1. Ancient Greece
By Dave Ow
(Archeologist)

2. Introduction
Ancient Greece is a civilization which existed near the Mediterranean sea over
2000 years ago. The ancient Greeks built great architecture, ate a variety of
foods and passed down many legacies to future societies.

3. Architecture
Greek architecture has inspired our architecture today. Their architecture
included houses made from solid stone and mud bricks. Country
farmhouses were big and had large spaces for goats and donkeys to graze.
Poor citizens lived in simple single-story houses. Houses in Greek cities
where all packed together. The number of rooms depended on rich the
family was. In every house, there was an alter for sacrifices to the gods.
Inside were tiny windows up in the walls. Children played in courtyard and
adults worked and gossiped in the sun. Walls were covered in colorful
hangings. The rooms were arranged around the central courtyard which
was the heart of the household. There was a room for women to keep their
looms and baskets of wool . Inside the house, it was full of couches ,
pillows and oil lamp . Another room , the Andron, was where the men of the
house entertained their guest. The house was protected from dirt and
bustle by strong gates and thick walls. The Greeks also built great temples
for the gods. The most famous temple is the Parthenon, which was built in
honor of Athena. Even today, most of it are still standing for people to visit.

4. Structure of Society
In Ancient Greece, your lifestyle depended on whether you were a
citizen or not. There were two groups of people in society: male
citizens who got to vote and everyone else (women , slaves and
foreigners!). Women married young (at 14 or 15) and the only time
Athenian women went out was for funerals and religious festivals or to
visit relatives and close friends. Athenian families usually had one or
two slaves who did household work . Well-educated slaves might tutor
the family’s children. Slaves also worked in the family business or on
the family farm. Non-citizens might come from outside of Greece, be
captured from other lands, or be children. Foreigners could become
merchants, run businesses and become quite rich. They could never
become citizens, though, no matter how long they stayed. Women
spent their lives at home running their households . Men voted at a
meeting called an assembly. Men voted for what they wanted by
raising their hands or dropping stones into pots. As you can see,
citizens had the most power in society in ancient Athens.

5. Food
There was a lot of variety in the foods of Ancient Greece. The people
ate a lot of fish, which were caught with boats, nets and fishing spears
in the Mediterranean Sea. The land was too dry for grazing cattle or
sheep so they ate small birds, such as thrushes and swallows for
meat. They also ate shellfish, squid and octopus. Other common
foods included
sausages, celery, lentils, radishes, beans, cakes, fruit, cheese, grapes
, figs, bread, lettuce, cabbage, dates, walnuts, olives, carrots, pine
nuts, parsnips, vine leaves and fennel . Wine was drunk at the
festivals for Dionysus, the god of wine. Pomegranates were the
symbol of death. The ancient Greeks used honey instead of sugar to
sweet their food. They ground corn to make flour and bread. They
flavored fish with herbs , oregano and bay. The greatest feasts were
called symposia, which were parties just for men.

6. Legacies
A Legacy is something that is passed down from the past. For example,
Theseus , the hero , who killed the minotaur is a famous Greek myth. In
Greece the government was ruled by a democracy and one of the
greatest leaders was Pericles. The Olympic Games is also an important
legacy which began for Zeus around 776 B.C .The first Olympic games
was in the green valley of Olympia. The participants in the Olympic
games were all naked. Our alphabet today evolved from the Greek
alphabet. Most of the planets in our solar system are named after the
Greek gods and goddess. There are still buildings standing today in
ancient Greece . The buildings in the USA are influenced by the Greek
architecture, particularly their columns. Philosophy , the law of
knowledge , was also first developed in Athens. People who lived in
Athens searched for answers. The Greeks were very good at sailing .
They used a ship called a Trireme to navigate the waters of the
Mediterranean sea . They sent out people to build colonies along the
shores of the lands near the trade routes. They drew great maps to help
them navigate. As you can see, the Greeks left many important legacies
for the future.

7. Conclusion
As now you can see the Ancient Greeks ate a lot of foods
, they builded many buildings , had man different levels of
society and had many legacies .

8. Reference list
Author Date Title
Dorling Kindersley 1992 Ancient Greece
Loverance And wood 1992 Ancient Greece
Macdonald Fiona 1995 How Would you Survive In
Greece?
Linday Bailey 1948 Adventures in Ancient
Greece
Date accessed Website
25/10/12
www.bbc.uk/school/primaryhistory/ancient_greeks