Ages of Man

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This article is about mythology. For the speech by Shakespeare, see As You Like It

The Ages of Man are the stages of human existence on the Earth according to Classical mythology.

In his Works and Days, the Boeotian poet Hesiod described Five Ages of Man:

The Golden Age, beginning with and taking place during the rule of Cronus - Men lived among the gods, and freely mingled with them. Peace and harmony prevailed during this age. Humans did not grow old, but died peacefully. Spring was eternal and people were fed on acorns from a great oak as well as wild fruits and honey that dripped from the trees. This race eventually died out because there was no way to reproduce. Their spirits live on as "guardians".
The Silver Age, beginning with the birth of Apollo and the rule of Zeus - These people lived for one hundred years as children without growing up, then they suddenly aged and died. Zeus destroyed these people because of their impiety.
Bronze Age or Brazen Age, beginning with the Ogygian Deluge - These humans were fierce and warlike and their tools and implements were made of bronze. They destroyed one another with their violence.
The Heroic Age (Second Brazen Age), beginning with Deucalion's flood - In this period lived noble demigods and heroes. It was the heroes of this Age who fought at the seven-gated Thebes as well as at the Trojan War. This race of humans died and went to Elysium.
The Iron Age, beginning with the Dorian invasion - This is the current and last age in which humans must struggle to stay alive, when the world is full of pain, discontent and vice. Gods no longer contact mortals. Zeus will someday destroy this race of humans. This time will come when babies are born with white hair. This is among others comparable to Hinduism's Kali Yuga or the Judeo-Christian End Times.

In Metamorphoses, Ovid followed a similar tradition, translated into Roman terms. Ovid described Four Ages of Man: Golden, Silver, Brazen, and Iron.

In the Book of Daniel, Nebuchadnezzar has a dream of a statue made of the four metals which is interpreted by Daniel. Whether this story derives from a common literary tradition with that of the classical accounts is uncertain, but it utilizes the same four metals to describe changing periods of history.

These mythological ages are sometimes associated with historical timelines. In particular, the Bronze Age and Iron Age are well known eras in archaeology, which may have some relation to the mythology.

In the Hellenistic chronology of Greek mythology, the Golden Age lasts ca. 1710 to 1674 BC, the Silver Age 1674 to 1628 BC, the First Brazen Age 1628 to 1472 BC, the Heroic Age 1460 to 1103 BC, while the Iron Age was considered as still ongoing by Hesiod in the 8th century.