The Archaic Age is characterized by a Greek spirit of unity not quite strong enough to unite the cities politically, but definitely strong enough to remind them of their common bond. This busy time has been described as the Age of Aristocracies, the Age of Expansion, the beginning of the Western literary tradition, and the Age of Law-Givers. Notably, there are no major wars in this age; instead, people are busy developing culture: Panhellenic festivals, theater, law codes, literature, democracy, and early Greek science and philosophy all trace their roots to the Archaic Age. Age of Aristocracies The Archaic Age is best known as the Age of Aristocracies, as the developing poleis (city-states) reject the old-style monarchies of the Mycenaean Age. It’s also marked by the development of Panhellenic centers, one of the first signs that Greece was emerging from the preceding Dark Age, when the destruction of Mycenaean civilization had left Greeks isolated from one another. The Panhellenic (“All-Greece”) Festival at Olympia, honoring Zeus, was one of the first signs that Greeks were reconnecting, drawing competitors from across the Greek world to compete for their home city’s honor. In 582 BC, the Pythian Games were established at Delphi in honor of Apollo; in 573 BC, the Nemean Games in honor of Zeus at Nemea; and around the 560s BC, the Isthmian Games in honor of Poseidon at Isthmia. Age of Expansion: 750-550 BC From 750-550 BC, Greek civilization revitalized. Facing rapid population growth and a lack of arable land, Greeks set out to found new colonies: east to the Ionian coast of Asia Minor, south to the shores of North Africa, and west into Europe (Marseilles began as a Greek colony, and Sicily and southern Italy were so thickly settled they became known as Magna Graecia, “Big Greece”). Among these was Paestum (originally Poseidonia), founded by colonists from Achaea in honor of Poseidon, still home to some of the most striking Archaic temples in existence today. The Western Literary Tradition Begins with Poetry The Western literary tradition begins with Homer and Hesiod, dating to the mid-8th century BC. Homer codified and wrote down the stories of the Trojan War, told orally for centuries since the war itself (c. 1250 BC), in the Iliad and Odyssey; Hesiod’s didactic poetry (Theogony and Works and Days) links everyday farming life with the world of the gods. Both authors look back to the earlier, unified world of the Mycenaean (Bronze) Age. The Archaic Age, by contrast, saw the development of distinct, individual city-states, and this spirit of individuality paved the way for a new literary form: the lyric poem, which flourished along the newly colonized Asia Minor coast in the late 7th century BC (Sappho’s birth is estimated around 610 BC). Where epic poetry reflects the totality of a culture, lyric poetry is concerned with personal sentiment – love, grief, friendship – offering a new, personal voice in Greek literature. Age of Law-Givers, 621-594 BC The last half of the 7th century BC is known as the Age of Law-Givers. Draco’s law code in Athens (621 BC) turned tradition and custom into written law for the first time; though harsh, it aimed to reduce the gap between rich and poor. Poor Athenians continued to suffer at the hands of unscrupulous landowners, however, setting the stage for serious reform. In 594 BC, Solon – one of the traditional Seven Sages of Greece – was given power to redistribute wealth. He cancelled or reduced debts, restored land to farmers who had become sharecroppers, encouraged the production and export of olive oil, attracted foreign craftsmen with the promise of citizenship, and required fathers to teach their sons a trade (helping launch the Athenian pottery industry, whose wares are found across the Mediterranean and beyond). Solon effectively created a merchant class and established the first citizen-manned courts, giving ordinary Athenians experience in self-government. Age of Tyrants in Athens, 561-510 BC Peisistratus became Tyrant of Athens – in this era, “tyrant” simply meant sole ruler, not necessarily a cruel one. Under his rule the city prospered: he built an aqueduct, redistributed confiscated land, and helped poor farmers, while also pursuing the monumental building projects characteristic of tyrannical rule, including the Temple of Olympian Zeus (not completed until Hadrian’s reign, 700 years later). Peisistratus ruled until 528 BC, when his sons Hippias and Hipparchus succeeded him. The Institution of Theater, 534 BC One of Peisistratus’ lasting achievements was founding the institution of theater in Athens. Thespis won the first competition of the new Great Dionysia festival, featuring tragic drama in honor of Dionysus, performed in an early theater on the south slope of the Acropolis. Around this time, the tradition of publicly reciting Homer at the Panathenaic Festival also began – an early expression of the democratic idea that culture should be available to everyone, not just the elite. The Beginnings of Democracy, 510 BC In 510 BC, following the assassinations of Hippias and Hipparchus, Cleisthenes took power and reformed the Athenian constitution, diluting aristocratic power. His reforms established the Council of 500, the Board of Ten Generals (Strategoi), and a popular court system, replacing the aristocratic Council of the Areopagus (which continued to preside only over murder cases). Cleisthenes drew on the Greek love of both competition and individuality, creating new tribes composed of members from three different regions (inland, coast, and city) to replace old aristocratic tribal loyalties, ensuring no single group – merchants, sailors, or farmers – dominated. Each deme (local district) retained control over its own affairs while contributing citizens to the new Assembly. By the end of the 6th century BC, Athens stood ready for its next transformation: from hereditary monarchy in the Bronze Age, through aristocratic rule in the Archaic Age, to the coming Age of Democracy – the Golden Age of Athens – though first, Greece would have to survive the Persian Wars.