Ancient Greece refers to the civilisation of the Greek world from the Bronze Age through the Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic periods, whose art, architecture and philosophy laid the foundations of Western culture. Its influence on the decorative arts has been profound and recurring.
Greek architecture gave rise to the Doric, Ionic and Corinthian orders, which shaped classical building for over two thousand years. Greek painted pottery, from black-figure to red-figure wares, depicts myths, athletes and daily life, and forms such as the amphora, kylix, krater and hydria became models for later designers. Greek sculpture set ideals of human proportion that were endlessly copied, often through Roman versions. From the mid-eighteenth century, discoveries and publications about Greek art fed the Neoclassical movement and the Greek Revival, visible in architecture, Regency furniture with sabre legs and klismos-inspired chairs, Wedgwood ceramics and silver. Motifs such as the anthemion, Greek key and palmette were widely used. Genuine Greek antiquities require careful attention to provenance and legality, while later Grecian-style objects are collected for their elegance and quality, and suit classical and contemporary interiors alike.
