Dates are approximate, consult particular article for details
The history of Greece during Classical Antiquity may thus be subdivided into the following periods:[7]
The Archaic period (c. 800 – c. 500 BC), in which artists made larger free-standing sculptures in stiff, hieratic poses with the dreamlike "archaic smile". The Archaic period is often taken to end with the overthrow of the last tyrant of Athens and the start of Athenian Democracy in 508 BC.
The Classical period (c. 500 – 323 BC) is characterised by a style which was considered by later observers to be exemplary i.e. "classical", as shown in for instance the Parthenon. Politically, the Classical Period was dominated by Athens and the Delian League during the 5th century, but displaced by Spartan hegemony during the early 4th century BC, before power shifted to Thebes and the Boeotian League and finally to the League of Corinth led by Macedon.
In the Hellenistic period (323–146 BC) Greek culture and power expanded into the Near and Middle East. This period begins with the death of Alexander and ends with the Roman conquest.
Roman Greece, the period between Roman victory over the Corinthians at the Battle of Corinth in 146 BC and the establishment of Byzantium by Constantine as the capital of the Roman Empire in AD 330.
The final phase of Antiquity is the period of Christianization during the later 4th to early 6th centuries AD, sometimes taken to be complete with the closure of the Academy of Athens by Justinian I in 529.[8]
Historiography
Main article: Greek historiographers
The historical period of ancient Greece is unique in world history as the first period attested directly in proper historiography, while earlier ancient history or proto-history is known by much more circumstantial evidence, such as annals or king lists, and pragmatic epigraphy.
Herodotus is widely known as the "father of history": his Histories are eponymous of the entire field. Written between the 450s and 420s BC, Herodotus' work reaches about a century into the past, discussing 6th century historical figures such as Darius I of Persia, Cambyses II and Psamtik III, and alluding to some 8th century ones such as Candaules.
Herodotus was succeeded by authors such as Thucydides, Xenophon, Demosthenes, Plato and Aristotle. Most of these authors were either Athenians or pro-Athenians, which is why far more is known about the history and politics of Athens than those of many other cities. Their scope is further limited by a focus on political, military and diplomatic history, ignoring economic and social history.[9]