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Spartans used iron bars as currency to discourage accumulation of wealth and foreign influence, promoting social equality.
Why did Spartans use iron bars for currency?
The main use of land in ancient Sparta was agriculture.
What was the main use of land in ancient Sparta?
Trade in Sparta was mainly conducted by the periokoi, as full Spartan citizens were discouraged from economic activities outside of agriculture and warfare.
Who was mainly responsible for trade in Sparta?
Spartan citizenship was closely tied to the possession of a kleros, or land allotment.
How did land ownership relate to citizenship in Sparta?
Spartan kings had privileges including receiving special portions of war booty, having land assigned to them, and being granted seats of honor at public events and religious festivals.
What privileges did the Spartan kings possess?
The ephorate was a group of five annually elected magistrates who supervised the kings, oversaw education, controlled foreign policy, and administered civil law.
What was the role of the ephorate in Spartan government?
The Great Rhetra was originally memorized and transmitted orally rather than written down.
How was the Great Rhetra originally recorded or passed down in Sparta?
Poseidon was worshipped as the god of the sea and earthquakes, reflecting Sparta's connection to both land and maritime influence.
What was Poseidon's role in Spartan belief?
Pottery in Sparta was primarily utilitarian, used for storage, cooking, and everyday purposes, and less ornate than in other Greek city-states.
What was the significance of pottery in Spartan technology?
Funerary rituals included processions, singing of dirges, and the marking of graves, with public honors for those who died heroically.
What rituals were associated with Spartan funerary practices?