The Greek and Roman gods

The Greeks and Romans had many similarities and contrasts. One area in which this took place is in their gods.




It was in the late 4th Century B.C. that Roman and Greek mythology began to intertwine. The Greeks and the Romans were very different people at this point in time. The Romans were war based and worked on expanding their territory. The Greeks, however, were art based. They created beautiful statues that held much importance. By the 2nd Century B.C. the Romans made significant progress in conquering a large portion of Greece. Here their different life styles began to interact and intermix. Before long the gods of theses religions influenced each other and were accepted. This is how we get two different religions with the same gods.

Both of the major and minor gods were in both mythologies. Such as
Erinyes or Furiae, Eris or Discordia, Eros or Cupid, Fates or Morae, Graces or Charities, Helios or Sol, Hours or Horae, Pan or Faunus, and Tyche or Fortuna.


"Much of the Roman mythology was barrowed from the Greeks. But while the stories remain essentially the same, the names have been changed. The Romans also have myths of their own, completely separate from thoses of the Greeks." (Bolton 245)



The Greeks and Romans shared the same stories, but used different names. Such as both religions had the twelve Olympians, but each had different names. The twelve Olympians in Greek mythology are: Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Hestia, Hera, Ares, Athena, Apollo, Aphrodite, Hermes, Artemis and Hephaestus. The twelve Olympians in Roman mythology are: Jupiter,Neptune, Pluto, Vesta, Juno, Mars, Minerva, Apollo, Venus, Mercury, Diana and Vulcan.









Many of the Roman and Greek gods have the same character, but with different names. One example is the Greek god Zeus. In Roman mythology he is known as Jupiter. However, in both religions he is the lord of the sky, gods, thunder,and Rain. He is also the known as the cloud-gatherer. This shows that both saw him as the same person with the same characteristics, but just used a different name to refer to him.


The gods were like humans, but more magnificent. There superhuman qualities, of courage, skill, and intelligence, were for people to imitate. But these wounderful super beings also fell in love and fought wach other. Even then, they did not suffer pain, or die, as they did not have blood in their bodies, but divine ichor. (Hull 7)



The Greeks and Romans also believed that the same gods created them, but agian just used different names. They thought of their creation as: In the beginning, there was only Chaos and Eros. Gaea, the earth, Erebus, the underworld, and Night emerged from the mixing of these two, and Gaea gave birth to Uranus, the heavens, who then became her mate, and Oceanus, the oceans. Gaea and Uranus together produced the twelve Titans, three Cyclopes, and three hundred-handed giants, or Hecatoncheires, but Uranus feared his children as a threat to his throne, and bade Gaea take them back into her womb. Gaea loved her children, however, and hated Uranus' tyranny. She supplied her youngest child, Chronos, with a sickle, and told him to kill his father with it. He cut off Uranus' genitals, and these fell into the sea and from them were created Aphrodite, the goddess of love, and the Fates, the Giants, and the Meliai nymphs. Chronos succeeded Uranus on the throne and married his sister Rhea. He freed the Titans and shared his kingdom among them, but imprisoned the Cyclopes and the Hecatoncheires in Tartarus, a fiery pit much like Hell. Chronos and Rhea had six children, who would become six of the gods of the Greek pantheon. Chronos, however, was similarly afraid of his children, and decided to swallow him. Rhea plotted to keep the youngest, Zeus, out of Chronos' way, and gave her husband a rock swaddled in cloth to swallow instead. Zeus was raised on the island of Crete and grew into a handsome youth. Eventually he slipped Chronos a drink to vomit up his other five siblings, and they and Prometheus, one of the Titans, fought and defeated Chronos and the Titans for power. Zeus ruled the earth and married his sister Hera; the gods together created humans to entertain and amuse them as they watched from their home on Mount Olympus.






These are the simularities and contrasts of the Roman and Greek gods.







Bolton, Lesley. The Everything Classical Mythology Book. F+W Publications, Inc., Ma, USA, 2002.



Hull, Robert. Religion & the gods. Sea-toSea Publications, Minnesota, Ca, 2007.

The Art of Ancient Rome

The art of Ancient Rome was greatly influenced by Etruscan art. This also meant that it had a close relationship with Greek art. Roman art really starts to evolve in 500 B.C. with the beginning of the Roman Republic. The Romans were very interested in portraiture; that is making statues that replicate one particular person. The Greeks, however, were interested in ideals, while the Roman were interested in reality. They wanted to show people how they really were instead of making them look as if they were gods.

In about 200 B.C. the Romans conquered Greece and began to imitate their art style. During their conquest in Greece, they looted town and brought the art home. They also brought sculptors home to serve as slaves. The first Roman statues were created in the Roman Republic. Another type of Roman art was painting on plaster. These paintings were painted on a wall, that was made up of three layers of plaster and three layers of a special coating. The colors were applied when the plaster was still wet. This made the amazing paintings to last for the ages to come. The Romans also painted on canvas. These paintings were often of famous battles. They were put in temples or public buildings. Unfortunately none of these paintings have withstood time.

"By the time of the empire, there was a great demand for scullptures to honor the emperor and other important people. The sculptures were put up in public quares, halls, and temples, and some were even placed on top of columns. The idea was to show the power of the empire. Many statues were made of the first emperor, Augustus, and most made him look like a young hero." (Morris 7)

Art was often in the houses of the uper class Romans. They would have beautiful floors covered with mosacis. Mosacis are pictures made with thousands of tiny tiles. There would also be paintings on their walls. (Minnis 19)

Another type of Rome art is architecture. One example is the Triumphal Arch of Tibias. It was made of many different types of archs and columns. The triumphal arch used relief sculpture and inscription to carry its historic and commemorative messages. The Romans also built the Colosseum and the Pantheon. The Colosseum was originally four stories high. It had a total spectator capacity of 45,000-55,000. The Amphitheater is built of travertine outside, and of tufa and brick in the interior. The main pedestals were built of marble blocks. This shows how artistic the Romans were.

The art of Rome in the first and second centuries mainly continued to imitate the traditional styles of Greek art. In the third century, however, many new ideas were established in Roman art. The first new style in Roman art was the taste for bloodshed in art. This was a result of the wars with the Germans in the north. One example is the column of Marcus Aurelius. In it there were many senes of violence and bloodshed. Second, there was an increasing use of the drill, rather than the chisel. Even thou it was easier and faster, it gave the art a different look. The third way in which Rome art changed is the new concern for the soul. This was because there were more and more Christians in the Roman Empire. In art, this shows up as a lot of emphasis on the eyes, which were thought to be the windows to the soul, often with the eyes looking upward to heaven, or toward the gods.

As Rome expanded it took its art with it. It was excepted by many different peoples and its influence and heritage survives in all branches of the arts today.

Minnis, Ivan. You Are in Ancient Rome, Raintree, Inc.; Chicago, Illinois, 2005.

Morris, Ting. Arts and Crafts of Ancient Rome. Smart Apple Media; North Man kato, 2007.

Final Questions

1) The most prominent building in a Sumerian city-state was?
-----a) zigguart *
-----b) city dwelling
-----c) defense tower
-----d) public building
2) The Sumerian city-states contained how many major social groups?
-----a) two
-----b) three *
-----c) four
-----d) five
3) What city-state was north of Sumerian?
-----a) Marathon
-----b)Thermopylae
-----c) Akkadians *
-----d) Issus
4) What was the climate like in Mesopotamia?
-----a) ferocious floods
-----b) heavy downpours
-----c) scorching winds
-----d) all of the above *
5) How many laws were in the Code of Hammurabi?
-----a) 181
-----b) 282
-----c) 288
-----d) 188
6) The Sumerians created a writing system that:
-----a) was picture-like
-----b) was stick-like
-----c) was wedge shaped *
-----d) didn't create a writing system
7) The Sumerians made outstanding achievements in which of the following?
-----a) astronomy
-----b) mathematics
-----c) astronomy and mathematics *
-----d) none of the above
8) The process of mummification was run by which of the following?
-----a) the pharaoh
-----b) slaves
-----c) workers
-----d) priests *
9) The largest of the pyramids were built by which of the following?
-----a) king Khufu *
-----b) Akhenaten
-----c) Ramses II
------d) Alexander the Great
10) Explain the social classes of the Sumerian city-state?
-----Nobles - royal and priestly officials and their families.
-----Commoners - workers of the palace and temple estates and farmers, merchants, fishers, and craftspeople.
-----Slaves - people who belonged to palace officials, who used than mostly in building projects.

The Ancient Greeks influenced future generations in the area of architect very much. Some of the examples of this are in Ancient Rome and in modern society. The Greeks influenced many cultures and there are many architectual iteams to show it.

The architecture of Ancient Rome were adopted from Greece in the sense of relation between there issues and styles during their era. This can be seen in the Roman tricliniums as a place of dinning manner. The Romans were also similar in the way that they were in debt to their Etruscan neighbors and those who supplied them with a wealth of knowledge esential for future architectural solutions.

The Etruscan People

One way inwhich the Greeks influenced the Romans archatectually is in AD 330. The Roamns moved their capital to a Greek city; Constantinople. (Powell, 49)

As Greek became a main influence in architecture for Rome, the Romans took Greece's ideas and their own and created the arch and the dome. This is used to this day. This is another way inwhich the Greeks influenced Rome and Greece.

During the seventh century B.C.E. the Greeks had spread out from their ealier boundries. In this time period the Romans had begun to move away from the Etruscan rule. The Romans then came in contact with the Greeks; who were to the southeast. After the Second Punic War Rome became increasinly involved with Greece. The Romans started to import marble and show Greek architiecture in their designs; such as the Temple of Portunus. This is how the Greek architecture influenced Rome.

The Greek architecture also influences modern society. One example is in many of the buildings of Washington D.C. They have colums with the destinctive greece design; sucj as the Dorid and Ionic. Even the White House has pilars that can be reconized for there Greek influence. The Greeks also influenced America in the simple sense of building houses. Withut the Greeks our country would look very different.

The Greek architecture was exepted by the Americans bcause they found it easier to build than the Roman style. This shows that because the Greeks made simple architecture future generations took to it and used in in their own creative text.

The Greeks used simpler architectural designs than the Romans. Two of them were the Doric and Ionic. The Doric style is sturdy, and its top is plain. This style was used in mainland Greece and the colonies in southern Italy and Sicily. The Ionic style is thinner and more elegant. Its capital is decorated with a scroll-like design. This style was used in eastern Greece and islands. (Pearson, 27)

These are a few of the many civilizations inwhich the Greek architecture influenced. The Greeks influenced many future cultures and changed many lives.

Pearson, Anne. Eyewitness Ancient Greece. DK Publishing, New York, 1992.

Powell, Anton. Atlas for Young People: Ancient Greece. Lionheart Books, Oxford, 1989.

Art of Ancient Greece

The art of ancient Greece was so amazing that it had an effect throughout the ages. Many of the styles have been copied or reproduced. We often look back on Greece art and use it to produce today's art and architecture.


On of the arts of ancient Greece was architecture. An example is the many temples they built. The temples had a religious purpose as well as political purpose. The Greeks developed three architectural systems, called orders, each with their own distinctive proportions and detailing. The Greek orders are: Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian. The Doric style was used in mainland Greece and the colonies in southern Italy and Sicily. The ionic style was fancier and was found in eastern Greece and the islands. The most elaborate of the three was the Corinthian style which was often seen on Roman temples.

Another of Greek's art was sculptures. One of the most important sculptures is the Charioteer of Delphi. It represents the balance between stylized geometric representation and idealized realism, thus capturing the moment in history when western civilization progressed forward to define its own foundations that braced it for the future.

Another of the Greek's sculptures is the Kouros. It was a man in a frontal pose with their left leg moved forward, their arms close to their bodies touching the side of their thighs.

Another of the Greek art was painting. They painted detailed pictures on the vases. The vases changed from place to place and from time to time. (Powell,80)

There were four periods of Greek art: the Geometric Period, the Archaic Period, the Classical Period and the Hellenistic Period. During the Geometric Period large-scale ceramic vessels were produced as grave markers. The first vessels had small portions filled with simple stick-figure people, often attending a funeral. The Archaic Period had two major types of art: vase-painting and sculpture. The vase painting was diverted from the Geometric Period and was the primary technique of Archaic vase-painting; It was known as the black-figure vase-painting technique. The statues of this time were made out of bronze and marble. They were often created for temples. The last Greece art period was the Classical Period. . In vase-painting, the technique changes from black-figures to red-figures, where the backgrounds are now painted in black, and the natural color of the red clay now represents flesh tones. Bronze sculpture was another major art form of Classical Greece. During this time another major event was the building of the Parthenon of Athens. These were the periods of Ancient Greece's art. The Hellenistic Period was the time in which Greek art was extended to their lands. The growth of violence was also extended in this time.

During these periods. there were no sharp changes in artistic style. There, however, was smooth changes between the art periods of Ancient Greece.

One effect of the changes in the periods of art was that the ancient greek artist were learning new techniques and addressing new problems. (Garland,199)

The Ancient Greek art gave birth to the western classical art. It also took influence in the Eastern civilizations and the new religion of Orthodox Christianity in the Byzantine era and absorbed Italian and European ideas during the period of Romanticism.

This is the basis for Ancient Greek art. It was very extraordinary and influenced many people and country in the years that followed.

Garland, Robert. Daily Life of the Ancient Greeks, Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. United States, 1998.

Powell, Anton. Ancient Greece, Library of Congress Cataloging Publications, England, 1989.

Alexander the Great's most noteworthy accomplishment

Alexander the Great's most noteworthy accomplishment in my opinion was the conquering of the countries from Greece to western India. In this he grew a well-built army and by using his great brillance suceeded in many military advances.

Before Alexander the Great became a great conqueror he was a boy. He was son of Phillip 2 and Oympias. His father was king of Macedonia. As a child he was tutored by Aristotle in the subjects of rhetoric, literature, science, and medicine. At the early age of eighteen, Alexander had led a group of cavalry in the battle of Chaeronea against the two Greek cities-states Athens and Thebes. This helped his father win this battle and gain control over much of Greece. This shows that Alexander started his military training and practice at a young age. Phillip 2 decided to have a war with the Persians, but before he had the chance he was assassinated in 336B.

Soon after his father's death Alexander took the throne. Once becoming king he quickly executed his father's killer and all who opposed him. Then Along with the throne Alexander also received a highly trained army who were organized around the units of pikemen armed with sarissas, fourteen foot long spears. Alexander assembled thirty thousand pikemen, infantrymen, and engineers. He also assembled five thousand cavalry to carry out his father's plan to invade Asia Minor.

Alexander the Great continued his military passion for the rest of his life. Soon after he assembled his army he sacked Thebes. Then he started his conquest of Asia; this is when the battle of Granicus took place. In 333B.C. Alexander then defeats Darius at the battle of Issus, and captures the Family of Darius. He later lays siege to Tyre and enters Egypt. This is when he founded Alexandria in Egypt. In the same year he defeats Darius at the battle of Guagamela, takes Mesapotamia, and enters Babylon, Persepolis, and Pasargadae. In the next three years he burned Persepolis and campaigned in Sogdiana and Bactria. He started his plan be entering India and crossing the Indus River. Here he wins the battle of Hydaspes. He then sails down the Indus River to the India Ocean. In 325 B.C. Alexander returns through Baluchistan and suffers great hardships. In the next two years Alexander received a fever and died from it in 232 B.C. He died at the age of 32. This is a short biography of Alexander's military life. This is one of the reasons why Alexander's military life was his most noteworthy of his accomplishments.

Another one of the reasons why his military life was his most noteworthy accomplishment is the fact that his father created the military phalanx. The phalanx was a flexible unit well drilled and able to take on a variety of formations. Alexander extended his creation and used it in his long military life. The phalanx usually consisted of 16 men on a side, 256 men in each unit, always and exclusively Macedonian. They were armed with the sarissa and The real strength of the phalanx was its many formations and maneuvers. While the square was the usual formation, it could form a line or wedge or other shapes. The soldiers were trained to respond to flag and trumpet signals. No army in the Western world in the 4th century was its equal. This shows that Alexander had military brilliance in his blood and had a great military teacher in his childhood.

" Philip II was Alexander's father and Alexander inherited Philip's desire to conquer the Persians and to rule as much of the world as possiable." (Morgan, 34)

Another reason why this was Alexander's most noteworthy accomplishments is for the reason that he was passionate about it. You can see this in his bravery. He was always at the front and always in the thick of battle. He also was wounded in many battles, such as: wounded in neck and head at the Granicus River, the shoulder at Gaza, and had his lung pierced by an arrow in India. This hows that he would not give up and keep fighting. Alexander was also more than once was the first man over the wall at the storming of a city. For this reason he never lost a battle and was thought to be invincible by his men and his enemies. All of these factors created an army that simply could not be stopped. Its accomplishments eclipsed anything that had ever been done, Alexander and his Macedonians entered into legend.

"Alexander had spent almost almost all of his 13-year reign at war. In the process, he destroyed forever the power of the Greek sity-states. However wherever he went on his campaigns through Asia, he created city-states on the Greek model. . . He is said to have founded some 70 cities all together." (Ackroyd ,120)

These are a few of the many reasons why I believe that Alexander the Great's most noteworthy accomlishment is his military strength and many won battles that support it.

Ackroyd, Peter. Ancient Greece. DK Publishing, Inc., New York, 2005.

Morgan, Nicola. People Who Made History in Ancient Greece. Raintree Steck-Vaughn Publishers, New York, 2001.

The Era of Pericles

The Era of Pericles was very critical for the Greeks. This was because many significant events occurred during this time. Some of them where the Athens became the most splendid of Greek city-states, both politically and culturally with its fleet, making allies with other city-states in the Delian League against the enemy Persia, and with Pericles many great building projects took place.

Pericles was the son of Xanthippus and Agariste. His father was a military leader in the Persian Wars. His father was also victorious at the battle at Mycale. Pericles came from a high class family and received a good education.

During his childhood he was taught by many great teachers. Some of them include: the philosopher Anaxagoras as well as Zenon of Elea. Pericles started as a statesman; and was a supported of democracy. He wanted all the citizens of Athens to take part in politics.

One of the important events Pericles did for Greece was the building of the Acropolis structures. The Acropolis had temples and was also behind the Pnyx, the place where the assembly of the people gathered. The building of these gave many Athenians jobs. This was one of the importance's of Pericles and his era.

The structures on the acropolis is called the Parthenon. When the Persian invaded Athens in 480 BCE, they destroyed its acropolis. Thus Pericles rebuilt a new temple called the Parthenon on the ashes of the old site in 450 BCE. (Ackroyd, 71)

During the Pericles era he also changes many things. One of them were the changing of the Delian League, a collection of city-states bound together with Athens to stand against Persia, into an Athenian Empire. He also collected annual payments from the member states to maintain a fleet of ships, and the money left over was used to improve Athens. These were a few of the many achievements of Pericles during his era.

As leader of the ruling Democratic party, Pericles changed many aspects of Athenian life. He introduced payments for members of the Assembly, so people no longer needed to be rich to play a part in politics. He spread power more widely, although women and slaves still had no power.

(Morgan, 23)

Pericles died from a plauge that swept over Athenens. The historian wrote, "...The plague seized Pericles, not with sharp and violent fits, but with a dull lingering distemper, wasting the strength of his body and undermining his noble soul. "

This is several of the many accomplishments Pericles made during his lifetime. He changed the city-state Athens and the Athenian lives dramatically.

Ackroyd, Peter, Ancient Greece. DK Publishing, Inc., New York, 2005.

Morgan, Nicola, People Who Made History In: Ancient Greece. Raintree Steck-Vaughn Publishers, New York, 2001.