Athenian society was organized pre-eminently as a man's world. Women were expected to prepare the meals, run their households—and stay out of sight. Fathers arranged marriages for their adolescent daughters. Thereafter, wives came under total control of their husbands. They received much male advice on the subject of staying home and being silent. The playwright Menander told them, "The loom is women's work and not debate." When their husbands entertained guests at dinner the women remained in their own quarters on the second floor, anointing their bodies with fragrant essences and sweet-scented oils, dreamily watching the street traffic through the windows. But husbands did not entertain every night, and when there were no guests man and wife shared each other's company. Thus the segregated relationship ordained by society melted into the family love that again and again is pictured in vase painting and sculpture.
A WOMAN WITH MIRROR, showfi at right, is inspecting her makeup. Among the various cosmetics used during this period were scents, white lead to whiten skin and alkanet root to redden the cheeks.
WEAVING AT HOME, two women at a loom (above) pass the shuttle. Most homes were small workshops, where household necessities were produced from raw materials.
MEASURING for a sandal, a shoemaker (below) places his customer's foot on the leather and cuts the sole. Indoors and in summer many Greeks went barefoot.
WORKING ON A STATUE, an artist (below) colors a figure of Heracles with thick wax paint. Nearly all the sculpture of ancient Greece was originally painted.
IN A BUTCHER'S SHOP, a boy holds a quarter of beef as the butcher (above) cuts. Meat was a luxury and it was seldom eaten, save on festive occasions.
World History
