Preface and Acknowledgments Part 1: Introduction 1. Introduction What Did the Greeks Contribute to Modern Society? Part 2: Greek Civilization 2. Location of Greek Civilization and Environmental Setting The Greek Mainland Crete Cyclades Asia Minor's West Coast Cyprus 3. Historical and Chronological Setting The History of Greek Studies Sources for the Study of Greek History Chronology 4. Origins, Growth, and Decline of Greek Civilization Crete The Mainland The Dark Age The Eighth-Century Renaissance and the Archaic Age The Classical Period--From the Persian Invasions to the Death of Alexander The Rise and Fall of the 5. Economics Palace Economics of the Aegean Bronze Age Trade in the Late Bronze Age The Dark Age The Early Emporia Archaic and Classical Greece 6. Social Organization and Social Structure Divisions Unions Groups 7. Politics Minoan Crete: Kings? Queens? Priestesses? Priests? The Dark Age and "Epic" Kingship The Archaic Age: Synoecism, Aristocracy, and Tyranny Forms of Rule in the Classical Period: Oligarchy and Democracy Politics beyond the Polis Alexander and the Hellenistic Monarchies Ancient Greek Law 8. Religion and Ideology Minoan Religion Mycenaean Religion Greek Religion in the Historical Periods 9. Material Culture Architecture Sculpture Pottery Clothing Arms and Armor The Art of Death 10. Intellectual Accomplishments Literature Science Philosophy Part 3: Current Assessments 11. Major Controversies and Future Directions in the Study of Greek Civilization Excavation Linear A Minoan Deities The Dark Age Non-Athenian Culture Foreign Relations Women in Ancient Greece Glossary Chronology Resources for Further Study Index About the Author

This authoritative book surveys the full extent of the culture that gave us the Acropolis, the Illiad, and The Republic. Stephanie Lynn Budin introduces general readers to the 3000 years of ancient Greek civilization - its art, literature, politics, religion, war, and empire - addressing many topics usually covered only in specialized works. Here, for example, are abundant primary sources, and a guide to reading the ancient script known as Linear B. Here, too, is a rich collection of illustrations, drawings, maps, and photographs, including detailed renderings of Knossos, Akritiri, and a host of archeological sites, showing them as they appeared originally and as they are now. Drawing on the latest interpretations of artifacts, texts, and other evidence, The Ancient Greeks takes readers inside the process of discovery, and provides a full history of the study of classical Greece, from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance right up to the present. The result is an ideal guide to one of the world's most revered cultures of the past.