Summary

Some knowledge of Greek civilisation will help you to understand Greek medicine.

The Parthenon, Athens, which is dedicated to the Greek goddess of wisdom, Athena

Greek civilisation developed in a different way from that of Egypt. Instead of growing into a large empire ruled by a monarch, Greece developed as a number of city-states, ruled by a range of governments. Some of were democratic (Athens), others were under dictatorships (Macedon), others were ruled by the military (Sparta).

The Greek states built up a wide trading empire. Greek cities became immensely wealthy, and developed a cultural life that included drama, comedy, sculpture, architecture, poetry, politics and public debates. The Greek people developed a phonetic form of writing that was more flexible than Egyptian hieroglyphs.