Classical Greece

The Classical Greeks were masters of philosophy, science, fine arts, geography, medicine, legal systems, and astronomy. Greece is surrounded by three seas, the Aegeon, Mediterranean, and Ionion at this time. The climate changed with the seasons; hot summers, bitter winters. They produced grain, grapes, olives, and salt. The Greeks made huge strides in architectures. The Parthenon was built in 438 BC, it displays the early stages of the classical orders. The building has a visual sense of balance but not quite a physical one. The columns are not the same size or spaced the same. Their domestic homes were far less impressive than the temples. They were constructed of mudbrick, not marble, with a stone foundation and a wooden framework and terracotta roof tiles. There was a courtyard in the middle and few windows for security and to limit heat. Their temples and homes were decorated with motifs that had floral or marine themes. The Greek key and Fret were invented at this time and those pattern are often used today in our modern design. We mainly know abut the Greek furniture through their pottery that has survived. The Thronos was a formal chair of honor, or a throne. It was generally made out of marble and had a high back. The Klismos was the most graceful and influential pieces. It was crafted out of wood and has splayed legs and a curved back. The Diphros was a stool without arms or a back. It was made of wood and the most expensive ones were made of ebony and the legs were dipped in silver. The Kline was a bed that functioned as a sofa and was often used for dining. It had curved headboards and the mattresses were stuffed with wool or feathers. Tables were small and portable and took into account the height of the Kline so it could be stored underneath it.

Classical examples

Here you can see the use of the marine themed motifs and the emphasis on the color blue.

The Parthenon

A Greek monastery kitchen in Athens

Modern implications

The Greek Key

Emphasis on blue, splayed legs of chairs

Peer review
Haley: I liked how she went into detail about the domestic homes and I enjoyed her picture examples.
Samantha: I liked how her statement was short and to the point and I also think she had great pictures.


Use of blue and Greek Key