The Greek And Persian Empires - 1156 Words

Throughout the years, many historians have acknowledged that the classical era was a time when Greek and Persian Empires flourished. With that being said, from approximately 323-800 B.C.E., both the Greek and Persian Empire were experiencing periods of economic, political, and artistic growth. The Persians, like the Greeks, were Indo Europeans, and were located by the Mediterranean Sea, which consequently allowed Greeks and Persians to develop similarities. At this time, many emerging civilizations lacked communication with other societies. Consequently, this enabled many civilizations to established their own political systems, cultures, and religions. However, unlike other aspiring nations, the Greek and Persian Empires had interaction†¦show more content†¦The Greeks were also located near the Mediterranean Sea. Ancient Greek culture was known for its contributions to the architecture, science, mathematics, theatre and arts, and literature. The Greeks also made the first significant, fundamental steps in science. The Greeks developed specific scientific branches, such as zoology, biology, and anthropology. They were also known for controlling the Persian Empire after the Persian War. King Alexander the Great initiated a war with Persia, conquered and killed the last emperors. When they got ahold of Persians important city, Persepolis, they burned it down. After Alexander, Greek culture spread out throughout Persia and it was known as Hellenistic Era. (Lecture 10). Religion also separated the Greeks and Persians. Persians placed a great emphasis on ritual, and practiced religious autonomy or religious toleration. Also, Persia was known to have three distinct religions. However, Zoroastrianism was considered the primary religion in Persia, because it was the first monotheistic religion. This religion introduced the idea of a dualistic universe that focused on good versus evil and heaven and hell (Lecture 8). The Persians were also committed to having people convert to their religion. As for the Greeks, â€Å"They did not recognize a single, exclusive, all powerful God† (Bentley 212). Greeks believed in mythology and in many different gods, such as Zeus, Poseidon,