1. The City-State and Early Greek Law
Ancient GREECE
The City-State
and
Early Greek Law

2. The Greek Polis (showing larger regional dialect areas)

4. Zagora on
island of
Andros
c. 700 BCE

6. Corinth (temple of Apollo)

7. hoplites
Hoplites
in a phalanx

8. Spread of the Greek polis: Age of colonization c. 750-600

9. Panhellenic institutions: Delphi, Oracle of Apollo

12. The Pythia

13. Society of the polis: women

14. Society of the polis: slaves Delphi: manumission inscriptions

15. Polis examples of early laws
First written laws: legendary lawgivers c. 650 BCE
Earliest found: inscription from Dreros (city on Crete)
Chios: a popular assembly
Isonomia, isegoria
“history”-writing only began in 5th C BCE

16. Curses of the city-state of Teios 5th century BCE
1. If anyone makes harmful spells/poisions [pharmaka dêlêtêria] against the Teian state or against individuals of it, he is to die, himself and his family with him.
2. If anyone obstructs the importation of grain into Teian territory by any means, be it by land or sea, or thrusts it back once it has been imported, he is to die, himself and his family with him.
If anyone rebels against a Teian examiner or chief executive, he is to die, himself and his family with him.
5. If anyone hereafter, being chief executive in Teos or in Teian territory kills betrays the city and territory of the Teians or the men on the island or in Teian waters or hereafter betrays the fort in Aroe or robs on the highway or harbors highway robbers or commits piracy or deliberately harbors pirates engaged in the plunder of Teian land or waters or deliberately conspires with Greeks or barbarians to damage the Teian state, he is to die, himself and his family with him..

17. Curses from Teios, cont’d
6 If anyone in office does not perform this curse at the statue of Dynamis when the games are convened at the Anthesteria or the festival of Heracles or that of Zeus, he is to be the object of the curse.
7 If anyone breaks the inscription on which this curse has been written, or chips off the letters, or rubs them smooth, he is to die, himself and his family with him.

19. “Lycurgan” social system
citizens = Spartans (Spartiates), “equals” or “peers”
9000 equal plots of land. No private property
No money, no trades or arts or crafts. xenophobia.
Dine in common mess
Age 7: training by state  a professional army
“secret service”
Age 20: marry but live mostly in barracks (see Plut., Lyc. 24)

20. Reshaping human nature through laws? THE LAW (Gov’t, Politics) EDUCATES. This is money at Sparta. Iron spits

22. “galled with great burdens like asses, bringing to their lords under grievous necessity a half of all the fruit of the soil and making lamentation for their lords, both themselves and their wives, whenever one was overtaken with the dolorous fate of Death.” – Tyrtaeus (Spartan poet 600s BCE)

23. “Young Spartans” by E. Degas (1860)- women freer (somewhat)