Classical Wisdom Litterae - February 2022

They are many other potential explanations, such as the Achaemenid Persian Empire, which was founded in the 6th century BC by Cyrus the Great. This huge empire, which encompassed approximately eight million kilometers and spanned three continents, would have brought Egypt and northern Greece, Macedonia, under the same umbrella. The Achaemenid Persian empire also instituted infrastructures, such as road networks, a postal system, and an official language throughout its territories. It even had a bureaucratic administration which was centralized under the emperor, as well as a large, professional army and civil services. Maybe the famous Egyptian memorials made their way on these newfound roads A standing, clothed female figure called a kore was also common, but Greek society did not permit the public display of female nudity until the 4th century BC. The lotus bud, which is repeated on the crown of the Phrasikleia Kore and held in her left hand, is an Egyptian funerary symbol used by the Greeks. Sailko/CC BY SA 3.0 to Greece’s fledging shores. It is, after all, in this time period when the first Archaic sculptures start to appear. Or maybe not. History is not an exact science. Dots that seem important might only stick out with hindsight, and connections between them weakened by improbabilities. All we do know, is that Early Greek art starts getting even more interesting from here on out! Achaemenid king killing a Greek hoplite. c. 500 BC–475 BC Marco Prins/Public Domain 59 Litterae | Issue 70