Golden Age
Χρύσεον γένος
Hesiod's view of history: humanity descending from gold to iron.
History divides into five ages — gold, silver, bronze, heroes, iron — each worse than the last.
In the Golden Age no one grew old, the earth gave freely without labor, and gods lived among mortals.
Hesiod laments being born in the Age of Iron — reading history not as progress but as decline.
SourcesHesiod, Works and Days
Commonly confused
Only the Age of Heroes breaks the downward pattern (it is better than bronze). It is seen as the seam where Hesiod forced the heroes of Troy into his scheme.