Greece and the Augustan cultural revolution

Description:

"This book examines the impact of the Roman cultural revolution under Augustus on the Roman province of Greece. It argues that the transformation of Roman Greece into a classicizing 'museum' was a specific response of the provincial Greek elites to the cultural politics of the Roman imperial monarchy. Against a background of Roman debates about Greek culture and Roman decadence, Augustus promoted the ideal of a Roman debt to a 'classical' Greece rooted in Europe and morally opposed to a stereotyped Asia. In Greece the regime signalled its admiration for Athens, Sparta, Olympia and Plataea as symbols of these past Greek glories. Cued by the Augustan monarchy, provincial-Greek notables expressed their Roman orientation by competitive cultural work (revival of ritual; restoration of buildings) aimed at further emphasising Greece's 'classical' legacy. Reprised by Hadrian, the Augustan construction of 'classical' Greece helped to promote the archaism typifying Greek culture under the principate"--

subjects: Political culture,  Acculturation,  HISTORY / Ancient / General,  Influence,  Roman influences,  Social change,  Civilization,  Elites (Social sciences),  Moral conditions,  Ancient Cities and towns,  Ethnicity,  History,  Augustus, emperor of rome, 63 b.c.-14 a.d.,  Hadrian, emperor of rome, 76-138,  Elite (social sciences),  Cities and towns, ancient,  Cities and towns, greece

People: Hadrian Emperor of Rome (76-138),  Augustus Emperor of Rome (63 B.C.-14 A.D)

Places: Greece

Times: To 1500