Agolden age is a period considered the peak in the history of a country or people, a time period when thegreatest achievements were made. The term originated from earlyGreek andRoman poets, who used it to refer to a time when mankind lived in a better time and was pure (seeGolden Age).
Theancient Greek poetHesiod introduced the term in hisWorks and Days, when referring to the period when the "Golden Race" of man lived. This was part of fivefold division ofAges of Man, starting with the Golden age, then theSilver Age, the Bronze Age, theAge of Heroes (including theTrojan War), and finally, the current Iron Age.[1] The concept was further refined byOvid, in hisMetamorphoses, into the four "metal ages" (golden, silver, bronze, and iron).[2]
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.[1] 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.[3] The idea of a Golden age lingered in literature and historical understanding throughout the Greek and Roman periods.[4] It was partly replaced by the ChristianSix Ages of the World based on the biblical chronology in the earlyMiddle Ages.[5]
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.[6] The classical idea of the "metal ages" as actual historical periods held sway throughout the Greek and Roman periods.[4] While supplemented bySt. 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 earlyarchaeology.[5]
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 thethree-age system.[7][8] Still,Rousseau used the term for a loosely defined historical period characterized by the "State of nature" as late as the late 18th century.[9] 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 thehunter-gatherer tribal societies of theMesolithic, but only as a metaphor.[10]
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.
Vijayanagara Empire is also considered the golden age of Indian astronomy, mathematics, arts and architecture.
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 theTaj Mahal andRed Fort.
Golden age ofChristian 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 inIndonesian history from about 1293 to around 1500 when the Hindu–BuddhistMajapahit kingdom in eastern Java, underGajah 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 EmperorIvan Alexander (1331–1371)
Thehistory of Malta under the Order of Saint John (1530–1798) is generally considered as a "golden age" of architecture, the arts, health and education, especially between the late 1560s and the early 1770s[17]
The "Golden Age of Britain" is theVictorian era, under Queen Victoria, in the 19th century[b]TheVictorian era is often cited as the Golden Age of Britain
Golden Age of Capitalism, a period of rapid growth in the economies of the west, and Japan, from 1945 to 1970. Also used for theGilded Age of the late 19th century
A golden age is often ascribed to the years immediately following a technological innovation that allows new forms of expression and new ideas. Examples include:
TheGolden Age of radio-controlled buggies, 1983–1992. A period when model companies shifted towards practical electric-powered buggies, leading to numerous companies (including toy manufacturers) entering the market and helping it to become the dominant class.
Golden age of hip hop, mid 1980s–mid 1990s a period when hip-hop music was arguably at its creative and artistic peak
Golden age of race queens had enjoyed two eras; the first was the swimsuit cladrace queen bubble of the late 1980s to late 1990s[36] and the miniskirtedsecond golden age of race queen of the 2000s, when the influx of models came with the ability to draw the same as or bigger popularity than some of the drivers competing in the events.[37]
At least one technology had its "Golden Age" in its latter years:
Technology and creativity spawn new genres or new surges in the production of literature and the arts. The onset (or dominance or heyday) of a new genre/movement, in popular parlance, becomes its "Golden Age". For example:
Golden age of Swordplay, period ofsword skills from the 16th to the 18th centuries
^Boys-Stones, G.R.; Haubold, J.H., eds. (2010).Plato and Hesiod. Oxford: Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-923634-3.
^Goodrum, Matthew R. (2008). "Questioning Thunderstones and Arrowheads: The Problem of Recognizing and Interpreting Stone Artifacts in the Seventeenth Century".Early Science and Medicine.13 (5):482–508.doi:10.1163/157338208X345759.
^Gräslund, Bo (1987).The Birth of Prehistoric Chronology. Dating methods and dating systems in nineteenth-century Scandinavian archeology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
^Paasonen, Susanna; Saarenmaa, Laura, eds. (July 19, 2007). "The Golden Age of Porn: Nostalgia and History in Cinema".Pornification: Sex and Sexuality in Media Culture(PDF). Oxford: Berg. RetrievedApril 30, 2017.
^abComenas, Gary (2005)."Blue Movie (1968)".WarholStars.org. RetrievedDecember 29, 2015.
^ab"Pornography". Pornography Girl. Archived fromthe original on May 6, 2008. RetrievedJuly 16, 2013.The first explicitly pornographic film with a plot that received a general theatrical release in the U.S. is generally considered to be Mona (Mona the Virgin Nymph)...
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