Apparel In Ancient Greek Culture

Apparel

Clothing was typically hand spun with handmade fabrics and was used as a garment or a blanket. Men and Women wore two types of apparel. It was either peoplos or chitons. Peplos were most common for women, and they were usually large and loose fitting. The chitons were mainly for the men because they were shorter than the peplos. Garments were generally made out of wool or heavy fabric. “It was placed around the body and fastened at the shoulders with a pin or brooch. There were armholes on each side, and the open side of the garment was either left that way, or pinned or sewn to form a seam.”(http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Clothing/). The chiton was made out of a linin, which is a much lighter material. “It was a very long and very

wide rectangle of fabric sewn up at the sides, pinned or sewn at the shoulders, and usually girded around the waist.”(http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Clothing/). The wealthy had their clothes dyed in different colors to match the season of the year. For footwear they either wore sandals, or were just bare foot.

Jewelry was worn by both men and women.

They generally wore jewelry on a day to day basis. The most common jewelry they wore were earrings, pendants, pins, bracelets, thigh bands, and finger rings. Mostly all the jewelry was made out of emeralds pearls, gems, stone, and rock crystal. In Greek culture it was respectful to place jewelry on the dead. Both the wealthy and the poor wore jewelry to look wealthy and show a higher rank. They also wore jewelry to attract the opposite gender and make a simple outfit into something gorgeous. Women believed that wearing jewelry kept away negative and positive powers.

Tattoos were not common for the working class or the wealthy. They were only common with slave workers to identify them if they escaped. The only Body Art used in Greece was makeup and that was generally only used by rich women. Pale skin was very common and it showed a sign of prestige and beauty. Aside from having a pale complexion, women applied round spots on their cheeks, darkened their eyebrows with the soot produced by the lamps in their homes. Their eyes, eyelashes, and lips were painted in a variety of different

colors.

Food
The Greeks mostly ate foods that were easy to grow on the tough Greek landscape. Breakfast consisted of bread dipped in wine and was consumed at the break of dawn. Lunch was also bread dipped in wine along with olives, figs, cheese, or dried up fish. Dinner was their main meal of the day which was eaten just after sunset. They generally ate veggies, fish, fruit, and some type of dessert. Sugar was not discovered yet so all desserts were sweetened by honey. Fish was the Greeks source of protein.
Back then beef was very very expensive so it was extremely rare anyone ever ate it. They only time when they consumed any type of meat (other than fish) was at festivals or on a feast day. Greeks sacrificed large game such as bulls, cows, sheep, goats, and oxen. Since it was so closely related to their ritual and religion, meat was rarely eaten. Wine was the most common drink, however it was watered down very much, not like what adults drink today. Milk was never drank and if it was, it was barbaric. Water was also an option as a beverage. The Greeks did not have forks, spoons, or knives to eat with; so they ate everything with their hands. They would use slices of bread to scoop up soup. Bread was also used as a napkin to wipe hands and clean the face. They then when through the bread on the ground for the slaves or the dogs.

Religion
The Greeks didn’t just worship one god, they worshiped many gods and goddesses. They were convinced that the gods and goddesses had special powers and that they were living in humans bodies, only but bigger and more beautiful. Each god or goddess looked over different aspects of life. Greeks also believed that the gods and goddesses lived in temples. Greek temples are not what we would expect. Normally, people who are religious go to a church, temple, etc. to worship their god. The Greeks built temples for the gods and goddesses to live in and protect the city or community, not a place to worship in.
The Greeks believed that if they didn’t take care of the gods and goddesses, they could turn against them and create terrible events to happen in the community.

So everyone in the community made sure that they would feel relaxed, and comfortable. Usually in the temple would be a standing or sitting statue of the god or goddess of which the community worshiped. It was located in the center of the temple. Temples were usually enclosed by cylinder like enclosures called temenos. Individuals were allowed to visit the temple whenever they wanted and they normally left offerings such as flowers, food, or incense. However, only priests were allowed to enter the sacred temple to perform rituals for the community. It was however, customary to say a prayer for the gods if you pasted the temple on the street. To pay respect to the gods there would be festivals of sacrificing livestock at the god's temple in front of the temenos. Members of the community were expected to help with the upkeep of the temple by making sure the temple was clean. Celebrating festivals and having athletic events were considered ways of the Greeks worshiping their gods and goddesses. They would honor the gods by bringing gifts such as jewelry, fine clothing, or silver and

gold.
The Greeks believed that the world was created when the gods Chaos, and Gaea (Earth) starting sleeping together, creating many gods and thence created the world. “In that far distant age there lived, as there had always lived, a god named Chaos. He was all alone, and round him there was nothing but utter emptiness. In those times there was neither sun, nor light, nor earth, nor sky. There was nothing but a formless void and thick darkness stretching to infinity.Untold centuries rolled by like this until, at last, Chaos grew tired of living by himself. It was then that he first thought of creating the world.The first thing he did was to bring the goddess Earth into being. She was lovely beyond description; filled with strength and life, she grew and spread and enfolded huge expanses within her embrace. On her, our world was founded.” http://www.sigmabooks.gr/txt_mth_en_en1.html
The Greeks have a lunar calendar which is different than ours, but the Greeks had many holidays, mostly festivals though. They had festivals all the time, almost every month. They usually had festivals to celebrate an exciting event such as marriage, a birth, a victory, a great crop season, or just celebrating their gods.

Architecture
Greeks constructed statues of only important god’s and goddesses. Statues were generally made out of bronze or marble. Statues symbolized the god’s and goddesses that protected and watched over the Greeks. Soon after the change to Greece changing to a democracy, palaces were no longer needed or used.
Greek housing was built for the people inside to stay cool in the summer and to hold warmth in the winter. Men and women usually were separated in the homes. Women were normally kept away in the deep parts of the house, from the men’s other male guests and their lustful eyes.
Many houses were equipped with a workplace where the greeks could work on making jewelry or shoes. Slaves of the house normally worked here. Every house had a slave room for the slaves to sleep in with very little furniture. The womens slave quarters were by the women's dining space, and the men’s slave quarters were located next to the men’s dining space. Only the wealthier people had bathrooms with bathtub to fill up with water from a well or public water source and then it was heated over the stove and poured into the tub. The kitchen included a stone stove, but the Greek diet was very simple and did not need really need pots and pans most of the time. They only used their best pots and pans for festivals or special occasions. The adron was a room only for the men in the house and their male friends to have business meetings, and drinking parties. Women were not allowed to enter this room unless they were serving the men or they were female entertainers. The store room kept all of the food of the house and it also kept large storage jars. A typical Greek bedroom had a bed and a wooden dresser to keep clothing and other items in. The gynaikon was a room for only the women to work on spinning, weaving, and entertaining the children and their female friends. If a male was to come into this room, it would be an extreme act of insult and they would be punished.

Art and Literature
The Greeks belong to a language that extends from Iceland to Bangladesh. It was not until the hellenistic period it existed in a number dialects such as Koine, which became the tongue of the entire Hellenistic world. Koine is the dialect in which the new testament in the bible is written as. It was not until the early eighth century B.C when the Greeks came into contact with the Phoenicians who inhabited Syria. They then adapted the Phoenician alphabet as their own. Then many of the Phoenician names and letters came into the Greek alphabet virtually unchanged. The same letters also functioned as a number system as well and were then used as musical notation. The most earliest surviving examples of the first Greek alphabet dates back to 740 B.C. The Greek alphabet was then destined to be the basis for many languages such as European scripts, Latin, and Cyrillic.
The Greek incorporated art throughout their lifestyles. Whether it was through their sculptures, architecture, or pottery, or just beautiful paintings in temples, they did it all. The greeks constructed many beautiful architecture which was considered art since they built the building with their bare hands. Since the Greeks saw their gods as human figures it was only expected for them to construct sculptures of their precious gods. Many Greek pottery was hand painted with Greek art on them for special occasions or festivals, and it was also presented as a trophy in the olympic games.

Music and Dance
Greek music was essential to religious festivals, marriage and funeral ceremonies, or banquet gatherings. Greeks were very familiar with instruments and men were required to learn how to play them. There was the “the kithara, a plucked string instrument; the lyre, also a string instrument; and the aulos, a double-reed instrument.” http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/grmu/hd_grmu.htm
Men were also encouraged to sing and learn traditional dances. Instrumental music and singing of hymn was customary during daily activities and also at formal acts of the worshiping of the gods. Women only made music at their homes.
Dance in Greece was an expression of the people way of life and feeling. It is the only country where it is just as alive in dancing, as it was back in ancient times. The Greeks danced to celebrate at festivals, weddings, to ensure fertility, and to prepare for war and celebrate triumph. Almost all of Greek dances tell a story of some sort or another. Dance is also described as one as the highest forms of art in Greek culture. The Greeks believed that dancing kept the body healthy and well, therefor it also helped the body to be strong and ready when fighting on the battlefield.