Golden age (metaphor)

A golden age is a period considered the peak in the history of a country or people, a time period when the greatest achievements were made. The term originated from early Greek and Roman poets, who used it to refer to a time when mankind lived in a better time and was pure.
The ancient Greek poet Hesiod introduced the term in his Works and Days, when referring to the period when the "Golden Race" of man lived. This was part of fivefold division of Ages of Man, starting with the Golden age, then the Silver Age, the Bronze Age, the Age of Heroes, and finally, the current Iron Age. The concept was further refined by Ovid, in his Metamorphoses, into the four "metal ages".

The Golden age in Classic literature

The Golden age as described by Hesiod was an age where all humans were created directly by the Olympian gods. They lived long lives in peace and harmony, and were oblivious of death. The "Golden race" were however mortals, but would die peacefully and in their sleep unmarked by sickness and age. Ovid emphasizes the justice and peace that defined the Golden Age. He described it as a time before man learned the art of navigation, and as a pre-agricultural society. The idea of a Golden age lingered in literature and historical understanding throughout the Greek and Roman periods. It was partly replaced by the Christian Six Ages of the World based on the biblical chronology in the early Middle Ages.

Evolution from period to metaphor

The term "Golden age" has always had a metaphoric element. A few centuries after Hesiod, Plato pointed out that the "Golden race" were not made from gold as such, but that the term should be understood metaphorically. The classical idea of the "metal ages" as actual historical periods held sway throughout the Greek and Roman periods. While supplemented by St. Augustine's "Six Ages of the World", the classical ideas were never entirely eradicated, and it resurfaced to form the basis of division of time in early archaeology.
At the birth of modern archaeology in the 18th century, the "Golden age" was associated with a pre-agricultural society. However, already in the 16th century, the term "Golden age" was replaced by "Stone Age" in the three-age system. Still, Rousseau used the term for a loosely defined historical period characterized by the "State of nature" as late as the late 18th century. While the concept of an Iron and Bronze Age are still used by historians and archaeologists, the "Golden age" of Hesiod was a purely mythical period, and has come to signify any period in history where the state of affairs for a specific phenomenon appear to have been on their height, better than in the periods preceding it and following the "Golden Age". It is sometimes still employed for the hunter-gatherer tribal societies of the Mesolithic, but only as a metaphor.

Golden Age in society timeline

A society's Golden Age marks that period in its history having a heightened output of art, science, literature, and philosophy.
File:Lightmatter acropolis.jpg|thumb|Acropolis, rebuilt by Pericles during the Age of Pericles

Ancient Egypt experienced several Golden Ages, including the Fourth Dynasty during the Old Kingdom, as well as the New Kingdom
Athenian Golden Age presided by Pericles
Golden age of Latin literature, the period in Latin literature between Cicero and Ovid
The age of the "Five Good Emperors" during the Principate, part of the Pax Romana period, is generally considered the zenith of the Roman Empire, and Edward Gibbon even considered it the happiest age of humanity
Golden Age of India
* Gupta Empire, during which Indians made great achievements in mathematics, science, culture, religion, philosophy and astronomy.
* Maurya Empire is also considered a golden age as mathematics, science and the arts during its zenith. Many historians have considered that during the Maurya era, the Indian subcontinent generated close to one-third of global GDP, which would be the highest the region would ever contribute.
*Mughal Empire was considered the last golden age of India, when India last had 1/4th of the global economy and construction of monuments such as the Taj Mahal and Red Fort.
The Classic Period of Mesoamerica, the era when Teotihuacan dominated central Mexico and several important Maya city states, most notably Calakmul and Tikal, reached their apogee.
Early Christian Ireland, when Ireland was united under one High King and was significant in European art
Islamic Golden Age in which Islamic scientific achievements spanned a wide range of subject areas including medicine, mathematics, astronomy, and agriculture as well as physics, economics, engineering and optics.
*Reign of Harun al-Rashid, the height of the Abbasid Caliphate, before the Fourth Fitna, the Anarchy at Samarra, and the onset of political fragmentation
*More generally from the reign of Harun al-Rashid until the sack of Baghdad by the Mongols in the Arab world.

File:"Hosios Lukas" monastery, Greece - © UNESCO World Heritage property - panoramio.jpg|thumb|The Macedonian era is often cited as the Golden Age of Byzantium

Byzantine Empire under the Macedonian dynasty, has been dubbed the "Golden Age" of Byzantium
Golden age of Kyiv, 10th century
China has had multiple golden ages, with the Han, Tang, Song, Ming and Qing all considered golden ages in Chinese history. The "Chinese Golden Age" is used to refer to the period of the Tang and Song Dynasties from 618 to 1279, which saw an economic revolution
Golden age of Jewish culture in the Iberian Peninsula, the period between 900 and 1100. Sometimes categorized as part of the larger Islamic Golden Age, because of the event's timeframe and geography
Golden age of Christian monasticism, 8th–12th centuries, its peak being 11th century to early-mid 12th century. Understood to be a golden age in the European continent of strictly religious matters, and not in comparison to other golden ages of the era
Golden Age of medieval Bulgarian culture, a golden age in Bulgaria
Georgian Golden Age, the period of prosperity and cultural flourishing in the Kingdom of Georgia in the 11th, 12th, and early 13th centuries, especially under Queen Tamar the Great
Golden age of Myanmar from the 1050s and 1060s under King Anawrahta until the Mongol invasions of the 1280s during the Pagan dynasty where significant advancements were made in architectural engineering
Golden age of Khmer civilization during the 12th and 13th centuries, when Angkor Wat was constructed, medieval Cambodia was at its territorial peak, and Hindu culture flourished in Mainland Southeast Asia
Golden Age in Indonesian history from about 1293 to around 1500 when the Hindu–Buddhist Majapahit kingdom in eastern Java, under Gajah Mada, extended its influence to much of southern Malay Peninsula, Borneo, Sumatra, and Bali.
Second Golden Age of Bulgaria, the prosperity of Bulgarian culture, literature and arts during Emperor Ivan Alexander
Golden Age of Serbia, during the Serbian Empire, under the reigns of Tsars Stefan Dušan and Stefan Uroš V, when the country reached its greatest territorial extent, spanning from the Danube in the north to the Gulf of Corinth in the south
14th & 15th century Africa were a golden age for West Africa, when trade routes flourished, leading to the advancement of mathematics and science.
Portuguese Golden Ages
*Portuguese Golden Age, 15th century – 1580. Possibly the European power of the time most proficient in sailing
*Second Portuguese Golden Age, Brazilian gold rush, late 17th century to 19th century
Golden age of Valencian literature, 15th century
Ottoman Golden Age, 1450s–1560s, partly under the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent
The High Renaissance of the 16th century is often described as the "golden age" of the culture and art of Renaissance Italy
The history of Malta under the Order of Saint John is generally considered as a "golden age" of architecture, the arts, health and education, especially between the late 1560s and the early 1770s
Golden age of Belarusian history, 1500s–1570s, esp. 1550s–1570s
The Spanish Golden Age corresponds to the reign of the Catholic Monarchs and of the Habsburgs between 1492 and 1659, a period marked by a powerful Spanish Empire and by the flourishing of the arts
English Golden Ages
*The "Golden Age of England" is the Elizabethan era, under Elizabeth I, in the late 16th century, as her reign is often depicted as a golden age and the high point of the English Renaissance.
*The "Golden Age of Britain" is the Victorian era, under Queen Victoria, in the 19th century
Polish Golden Age, 14th century, end of 17th century
Dutch Golden Age, 17th century, approximately 1588–1672
*Golden Age of Dutch Painting, spanning the 17th century
*Golden Age of Netherlandish cartography, c. 1590s–1720s
Grand Siècle, the reigns of Louis XIII and Louis XIV, 1610–1715.
Swedish Golden Age, era in Swedish history when Sweden was a great power, controlling Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and parts of Northern Germany, 1611–1721
The Golden Age of Piracy, 1650–1730Image:HiroshigeChushingura.jpg|thumb|The Forty-seven Ronin, one of the best known themes from the Japanese Golden Age
The Genroku era in Japan is widely considered a "golden age" for literature, drama, and the arts
Danish Golden Age, first half of the 19th century
Golden Age of Russian Poetry, first half of the 19th century, with Russian poets Pushkin, Lermontov, Tyutchev and others
The Belle Époque is considered France's golden age as it was a time when culture, science, and living standards reached their peak
Golden Age of Capitalism, a period of rapid growth in the economies of the west, and Japan, from 1945 to 1970. Also used for the Gilded Age of the late 19th century
The Roaring Twenties, the 1920s in America, the Golden Twenties were the European equivalent
Likewise in the United States, the American Century may be taken to represent a golden age of global cultural influence and political hegemony