Greek art influenced the Romans

The Romans became enamored with the Greeks they had conquered and copied many aspects of their lives and culture.

A couple weeks ago my family and I took a memorable trip to Greece, including Athens, the mainland, and several islands. For part of the trip, we had a delightful and very informed tour guide named Maria who told us fascinating tidbits about Greek history. For instance, the main reason we know so much about Greek art is because of the sculptures left to us that are actually copies made by the Romans. Most of the authentic Greek art has been destroyed but our body of knowledge about Greek art comes to us through the Roman copies that have been found.

She repeatedly encouraged us to think about Rome's occupation of Greece like this: "The conquered conquered the conquerors."

The Greek civilization is older than the Roman. The Romans took over Greece and yet became thoroughly appreciative of and versed in their culture. The Romans admired Greek art, architecture, plays, and literature and imitated much of it. So now I understand her statement: "The conquered conquered the conquerors."