The splendid culture of the ancient Greeks has often been described as emerging like a miracle from a genius of its own, owing practically nothing to its neighbors. Walter Burkert offers a decisive argument against that distorted view, pointing toward a balanced picture of the archaic period "in which, under the influence of the Semitic East--from writers, craftsmen, merchants, healers--Greek culture began its unique flowering, soon to assume cultural hegemony in the Mediterranean.

Walter Burkert is Professor Emeritus of Classics, University of Zurich.

Read More by Walter Burkert:

• Ancient Mystery Cults
• Creation of the Sacred: Tracks of Biology in Early Religions
• Greek Religion
• Babylon, Memphis, Persepolis: Eastern Contexts of Greek Culture
• Lore and Science in Ancient Pythagoreanism