Agora Picture Book – serie

By mingling images on well-preserved Greek vases with the more fragmentary ceramics recovered during excavations at the Agora, the authors show how different vessel forms were used in classical Athens. By linking the shapes of pots with their social functions, this book gives meaning to the ancient names, such as skyphos, olpe, kantharos, lekane, and hydria, that one encounters when visiting museums.

Small sculptured figures of humans and animals have been found all over the Agora, ranging in date from the earliest occupation of Athens to the end of the Late Roman period. This booklet presents a representative sample of these carvings, ranging from elegant ivory figures of Apollo to small toy horses recovered from children's graves.

Although the famous bronze statues seen by the Roman tourist Pausanias have been melted down, the Agora preserves a number of fine portraits in stone. While a few of these are named, most of the portraits in this booklet represent ordinary men and women; priests, athletes, and officials. Referring to over 40 black and white photos, the author discusses hairstyles, clothing and facial expressions to shed light on the individuals depicted.

The story of the Agora did not end in A.D. 267, when the Herulians invaded the city. From ornate Early Christian carving to the colourful green and brown glazed pottery that distinguished the city, this booklet shows how medieval Athens was a lively, bustling town with a rich artistic tradition. Finds and architecture from the private houses that covered over the remains of the classical city are discussed, and the book ends with a survey of the Church of the Holy Apostles, the 11th-century A.D. church that stands at the southeast corner of the Agora.

In the spring, the ground of the Agora archaeological park is covered in poppies and daisies while poplars and oaks shade many of the pathways. Some of these plants are wild and some were deliberately introduced to Athens in classical times. This booklet presents evidence for ancient horticulture in the Agora (for example, structured antique gardens were uncovered around the Temple of Hephaistos). Its colour plates also provide a useful guide to identifying modern Greek vegetation.

At night, the darkness of the ancient Agora would have been pierced by the lights of oil lamps, and thousands of fragments of these distinctive objects have been found. This booklet presents the development of different styles of lamps and includes a very useful identification guide. The author discusses the manufacture of lamps in Athens, a major industry with over 50 known workshops in the 3rd and 4th centuries A.D. She also provides illustrations of particularly fine examples, including ornate festival lamps with many nozzles and bizarre shapes.

Many types of written records are found in the Agora, and this booklet presents a sample of the more than 10,000 inventoried inscriptions written on stone. The texts illustrated include diplomatic agreements, commemorative plaques for athletic victories, records of court judgements, boundary stones identifying different buildings, and fragmentary inscriptions featuring names (over 30,000 individual Athenians are now recorded).

Preserved beneath the surface of the Agora are thousands of terracotta pipes, stone drainage channels, and lead pressure lines. These form a complex chain of waterworks, constructed and repaired over many different periods. This book discusses the complex engineering that channelled fresh water into the Agora and disposed of waste water, and shows some of the ornate wells and fountain houses where ancient Athenians gathered to drink and bathe.

Before the creation of the Agora as a civic centre in the 7th century B.C., the region northwest of the Acropolis was a vast cemetery. Over 150 ancient burial places have been found by excavators, and a few of the more remarkable are described here. These range from a wealthy Mycenaean chamber tomb, filled with the vases and jewellery of a rich noblewoman, to the poignant pithos burial of an infant from around 725 B.C., accompanied by eight tiny vases. As well as describing the assemblages found, the author discusses the symbolism of funeral rites and the information about social status and identity that burials reveal.

Over 75,000 coins have been found during excavations at the Agora, many minted in the city but others brought from Athens's far-flung commercial contacts. In addition to the mostly bronze and copper coins themselves, a building that may have served as the Athenian mint is described in this booklet. After describing the physical techniques of production, the author takes a chronological approach and includes numerous black and white photographs, making this concise guide a useful aid to the identification of lower-value Greek and Roman coinage.

As far as we know, the 5th-century B.C. Greek philosopher Socrates himself wrote nothing. We discover his thoughts and deeds entirely through the writings of his followers, disciples who accompanied him on his walks through the Athenian Agora and engaged in dialogue with him in the Stoa Basileios. Rather than examining his ideas in abstract, this stimulating little book aims to place Socrates in his physical setting, using textual references to follow his progress through the material remains that have been uncovered by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens since 1931. The author not only sheds new light on the great philosopher's life, but also provides a vivid reconstruction, through following the career of one of its most famous citizens, of daily life at the centre of classical Athens.

From the thousands of pieces of Late Roman small change discovered trodden into beaten earth floors and dropped into wells to the hoards of 19th-century A.D. silver French francs discovered beneath modern houses, many post-classical coins have been discovered during excavations at the Agora. This booklet presents Byzantine, Frankish, Venetian, Turkish, and modern Greek coins, with many pieces illustrated with clear black and white photos of both obverse and reverse.

Although this booklet is based on broken pottery found during the excavation of the Agora, the author ranges far beyond the confines of Athens in her discussion of the purpose and significance of different amphora types. Amphoras were used in the ancient world to transport various different types of products, including wine and oil. The author shows how chronological variations in shape and the geographical clues offered by stamped handles make amphoras a fascinating source of economic information. The booklet illustrates many different forms of amphora, all set into context by the well-written text.

Religion played a part in almost every aspect of civic life, so shrines, temples, altars, and dedications are conspicuous at almost every turn during a visit to the Athenian Agora. The author of this booklet shows where and how the major Olympian gods were worshipped, and then turns his attention to lesser-known deities, such as Hekate, the triple-bodied goddess of the crossroads. He argues that the cults of heroes, such as Theseus, one of the legendary founders of Athens, were much more popular than the official state religion focused on the Olympian gods.

The prominence of the Temple of Hephaistos, Greek god of metalworkers, situated on a hill to the west of the Agora, reflects the esteem in which bronzeworkers were held by the Athenians. Although many of the objects these craftsmen produced have now been melted down, the statues, lamps, and vessels that remain testify to the high standards of their craftsmanship. As well as illustrating some of the surviving finished products, the author discusses the techniques used to cast bronze and the level of skill involved in producing complex metal statuary.

As well as the Little Owl or glaux, so often seen accompanying the goddess Athena, many other birds played an important role in Greek art and symbolism. This booklet describes the ways in which the Greeks viewed birds, from useful hawks and fowl to exotic parakeets and peacocks. Some of the birds most often depicted are imaginary, from the griffin to the phallos bird, whose head and neck consisted of an erect penis. The book ends with a field guide to species likely to be seen on a visit to the Agora archaeological park today.

Like fragments of overheard conversations, the thousands of informal inscriptions scratched and painted on potsherds, tiles, and other objects give us a unique insight into the everyday life of the Athenian Agora. Some are marks of ownership, or the notes of merchants, but many are sexual innuendos, often accompanied by graphic illustrations. Using her wide contextual knowledge, the author suggests why these scraps of sentences were written, and what they can tell us about one of the first widely literate societies.

Named after its donor, the King of Pergamon, the Stoa of Attalos was originally built around 150 B.C. Between 1953 and 1956 this long, columned, marble building was rebuilt by the American School of Classical Studies to store and display finds from the Agora excavations. Using original materials and techniques, the modern builders learned much about the construction and purpose of the stoa, a ubiquitous classical building type. This heavily illustrated account presents some of their findings.

As well as being a political centre, the Agora was the focus of a noisy and varied commercial life. This booklet illustrates the archaeological, documentary and pictorial evidence for such diverse trades as shoe-making, fish mongering, weaving and the manufacture of luxury goods and perfumes. Shopping was just one aspect of this public space: ancient Athenians would also have received medical treatment, been married and buried, made sacrifices, and received education in the Agora. The material remains from all of these activities are also discussed. Vivid illustrations and useful resources, such as a table of prices and coinage, bring the bustling marketplace to life.

Athens was a famously litigious city in antiquity, as the sheer quantity of evidence for legal activity found in the Agora makes clear. Every kind of case, from assault and battery to murder, and from small debts to contested fortunes, were heard in various buildings and spaces around the civic centre, and the speeches given in defence and prosecution remain some of the masterpieces of Greek literature. As well as describing the spaces where judgments were made (such as the Stoa Basileios, office of the King Archon), the author discusses the progress of some famous cases (known from the speeches of orators like Demosthenes), such as the patrimony suit of a woman named Plangon against the nobleman Mantias, or the assault charge levelled by Ariston against Konon and his sons.

This concise and beautifully illustrated book demonstrates the many roles played by the horse in the lives of the Greeks, from its place in myth and early history to its significance as a marker of social status and its use in warfare, transportation, games, and festivals. From their arrival in Greece, at the start of the Middle Bronze Age (ca. 2000 B.C.), horses were a powerful symbol of rank. Bridles and other horse trappings are often found in graves, alongside vases depicting horses grazing, racing, and parading. Sculpture is also full of horse imagery, from monumental equestrian statues (a bronze leg and gilded sword are all that remain from one of these) to tiny terracotta figurines, perhaps the toys of a child. As well as presenting many examples of horse imagery found in the Agora, the author reports on recent finds near the ancient hipparcheion, the stables of the Athenian cavalry.

This attractive book presents a general introduction to the Greater Panathenaia, the week-long religious and civic festival held at Athens every four years in honour of the city's patron goddess, Athena. The highlight of the city's festival calendar, with its musical, athletic, and equestrian contests, tribal events, processions, sacrifices, and other activities, the Greater Panathenaia involved all the residents of Athens; not just adult males but women, children, metics (resident aliens), foreigners, and even slaves. The facilities, administration, program events, prizes, and associated monuments are described.

A concise introduction to the workings of ancient democracy, The Athenian Citizen has been a bestseller since the original edition was first published almost 60 years ago by Mabel Lang. Using archaeological evidence from excavations at the heart of ancient Athens, this volume shows how tribal identity was central to all aspects of civic life, guiding the reader through the duties of citizenship as soldier in times of war and as juror during the peace. The checks and balances that protected Athenian society from tyrants, such as legal assassination and ostracism, are described. Selected inscriptions are illustrated and discussed, as are ingenious devices such as allotment machines and water clocks, which ensured fairness in the courts. The book ends with some of the lasting products of classical administration: the silver coins accepted around the known world and the standard weights and measures that continue to protect the consumer from unscrupulous merchants. Illustrated entirely in colour, with updates and revisions by the current director of excavations at the Agora, this edition of an acknowledged classic will inform and fascinate visitors and students for many years to come.

In a newly revised version of this popular site guide, the current director of excavations in the Athenian Agora gives a brief account of the history of the ancient centre of Athens. The text has been updated and expanded to cover the most recent archaeological discoveries, and the guide now features numerous colour illustrations. Each monument still visible on the site is described in turn, and helpful maps and plans are a particular feature of this edition. Birthplace of democracy, the Agora remains one of the most fascinating archaeological sites in the world, and this is the essential companion for any visitor.

Using evidence from the Athenian Agora, the authors show how objects discovered during excavations provide a vivid picture of women's lives. The book is structured according to the social roles women played: as owners of property, companions (in and outside of marriage), participants in ritual, craftspeople, producers, and consumers. A final section moves from the ancient world to the modern, discussing the role of women as archaeologists in the early years of the Agora excavations.

The 5th-century B.C. poet Pindar remarked on the rich sculptural decoration of the Athenian Agora, and, indeed, over 3,500 pieces of various types of sculpture have been uncovered during its excavation. This full-colour guide sheds new light on the marble industry in and around the Agora, including rich evidence for sculptors' workshops, their tools, and techniques. The text discusses the works of both famous and anonymous artists.

In this book, readers are shown how dogs fit into ancient Greek society with material from the last 90 years of excavations at the Athenian Agora by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. Topics range from how ancient Greeks hunted with dogs and what they considered a proper dog's name to the excavation of tender burials in the Agora and the sacrifice of dogs to the gods of the underworld. Mythological dogs like the three-headed Kerberos appear, as do the pawprints that very real dogs left behind more than a thousand years ago. Dozens of illustrations of pottery, sculpture, and excavated remains enliven the text. Anyone curious about dogs in antiquity and how they relate to dogs in the present day will be sure to find interesting material in this portable, affordable text.

More than 75,000 coins have been found during excavations at the Agora, many minted in the city but others brought from Athens’s far-flung commercial contacts. Together they are a testament to the city’s broad regional influence, and they help trace the political shifts and cultural and commercial exchanges that took place over many centuries of Athenian history. After explaining the techniques of coin production, including a description of the building that may have served as the Athenian mint, the author takes a chronological approach and illustrates a wide range of ancient coins, making this guide a useful aid to the identification of common Greek and Roman coinage. Originally published in 1975, this new edition has been updated to take into account the latest discoveries in the Agora and with stunning colour photographs throughout.

More than 75,000 coins have been found during excavations at the Agora, many minted in the city but others brought from Athens’s far-flung commercial contacts. Together they are a testament to the city’s broad regional influence, and they help trace the political shifts and cultural and commercial exchanges that took place over many centuries of Athenian history. After explaining the techniques of coin production, including a description of the building that may have served as the Athenian mint, the author takes a chronological approach and illustrates a wide range of ancient coins, making this guide a useful aid to the identification of common Greek and Roman coinage. Originally published in 1975, this new edition has been updated to take into account the latest discoveries in the Agora and with stunning colour photographs throughout.