Thracian gladiators were one of the four most common gladiatorial groups in Ancient Rome. They evolved during the 2nd century BC when the Romans discovered the race of warriors in the northern Greece region of Thrace. 
The armor of the gladiators was used to helped draw the crowds to the games and their helmets became works of art. Thracian helmets changed a great deal over the centuries, especially during the reign of Emperor Tiberius, which allows them to be dated depending on their features. Earlier helmets have no visor, leaving the eyes exposed to the attacker while the cheeks are covered with plates, and the narrow rim protecting the face like a hat was only slightly curved. On the other hand, more recent helmets contain a grill covering the eye, a wider rim and a more covered neck piece, as shown in the photo.
What historians typically designate as the ancient Greek period are the years between 1000 B.C. and 323 B.C. when Alexander the Great died or through the 3rd century C.E., when the Christian era began. The legacy of Greek civilization was greatly influential to the succeeding Roman Empire and to subsequent western cultures.
The Archaic Period and Classical periods (extending from roughly 750 - 323 BC) in Greece, which commenced after a period of altercation with the Dorian tribes from the north, marked a period of flourishing arts and letters in Greece. It was a period of time that produced such poets and dramatists as Homer, Sophocles, Euripides, Sappho arose and which would eventually produce great philosophers such as Aristotle, Plato, Socrates. It was also during this age that the Greeks developed the most influential political form - the city-state, or polis.
This period in Greek history was not all calm, however. The many city-states that comprised the Greek culture were allies when having to defend themselves from external forces but could also become enemies of one another in their efforts to attain a dominant role among the Greek league of states. It was during this time that the Greeks fought the Peloponnesian War, wherein Athens and Sparta vied for supremacy in the region. The Spartans prevailed but, weakened by the war and an unhappy population, were soon defeated by another Greek population, the Thebans. The Thebans in turn were overcome by the Macedonian, as was the rest of the Greek league, with the rise of Philip II of Macedon and later his son, Alexander the Great.
Alexander the Great’s rule and expansionist vision, allowed Athens to reach its greatest political and cultural heights. Achievements during this period include the building of the Parthenon on the Acropolis, the creation of the tragedies of Sophocles, Aeschylus and Euripides and the founding of the philosophical schools of Socrates and Plato.
|
The period between the conquest of the Persian Empire by Alexander the Great and the establishment of Roman supremacy is called the Hellenistic Period (336-146 BC) when Greek culture and learning were pre-eminent in the Mediterranean and Asia Minor. The death of Alexander the Great opened the door for unrest among the city-states again and the fragmented Greek territories became vulnerable to the incursions of the Roman Empire. Rome effectively attained dominance over Greek military might by 187 B.C., though Greek culture would prove to be extremely influential over Roman culture and subsequent Western Civilization. | |||||||||||
Tags: 1000 B.C., 323 B.C., Aegean Sea, Aeschylus, Alexander the Great, ancient greece, Ancient Greek Bronze Cuirass, Ancient Greek city states, Ancient Greek culture, Ancient Greek History, Ancient Greek Hoplite Helm, Ancient Greek Museum Quality Replica Vase, Ancient Greek Philosophy, Ancient Greek Poetry, Ancient Greek politics, Archaic Period in Greece, Classical Greece, Classical Period in Greece, conquest of the Persian Empire, Euripedes, freedom of movement, freedom of speech, Greek Acropolis, Greek Parthenon, Homer, importance of visual arts in ancient greece, Ionian Sea, Karyatides statues of the Erechtheion, origins of individual freedom, origins of individual liberty, origins of western civilization, origins of western culture, origins of western politics, personal honor in ancient greece, Plato, Sappho, Socrates, Sophocles, Spartan Lakonian Sword
Greece is a land of hard limestone mountains and deep valleys cut almost in two by the Corinthian Gulf. To the east the mainland is continued by islands, to the south by the greater island of Crete. Even including the islands, Greece is a small country that has never had more than a few million inhabitants. However, it has always played an important role in the history of Western civilization. Bound by the Ionian and Aegean seas, the Greeks have long been a maritime people, reliant on maritime trade and mobility to prosper. In ancient Greece central control over every district was difficult because areas were separated from one another by mountains or the sea. This largely determined the political make-up of ancient Greece, which was composed of city-states that continually sought to increase their boundaries to accommodate their inhabitants. The isolated nature of the city-states did not stem the flow of ideas, however, particularly aesthetic and philosophical ones, and ancient Greece gave rise to a rich tradition of thought. 
During the Classical period of Greece’s history, Athens reached great heights in politics and culture. This was the period during which Pericles developed his democratic ideas, Sophocles, Aeschylus, and Euripedes wrote their great tragedies and Socrates and Plato set up their great philosophy schools.
In Western Society, we have grown accustomed to democratic government models managed by common citizens and have bought into the premise that the power of the collective good governs wisely. To understand the western democratic model of today, it helps to examine how the Greek City States, and notably the Ancient Athenians first devised the notion of a democratic government in their time. The Ancient Greek Philosopher Plato first defined Democracy as a system of “rule by the governed”. The origins of democracy first developed in the form of an Assembly which entitled all Athenian citizens to attend and participate. The Reform of Solon in 594 BC permitted the Assembly to either approve or reject legislation introduced by the Council. But it was not until after 508 BC, that the Council was chosen in a democratic fashion.
Real power, however still remained with the Athenian nobility, who excercised their control in the Assembly through their council, known as the ‘Aeropagus’. Through this council, the nobles elected the Archons who would govern the city. By 488 BC, the Archons were also chosen in a democratic fashion, thereby eliminating a source of power from the nobility. Magistrates were elected by freemen, jurors in trials were paid fees. Though, Athenian democracy did not bring equality, it did provide for the right of all citizens to be involved in governing their city in some form. 
In 1788 with the signing of the United States Constitution, the founding fathers shared a commitment to the principle of natural freedom and equality and provided for an elected government and protected civil rights and liberties. Nevertheless, the United States Constitution only guaranteed these liberties and a vote for the adult white male property owners. During the French Revolution in 1789, the revolutionary government adopted the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, which resulted in a short-lived National Convention elected by all males.
The history of headwear in human culture is as remarkable for its diversity of display and function as is the history of clothing. Though it is of course difficult to discern when the use of hats or headcoverings originated because of a scattered archaelogical record, we may assume that humans have been devising ways to protect and adorn the head as long as they have been covering the body for the same purposes.
The god Mithra, derived from the Indo-European ‘mihr’ meaning friendship or contract, was the representative god of just contracts and solemn oaths. The significance of the god wearing the Phrygian cap would be met by an increasing symbolism invested in the cap at later points in history. For the ancient Greeks the Phrygian cap was associated with foreignness and non-Greek influence, while the ancient Romans gave the Phrygian cap further meaning by making it the headwear designated for freed slaves. It became a distinguishing mark of liberty for subsequent periods in history as well, during the American Revolution and more notably during the French Revolution.
During the French Revolution, the Phrygian cap was appropriated as a symbol of the movement for social and political revolt against the monarchy. The ‘bonnet rouge’ became a wide-spread symbol of Revolution, adorning sculptures and public spaces in France at the end of the 18th century and becoming part of the costume of those who identified with the movement. The Phrygian cap remains a symbol of the ideals of the Revolution and is worn by France’s emblem, the figure of Marianne.
The American Revolution also appropriated the Phrygian cap as a symbol of liberty although perhaps it does not remain as significant to our visual historical memory as it does to the French culture. Still, the Phrygian cap can be seen in the state seals of New York, West Virginia, and New Jersey, as well as in the official seal of the United States Senate and in the U.S. Army’s official War Office Seal.
