Questions tagged [hellenistic-greece]
The Hellenistic period begins in 323 BC, with the death of Alexander the Great, and ends in 146 BC with the Roman conquest of Greece.
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Who was the first person to get a more accurate measure of the earth's circumference than Eratosthenes?
When researching a paper on Eratosthenes for class I saw that one of his major accomplishments was the first more or less accurate measure of the earth's circumference,only between −2.4% and +0.8% off....
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Where was the theater in Byzantium?
As a Hellenistic city, there must have been a theater or maybe even an amphitheater in Byzantium, which would have also been present during the Constantinople era, but never have I seen or heard any ...
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Are there other names of Greek places with the Sta(n)- prefix besides Stalimene and Stanchio in medieval Western Europe?
I don't know what I can add to the question, except that it is ultimately related to the question of why Istanbul is not called "Istinbul" instead. The more examples of other Greek places ...
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What was the extent of free speech under the Hellenistic empires?
I have been doing independent research on censorship during the Hellenistic Period, particularly during the reins of the Seleucid and Ptolemaic Dynasties. So far the only example I can find of ...
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Ancient Greek term rendered incorrectly as numbers and Latin letters, "01KCDÇ". What is it?
In a book I am reading, I've spotted an error and would like to know how to correct it:
In the Athenian 01KCDÇ, for example, the family was based on a system of individual members which moved out, ...
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Why wasn't Akkadian translated into other more common languages?
From what I have gathered I believe there are currently no examples of Akkadian literature, written on cuneiform tablets, being translated into other languages onto papyri outside the Mesopotamian ...
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How did Alexander the Great die?
Plutarch described the last days of Alexander the Great in his book "Life of Alexander" based on records kept by Eumenes, Alexander's general secretary. Alexander had a high temperature for ...
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How did the lighthouse at Pharos work?
Was the ancient Greek pharos light house of ancient Alexandria, Egypt capable of creating light beams like a modern flash light?
Lots of websites which also includes ones from schools, colleges, ...
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What do subjects in Hellenistic and Renaissance art suggest about the average human physique throughout history?
I recently visited the vatican museums and saw Laocoön and His Sons (27 BC to 68 AD), and also have looked up David by Michelangelo and works by Leonardo Da Vinci.
In most male subjects during these ...
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Why were Hoplite shields circular?
why were Hoplite shields circular? Given that humans are much taller than they are wide even taking into account that the shield has to protect the person to their left the horizontal to vertical ...
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Are there any records of javelin throwing techniques from antiquity? For example, ancient Greece, such as peltasts?
I can find plenty of information of contemporary javelin throwing techniques, but I am interested to know if there are surviving records of javelin throwing, particularly from ancient Greece, and ...
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Why didn't the Persians create good infantry units?
The defeat at Marathon, Plataea, march of the 10.000, and the hold up at Thermopylae really suggest the need for some heavy infantry that can fight on par with the Greek Phalanx.
Like how much of ...
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How did the Greeks keep a prytaneum alight in storms?
In ancient Greece, prytaneums were present in every city, village and state. They were lit with fire from the place in which the people settling came from. It was tended to by a leader of the ...
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Why are there multiple royal squadrons of the Companion Cavalry?
The Companion Cavalry was a famous group of horsemen in Ancient Macedonia. They served quite literally as the companions of the Macedonian kings during battle.
Alexander the Great himself rode with ...
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Why did Cretan archers flourish?
This question concerns why Cretan archers were so prolific and well regarded during Antiquity.
As seen in Xenophon's Anabasis Cretan archers often were hired to serve as mercenaries in Greece and ...
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