Ancient Greek Sculpture Timeline: Dark Ages to Roman Copies

Ancient Greek sculpture has fascinated the art lovers of the Roman Empire, the Renaissance, the Grand Tour, and modern audiences. Today, more copies of ancient Greek sculptures are displayed in museums than the original artworks, which are often lost to time. But Greek sculpture was never frozen in time. It was an art form that developed over the centuries. This is a brief timeline of the evolution of Greek sculpture.

Minoan and Mycenean Period Sculpture – c. 2000-1100 BCE

Palaikastro Kouros, Minoan, c. 15th century BCE. Source: Archaeological Museum of Siteia

The Minoan and Mycenaen civilizations flourished on Crete and the Greek mainland during the 3rd and 2nd millennia BCE. Their artistic styles served as a precursor for what would emerge in Greece in the following centuries.

Terracotta Snake Goddess Figures, Minoan Crete, c. 1600 BCE. Source: Heraklion Archaeological Museum

Large sculptures were very rare in Minoan culture, probably due to a lack of appropriate stone material. However, there is evidence that wooden and metal sculptures existed, but examples have not survived. Instead, smaller sculptures, often made of terracotta, survive. The most famous of these is the Palaikastro Kouros, a statue of a young man that is clearly related to the Kouros statues of Archaic Greece. This particular example, which dates from the 15th century BCE, seems to have been a cult image that was deliberately destroyed at some point. Similar-style Minoan terracotta snake goddess figurines have also been found on Crete.

Terracotta Female Figure, Mycenean Greece, c. 1400-1300 BCE. Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art

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Like the Minoans, the Myceneans also produced mostly smaller sculptures made from terracotta. While they were mostly female figures, they were sometimes so stylized as to be unrecognizable. They were probably meant to represent nature goddesses with two arms raised or crossed in front of the chest, a long skirt, and a conical headdress. They were simply decorated with bold lines, and sometimes jewelry is also painted on the figure using simple dots.

Ivory Triad, Mycenean Greece, c. 15th-14th century BCE. Source: National Archaeological Museum of Athens

While these figures seem very simplistic, there is also evidence of highly sophisticated Mycenean sculpture. For example, the “Ivory Triad,” consisting of three female figures, is considered a masterpiece of Mycenean art. Made from ivory, the work is characterized by exquisite plasticity and impressive movement.

Archaic Period Greek Sculpture – c. 800-480 BCE

Marble statue of a Kouros, Early Archaic Period, c. 590–580 BCE. Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art

Following the Greek Dark Ages, the Archaic Period can be characterized by increased interaction with Egypt and the Near East regions. This increased interaction through trade led to greater cultural exchange, and Greek artists adopted Eastern styles and techniques.

This cultural shift manifested in two main types of monumental Greek sculpture. The first of these is the upright ɴuᴅᴇ male, known as kouros or plural kouroi, meaning “youth” or “boy.” Kouroi were free-standing statues that represented quasi-naturalistic young men. They were often used as tombstones to commemorate the deaths of young men or as trophies in games.

Kouroi were characterized by their rigid body posture and idealized bodily form. They stood upright and frontal with wide shoulders, narrow hips, legs together, and arms often at the sides. They also displayed the archetypal “kouros smile,” characterized by a blank expression and a mouth that was slightly upturned at the sides.

Kroisos Kouros — Statue of a Kouros (Kroisos), Late Archaic Period, c. 530 BCE. Source: National Archaeological Museum of Athens

Early kouroi reflected the Egyptian artistic style in many ways, depicting the more geometric, rigid characteristics widely seen in ancient Egyptian sculpture. However, as time went on, the Greek kouros evolved into a more naturalistic, classicizing figure with smoother edges and a fuller figure. Additionally, unlike their Egyptian counterparts, Greek kouroi did not hold religious significance and appeared ɴuᴅᴇ rather than clothed.

Peplos Kore — Peplophoros Kore, wearing a peplos (dress) over the chiton, c. 530 BCE. Source: Acropolis Museum, Athens

The second type of Greek sculpture in the Archaic period was the female version of the kouros, the kore or plural korai. Like kouroi, korai were upright, standing statues with stiff frames, narrow hips, and blank faces. However, unlike the kouroi, the kore was always draped in a dress, ornamented with jewelry, and sometimes wore a crown or headdress. They also held fruits or other symbols of female fertility in front of them.

Classical Period Greek Sculpture – c. 500-323 BCE

Bronze Myron’s Discobolus, a Roman copy from c. 2nd century CE of a Greek original from c. 460-450 BCE. Source: British Museum

The Classical period in Ancient Greece saw the end of the aristocracy, the dissolution of the Athenian tyranny in 510 BCE, and then later the introduction of Athenian democracy. It began with the Persian Wars in the 5th century BCE and ended with the death of Alexander the Great in the 3rd century BCE. Although a time of conflict, the intellectualism and creativity of the Classical period produced a plethora of memorable works of art and is generally considered a “Golden Age.”

Classical Greek sculpture incorporated more diverse figure types and bodily poses, as well as a sharp increase in technical dexterity, resulting in far more naturalistic and realistic sculptures compared to their Archaic predecessors. It was also noted as the first period to represent individuals in sculpture rather than the archetypal “young male” like the kouroi of the Archaic period.

Kritios Boy, c. 480 BCE. Source: Acropolis Museum

Statues were used as a study of anatomy, often depicted in motion with extending musculature. The classical “contrapposto,” or the curved body position, was also introduced during this period. This has been most notably seen in the Kritios Boy (480 BCE), which stands with a slight weight shift to the one side and his hip protruding. The contrapposto subsequently became one of the most iconic classical bodily poses used in artistic depictions of the body.

Roman copy of Praxiteles’ Aphrodite of Knidos, Greek original c. 350 BCE. Source: Museo nazionale romano di palazzo Altemps

The Classical period also featured an increase in sculpture purpose. Statues famously decorated buildings such as the Parthenon and the Erechtheion within the Athenian Acropolis, as well as buildings at the ancient Greek cities of Olympia and Delphi. This included not only free-standing votive sculptures, such as The Athena Parthenos (447 BCE) or The Charioteer of Delphi (c. 478 BCE), but also the decoration of pediments and friezes, such as the Parthenon Frieze (c. 440 BCE), which is now on display at the British Museum.

The famous marble relief from the frieze of the Parthenon, also known as the Elgin Marbles, by Phidias, c. 443-437 BCE. Source: British Museum

Artistic recognition also grew during the Classical period. Whereas the Archaic period pieces were focused on commemoration and uniformity, the individuality of the Classical period subjects made the artistic style more definitive. Sculptors such as Phidias, Praxiteles, Kritios, Lysippos, Myron, and others began gaining name recognition for their work during the Classical period.

Some of the most famous examples of Classical Period sculpture are the Aphrodite of Knidos (c. 350 BCE), Discobolus (460-50 BCE), The Artemision Bronze (c. 460 BCE), and Zeus at Olympia (c. 435 BCE).

Hellenistic Period Greek Sculpture – c. 323-146 BCE

Laocoon and his sons — Marble copy of Hagesander, Athenodorus, and Polydorus’ Laocoön and his sons, c. 1st century BCE (original 200 BCE). Source: Vatican Museum

The Hellenistic Period began after the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE and ended with the Roman conquest of Greece in 146 BCE. It has been seen as a continuation, refinement, and expansion of Greek, or Hellenistic, influence in the Mediterranean world after Alexander the Great. This period boasted a geographically and culturally diverse group of people under the umbrella of Hellenism, resulting in considerable artistic variation.

Hellenistic Period sculpture can be characterized by a marked increase in expression from Classical sculpture. Many artistic subjects appear significantly more dramatized than before, and, for the first time, emotive facial expressions are featured in monumental sculpture. While the Archaic and Classical periods focused on idealized subjects and figures, the Hellenistic embraced adverse themes such as suffering, old age, and death. Artists no longer clung to the ideal of physical perfection, exploring other artistic avenues.

Aphrodite, Pan and Eros — Aphrodite, Pan, and Eros, c. 2nd century BCE. Source: National Archaeological Museum, Athens

Ancient Greek sculpture continued to gain variety in subject matter. Artists began to portray people and situations that extended beyond that of the votive or commemorative nature. Hellenistic portraiture explored the world of Dionysia in monumental sculpture, which had not been previously done. Satyrs, maenads, fauns, and other mythical creatures were depicted, sometimes even in a comic or ironic way. These unorthodox subjects represented a more diverse, post-Alexandrian Hellenistic population.

The Hellenistic period also saw an increasing fascination with anatomy and detail. Monumental sculptures were crafted with extreme detail to the human muscular system. Rather than the more rigid, upright poses of the Classical period, Hellenistic sculptures often appeared to be in motion or positions to accentuate the details of the body.

Old Drunkard by Myron — Old Drunkard, by Myron, c. 3rd century BCE (original). Source: Musei Capitolini

The same precise attention to detail was applied when sculpting details such as hair or clothing, which have continued to captivate viewers into the modern age. The most famous among these is the “wet drapery” detail, meant to accentuate the bodily features of the drapery’s wearer.

Copy of Boethos of Chalcedon’s Boy with a Goose, original c. 2nd century BCE. Source: University of Cambridge

Another marked shift in the Hellenistic period of Greek art was the privatization of art and sculpture. The centralization of government at the time led to a more strict stratification of social classes. The wealthier groups could afford to purchase sculptures for their private homes. This could have accounted for the increased variation within monumental sculpture, as certain sculptures were likely commissioned for domestic pleasure.

Preserving Greek Sculpture: Roman Copies

Roman Portrait often identified as Cato the Elder, c. 2nd century BCE. Source: Wikimedia Commons

Even before their conquest of Greece, Roman sculpture was highly influenced by their Greek neighbors and also by their Etruscan neighbors, who also borrowed from their Greek trading partners. Etruscan sculpture was characterized by lifesize effigies in terracotta, usually lying on top of a sarcophagus lid. Roman funerary sculpture mostly featured portrait busts, and this is probably the most distinctively “ROman” element of Roman sculpture.

Commodus Hercules — Sculpture of Commodus dressed as Hercules, c. 191-192 CE. Source: Capitoline Museum

Roman sculpture aligned with Hellenistic trends and focused on presenting individual characters rather than idealized images. Statues were made in marble and bronze, though few bronze examples survive as they were often melted down and reused. It is challenging to disentangle “Roman” and “Greek” influence in Roman sculpture since by the 2nd century BCE, most of the sculptors working in Rome were Greek. The Romans seem not to have considered sculpture a profession and were happy to leave it to Greek slaves. There were exceptions: Hellenophiles like the emperor Hadrian and impersonators of Eastern kings like Commodus were known to commission Greek-style statues.

Theodosius II, c. 5th century CE. Source: Louvre

Most Greek sculptures, often made in bronze and later melted down, only survive to the modern day thanks to Roman copies. But this period of copying ended around the 2nd century CE. By the 3rd century, sculptors seem to have lost or abandoned the classical style. By this time, even important imperial commissions showed stumpy, large-eyed figures in a harsh frontal style, in simple compositions emphasizing power rather than artistry.

Modern Receptions

David by Michelangelo, 1501-1504. Source: Accademia Gallery of Florence

The European Renaissance saw a major revitalization of ancient Greco-Roman culture in the 15th century CE. Following the heightened religiousness of the Medieval Period, the Renaissance provided a rebirth of classical intellectualism, spurring a mᴀssive rejuvenation of ancient Greco-Roman style art.

One of the main avenues for classical rebirth was the monumental style sculpture. Numerous Renaissance sculptors forged Classical and Hellenistic sculpture as a return to the “high culture” of ancient Greece and Rome. Michaelangelo’s David (1501-04 CE) stands 17 feet tall and weighs over 12,000 pounds. It is one of the most famous sculptures of the Renaissance period. Crafted in white marble and carved from a single block, the Apollonian figure stands in a classical-style contrapposto with one hand towards his chin.

One of the most common modern misconceptions about ancient Greek sculpture is that it was meant to be viewed in its iconic white marble. Despite the iconic white marble that has come to characterize classical sculpture, ancient Greco-Roman monumental sculpture was actually painted in a variety of colorful hues, which faded over time.

The reiteration of ancient Greco-Roman style sculpture has since remained prominent in the modern world as a symbol of status and intellectualism. One may find classical-style statues on display in palace gardens or estates, such as the garden at the Palace of Versailles. Ranging from film to visual art and architecture, ancient Greco-Roman sculpture continues to be prominent in contemporary culture.