Ancient Greece Part 1

Location and place: Aegean Sea Balkan Peninsula, Europe, Asia Minor Mediterranean Sea Black Sea Athens, Sparta, Troy Macedonia Crete

Ancient Greece Notes The Minoans: 2500 BCE Lived on Crete Flourished by sea trade Had braided hair, jewelry, and colorful murals The myth of the Minotaur came from here

Mycenaens 2000 BCE Kingdoms built on hilltops and included royal fortresses Traded w/ Minoans, adapted their culture The Greek speaking Dorian destroyed them around 1100 BC causing a “dark age” Ionians reintroduced culture around 750 BC

Economic and social development Agriculture (limited arable land) Commerce and the spread of Hellenic culture Gradual shift from barter to money economy (coins)

Political development Mountainous terrain helped and hindered the development of city-states. Greek cities were designed to promote civic and commercial life. Colonization related to overpopulation and the search for arable land.