In ancient Greece, the female body was evaluated according to parameters that were close to modern ones. Beauty was considered one of the highest manifestations of the generosity of the gods - beautiful people, both women and men, enjoyed no less respect and popularity than a statesman or a famous commander. There was a special stratum in society, which was made up of the most beautiful people - they were respected and respected inspirers of creative people and poets. Songs, poems were dedicated to them, sculptors created statues from them.
Mathematical Beauty
The ancient Greeks had a special love for mathematics and geometry, which is why absolutely all the parameters of the beauty of Greek women (and not only them) received an exact expression in terms of proportions. However, sculptors and artists developed their own modules and canons, which they used to create their creations.
Beauty and ethics
It should be noted that in ancient Greece it was forbidden to portray an absolutely naked female body - it was believed that this degrades the dignity of a woman and looks obscene. That is why many sculptures were covered with decoration elements carved from stone (parts of clothing and imitation of fabric drapery, etc.) and were only partially exposed. Aphrodite Praxiteles and Aphrodite de Milo remain very rare exceptions to the rule. The authors of these sculptures managed to avoid the condemnation of society: so that a bad reputation was not attached to these works of art, the sculptors depicted women during the preparation for bathing.
Women in Greek mythology
The supremacy and former greatness of the feminine can be judged by such images of Greek mythology as Leto, Athena, Hera and Aphrodite.
With the advent of the cult of the goddess of love, there is a leap in the development of art: in ancient Greece, they begin to pay attention to the image of a naked body in sculpture, frescoes and paintings. At the initial stage, the goddess Aphrodite differed from the rest of the gods of the Greek pantheon in that she was depicted completely naked. She was a beautiful maiden with long hair like liquid gold, fine and delicate features, and emerald-colored eyes. In addition, she had eternal youth and was graceful and graceful, like a doe.
Aphrodite
From the period of Ancient Greece, there is one story of the creation of a sculpture of the goddess of love and beauty - Aphrodite. Praxiteles, one of the most talented creators of graceful statueshuman body, created her in the image of his beloved. For this, he was summoned to court and accused of sacrilege, since according to the laws of that time it was forbidden to portray the gods from human images, and even more so - to associate with the goddess through a mortal woman. It was believed that the gods could be angry with people for such oversights and in anger destroy everyone who lives in the city.
In his defense, Praxiteles brought Phryne, his beloved, with him to court. Taking off her clothes in front of everyone present, the sculptor asked why they think that her body is not divine and what are the flaws in it? Convinced of the beauty of Phryne's body, the judges could not find arguments and were forced to grant freedom to the master.
Male beauty standards
The concept of attractiveness in men of Ancient Greece was also clearly defined. A toned, athletic body was held in high esteem, because the Greeks were adherents of a he althy lifestyle. An example of imitation for them was the gods of Olympus - they were initially considered an ideal that needed to be achieved. It was customary for young people to wear long wavy hair tied with a silk ribbon or a hoop, and to cleanly shave their faces. As they matured, men were allowed to grow beards and their hair became shorter.
Greek women's ideal of beauty
As mentioned earlier, the ideal of attractiveness in antiquity was an athletic, absolutely proportional body. For a Greek woman, a big advantage was high deployed shoulders, height, slightlyextended pelvis, wasp waist, slender legs and a flat toned stomach. The combination of a high forehead, blue eyes and blond hair was considered very beautiful. The nose of Greek women was supposed to be straight with a small hump. The statue of Aphrodite de Milo falls under this description. She personified the highest natural perfection and was the ideal of beauty. The sculpture depicts a slender girl with a graceful posture. Her height is 164 cm, and her hips, waist and chest are 86, 69 and 93 cm respectively.
Face beauty
Proportionality and symmetry of the face was given great importance. The flawless face could be conditionally divided into three identical parts along the lines of the eyebrows and the tip of the nose. As already mentioned, blue-eyed blondes with hair that was worn in a low but elegant bun were considered beautiful.
Greek profile
Greek profile - a special interpretation of the profile of a person's face, which is part of the canon of the sculpture of Ancient Greece of the Hellenistic and classical eras. It is also one of the most important characteristics of the attractiveness of that period.
A distinctive feature is the line of the nose, which goes straight into the forehead with almost no emphasis on the bridge of the nose. If a helmet is worn on the head, then this line merges with it too. A relatively heavy chin is also noted.
It is extremely difficult to meet people with a similar appearance in real life, even among modern Greeks. General type: high compact nose, developed cheekbones, rectangular eye sockets, narrow nasalregion, rectangular face. Using the expression "Greek profile" in spoken language to describe someone's beauty is not true, because in fact, usually people just want to express admiration for the purity of the lines of the profile of the person they are describing. It's worth noting that "Greek profile" is not synonymous with "long nose" and it's a common mistake to think so.
Analyzing the Greek profile, Hegel comes to the conclusion that the “animal” features that are inherent in the head are maximally smoothed out in it: cheekbones, chewing muscles, mouth, reminiscent of human physiology, and, conversely, emphasis is placed on features that denote mental activity - first of all, it is a beautiful forehead. In such a face, the proportions of which are in perfect harmony, the usually not very high forehead receives an expression of stubborn concentration of mind and firmness, indicating the high virtues of a person.
As for the female face, according to the main canons that define the idea of beauty, it was considered beautiful if a Greek woman has a straight nose, and her eyes are wide open and large, the distance between them should not be less than the size of one eye. Large eyes were skillfully emphasized by rounded arches of the eyebrows. All this had to be framed by smooth lines of the chin, nose and low forehead. The hair was not cut off, but laid in a neat hairstyle tied with a silk ribbon at the back of the head.
Greek diet
Greek women's appearance paid great attention. It is knownthat they have a special fondness for food, so it is not surprising that they had magnificent figures. However, in order for the forms to be just seductive, similar in shape to an hourglass, Greek women try to monitor their diet. That is why Greek women in the photo look so harmonious. Among the national Greek dishes, you can see many recipes from meat, fish and vegetables. No wonder Greek women are beautiful. All over the world, nutritionists have repeatedly paid attention to the fact that Greek cuisine is a model of separate nutrition: here eggplants are baked with potatoes, cheeses are eaten with tomatoes, and meat and fish are eaten separately from each other and without a side dish.
Greek character
The women of Greece (and not only them, by the way, men too) are bright individualists who have their own view of this life and are not afraid to oppose it to the opinion of society. They have a habit of defending only personal interests and in most cases they are neutral about cultural, economic and political events that do not affect their personal world.
What absolutely no Greek will tolerate is an attack on the freedoms of his country and on his personal freedom. This is not surprising, since the worship of democracy is in the blood of the modern inhabitants of Hellas. If there is the slightest hint of infringement of their rights, the Greek population can turn into a formidable force that is ready to rush to the enemy.
Another typical Greek trait is pronounced emotionality. To express their feelings, the Greeks do not seethe need for half measures. If they cry, then sobbing, and if they laugh, then from the heart. Even the famous steadfastness and thoughtfulness of the Greek fishermen is only a confirmation of this peculiarity of their character, since only very emotional people can immerse themselves in their inner world with the same passion with which they would indulge in fun and joy at their own daughter's wedding.
It is also necessary to pay attention to the famous Greek hospitality, elevated by the Greeks themselves to the rank of a national tradition revered with special trepidation. Arriving in Greece, you will encounter this at almost every turn. The waiters with great pleasure and joy will explain to you which dishes the chef especially managed to prepare today, the shop assistants will accept your order with a polite and kind smile, and the hotel staff will surround you with attention and real home care. If you have business partners or friends in Greece, and you need to come to visit them, get ready for a meeting, in comparison with which even the much-praised Russian hospitality will fade. It will not be just an ordinary dinner, but a real feast, where tables will burst with delicious dishes, wine will flow like a river, and there will be no end to songs and dances.
It's very funny that two absolutely opposite features also harmoniously combine with each other in the Greek character: the famous business acumen of the Greeks and the no less famous Greek piety.
Greek clothes
The ancient Greeks not only achieved great success in various fields of culture, butand succeeded in the art of dressing well: they were the first to come to the idea that people in their magnificence are like gods, and the human body is a mirror reflecting the ideals of the universe.
The main elements of the national costume in Ancient Greece were: a himation, which is a cape that was draped to emphasize the figure, and a chiton, which was underwear. Based on the requirements of morality and morality of that era, clothes for Greek women were longer than men's and covered almost the entire body. It also consisted of a himation and a tunic, but was much more colorful and brighter. However, wearing colorful clothes was not welcomed by the Greeks. To make the one-color outfit more interesting, it was decorated with elaborate ornaments and embroidery.
Today, clothes for women in the Greek style are not only part of the history of the country, but also the inspirer of designers and fashion designers from all over the world to create creations of modern fashion art that attract fashionistas with their elegance and lightness.
