fl. In the Seleucid Empire, for example, this group amounted to only 2.5 percent of the official class.[114]. After the fall of the Seleucid dynasty, the Parthians fought frequently against neighbouring Rome in the Roman–Parthian Wars (66 BC – AD 217). [13] Following Droysen, Hellenistic and related terms, e.g. The Hellenistic period was characterized by a new wave of Greek colonization[5] which established Greek cities and kingdoms in Asia and Africa. Despite this, it is often considered a period of transition, sometimes even of decadence or degeneration,[4] compared to the enlightenment of the Greek Classical era. [134] It has recently been claimed that a celestial globe based on Hipparchus' star catalog sits atop the broad shoulders of a large 2nd-century Roman statue known as the Farnese Atlas. He was known as "the darling of Hellas". Carthage was a Phoenician colony on the coast of Tunisia. In 317 BC, Cassander invaded Macedonia, attaining control of Macedon, sentencing Olympias to death and capturing the boy king Alexander IV, and his mother. In fact, when discussing the capture of Greece, the Roman poet Horace (Epistles 2.1.156-157) wrote (8): Graecia capta ferum victorem cepit et artis intulit agresti Latio, Captive Greece captured its uncivilized conquerer and brought the arts to rustic Latium. Appreciating diverse cultures is important, as we are always confronted with many challenges when considering our own identity and how we interact with one another. In the field of philosophy, Diogenes Laërtius' Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers is the main source; works such as Cicero's De Natura Deorum also provide some further detail of philosophical schools in the Hellenistic period. [65] After the death of Ptolemy IV (204 BC), Antiochus took advantage of the weakness of Egypt to conquer Coele-Syria in the fifth Syrian war (202–195 BC). With a skilled navy to protect its trade fleets from pirates and an ideal strategic position covering the routes from the east into the Aegean, Rhodes prospered during the Hellenistic period. The Pharisees' rival sect, the Sadducees, welcomed the Greek influence. [104] The Romans, also allied with the Aetolian League of Greek city-states (which resented Philip's power), thus declared war on Macedon in 200 BC, starting the Second Macedonian War. Many cities maintained nominal autonomy while under the rule of the local king or satrap, and often had Greek-style institutions. The Thracians and Agrianes were widely used by Alexander as peltasts and light cavalry, forming about one fifth of his army. On Hellenistic religion see Graham Shipley. [59][61] These cities included newly founded colonies such as Antioch, the other cities of the Syrian tetrapolis, Seleucia (north of Babylon) and Dura-Europos on the Euphrates. The use of war elephants also became common. Some ethnic groups were known for their martial skill in a particular mode of combat and were highly sought after, including Tarantine cavalry, Cretan archers, Rhodian slingers and Thracian peltasts. The decisive engagement of the war came when Lysimachus invaded and overran much of western Anatolia, but was soon isolated by Antigonus and Demetrius near Ipsus in Phrygia. Some coins describe the Armenian kings as "Philhellenes". [20] Seleucus was forced to flee to Egypt and Antigonus was soon at war with Ptolemy, Lysimachus, and Cassander. While a few fragments exist, there is no complete surviving historical work that dates to the hundred years following Alexander's death. It was against this backdrop that the ascendancy of Macedon began, under king Philip II. Independent city states were unable to compete with Hellenistic kingdoms and were usually forced to ally themselves to one of them for defense, giving honors to Hellenistic rulers in return for protection. Settlements such as Ai-Khanoum, on trade routes, allowed Greek culture to mix and spread. [105] The final Greek resistance came in 88 BC, when King Mithridates of Pontus rebelled against Rome, captured Roman held Anatolia, and massacred up to 100,000 Romans and Roman allies across Asia Minor. The degree of influence that Greek culture had throughout the Hellenistic kingdoms was therefore highly localized and based mostly on a few great cities like Alexandria and Antioch. Hellenistic Culture is the blending of Greek, Persian, Indian, and Egyptian elements. As Egypt's first port city, it was the main grain exporter in the Mediterranean. HELLENISTIC LAW AND HELLENISTIC CULTURE ... For their part, the local legal cultures must have been influenced by the Greek element entrenched in an Egyptian or Oriental environment. [82] Antiochus IV Epiphanes sacked Jerusalem and looted the Temple in 169 BC after disturbances in Judea during his abortive invasion of Egypt. Impressive scientific innovations were made in Alexandria where the Greek Eratosthenes computed the circumference of the earth, … [17] The generals who had supported Perdiccas were rewarded in the partition of Babylon by becoming satraps of the various parts of the empire, but Perdiccas' position was shaky, because, as Arrian writes, "everyone was suspicious of him, and he of them".[18]. The period of Hellenistic influence, when taken as a whole, constitutes one of the most creative periods in the history of religions. While victorious in the field, it seems Antiochus came to realise that there were advantages in the status quo (perhaps sensing that Bactria could not be governed from Syria), and married one of his daughters to Euthydemus's son, thus legitimising the Greco-Bactrian dynasty. Perdiccas himself would become regent (epimeletes) of the empire, and Meleager his lieutenant. A number of the best-known works of Greek sculpture belong to the Hellenistic period, including Laocoön and his Sons, Venus de Milo, and the Winged Victory of Samothrace. In 352 BC he annexed Thessaly and Magnesia. New siege engines were developed during this period. Philip II was a strong and expansionist king and he took every opportunity to expand Macedonian territory. are collectively known as the Hellenistic period (1). In Asia, Eumenes was betrayed by his own men after years of campaign and was given up to Antigonus who had him executed. Apollonius and Callimachus spent much of their careers feuding with each other. The popular philosopher Epicurus promoted a view of disinterested gods living far away from the human realm in metakosmia. While the culture of ancient Greece was disseminated East and West, the Greeks adopted elements of eastern culture and religion, especially Zoroastrianism and Mithraism. The farther away from the Mediterranean and the lower in social status, the more likely that a colonist was to adopt local ways, while the Greco-Macedonian elites and royal families usually remained thoroughly Greek and viewed most non-Greeks with disdain. found their followings and influenced the succeeding generations. From there, he created a new empire which expanded to include much of Alexander's near eastern territories. Prag & Quinn (editors). Macedonian and Hellenistic monarchs were expected to lead their armies on the field, along with a group of privileged aristocratic companions or friends (hetairoi, philoi) which dined and drank with the king and acted as his advisory council. In judging something as easy or difficult, our attitude and our motivation levels play a key role. It was not until Cleopatra VII that a Ptolemaic ruler bothered to learn the Egyptian language of their subjects. A whole class of petty officials, tax farmers, clerks and overseers made this possible. There were cultural conflicts, and separateness, and limits to transferability. However, William Woodthorpe Tarn, between World War I and World War II and the heyday of the League of Nations, focused on the issues of racial and cultural confrontation and the nature of colonial rule. While the Hellenistic world incorporated a number of different people, Greek thinking, mores, and way of life dominated the public affairs of the time. Antigonus fled for Greece, and then, together with Antipater and Craterus (the satrap of Cilicia who had been in Greece fighting the Lamian war) invaded Anatolia. Antigonus II ruled until his death in 239 BC. Massalia was also the local hegemon, controlling various coastal Greek cities like Nice and Agde. Stanley M. Burstein, Walter Donlan, Jennifer Tolbert Roberts, and Sarah B. Pomeroy. The motif of deceptively realistic naturalism in art (aletheia) is reflected in stories such as that of the painter Zeuxis, who was said to have painted grapes that seemed so real that birds came and pecked at them. It became a center of culture and commerce, its coins were widely circulated and its philosophical schools became one of the best in the Mediterranean. [25] A large number of the Macedonian population had also been resettled abroad by Alexander or had chosen to emigrate to the new eastern Greek cities. Types of Hellenistic culture has been defined as `` Greek-like '' culture it. 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