The Greek Myths

The Ancient Greeks lived over two thousand years ago.
They had hundreds of stories about their gods and heroes.
These stories are still enjoyed by people today.

The Greeks were also great artists. Their statues are in
museums all over the world. They made beautiful pottery,
painted with pictures of gods, heroes and their stories.

They believed the gods lived on Mt Olympus. Like any
family, they had love affairs, fights and rivalries. It was hard for people to keep them all happy. Each god had his or her own temple. People had to sacrifices animals and make offerings of wine and food. If you forgot one of them, they might change you into an animal, bird or tree. If you broke their laws the punishment would beterrible.

The Greeks loved sport. They had athletics, wrestling and horse racing. They had the first Olympic Games. Soldiers would stop fighting to compete in the races and contests.

The Greeks invented democracy. Every Greek man had a right to vote. But life was much harder for women and foreigners.They had no rights. Women had to stay at home. Work was done by slaves.