Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. Mortals: the body in classical antiquity. From cradle to grave ; Cosmetics and the art of looking good ; Athletics ; Bathtime erotics ; Diet ; Medicine -- 2. Higher powers: gods and heroes. Pantheons and pagans ; Imagining and imaging the divine ; Heroic intermediaries ; Cultic performance ; A place for the gods -- 3. Myth in the making. Myths about myth ; The Iliad and the Odyssey ; Excavating Homer ; 'Greek' myth abroad ; Trojan aspirations and Roman receptions -- 4. Manipulating nature. Managing the countryside ; 'Beyond the acropolis' ; Landscape and gardens ; Natural resources ; Craft specialization -- 5. Political animals. Founding fathers: democrats and republicans ; Mythologizing political origins ; Styling civic power ; Situating the city ; Citizen right and military might -- 6. Oikos and economy. House and home ; Slaves in the classical economy ; Trading abroad ; A monetary system? -- 7. Philosophy and education. 'The unexamined life is not worth living' ; The 'schools' of classical philosophy ; Paideia and the principles of classical education -- 8. Dionysos: Apollo. A philosopher's polarity ; Wining, dining, and Dionysizing ; Acting out Dionysos ; 'Know thyself': Apollo and cosmic harmony -- 9. The classical tradition of art. Classical aesthetika ; A chronological synthesis -- 10. The present classical past. 'Decline and fall'--or the stuff of dreams? ; 'Speaking stones': the Parthenon ; Claims on the classical ; Cinematic classics ; Knocking the ruins ; Classical pasts, presents, and futures.

"The world of ancient Greece and Rome enthrals us as perhaps no other civilization can. The starting-point for everything we understand about philosophy, science, literature and art, it makes an extraordinary story in its own right. The more so in this completely fresh assessment by experts who have not only mastered the original sources but also drawn on the fascinating new approaches to Classical life and civilization that have been developed in recent decades." "Instead of the usual chronological approach, Nigel Spivey and Michael Squire have organized their subject thematically, analyzing the ideas and values that lie beneath the history. The story is illuminated by illustrations that go far beyond the familiar masterpieces, and range widely through time, genres, and geographical areas. Extra features include illustrated 'dictionaries' of Classical lives and mythology, a glossary, timeline, and map."--Jacket.