The conquests of the Macedonian king Alexander the Great (356–323 B.C.) spread Greek civilization eastward throughout the lands of the former Persian Empire and changed the face of the ancient world forever, opening trade routes and encouraging cultural exchanges with far-reaching implications. Several dynasties emerged after Alexander's Successors divided his empire into their own kingdoms: the Seleucids in the Near East, the Ptolemies in Egypt, and the Antigonids in Macedonia. During the first half of the third century B.C., smaller kingdoms—including the Attalid kingdom of Pergamon—broke off from the Seleucids. Alexander was a model for his Successors, who sought to link themselves to their great leader, the conqueror of the world.

Aside from his military prowess, Alexander's active patronage of the arts was of particular significance. He chose from among the most innovative sculptors, painters, architects, and gem cutters of his time. The famous bronze sculptor Lysippos of Sikyon served as his court sculptor, the only artist permitted to create official portrait sculptures of the king. Alexander's image would prove to be a major influence on the portraiture of Hellenistic kings. Artistic works commemorating military victories and the hunt, an important ritual for Macedonian nobility, were especially popular in the Hellenistic period and often followed the example of art made for Alexander. His many personal, civic, and religious commissions reveal his taste in monuments, which tended toward boldness, ingenuity, and magnificence—qualities also valued by the Hellenistic courts.

This gallery introduces the history of archaeological excavations at Pergamon, perhaps the best-preserved and most thoroughly studied example of a Hellenistic capital. In the 1860s Carl Humann, a German engineer employed by the Ottoman Empire to survey land for railroad construction, noticed residents of the modern town of Bergama burning fragments of ancient marble sculpture to make lime. Hoping to preserve what remained, he appealed to the Berlin Museums and sent back several examples. Of the extraordinary relief sculptures showing gods battling giants (from what is now known as the Great Altar), Humann wrote, "We have found an entire artistic epoch!" Alexander Conze, the director of the Berlin Museums, soon linked them to the description of a famous altar at Pergamon and raised funds for excavations.

Humann led the archaeological investigations between 1878 and 1886, and while the priority was recovering sculpture of the Great Altar, large portions of the ancient acropolis were also revealed. The Ottoman government authorized the enterprise and allowed the Berlin Museums to have a portion of the finds, which were displayed to immense acclaim. Over the past 138 years, archaeologists have identified the remains of the city's most important components, including the agora, theater, gymnasium, royal palaces, sanctuaries, and cemeteries outside the city walls. Since 1900, excavations have been overseen by the Deutsches Archäologisches Institut (German Archaeological Institute) and continue to provide us with a greater understanding of the artistic innovations of the Hellenistic period, as demonstrated by the works displayed in the following galleries.

As the political and economic seat of the Attalid dynasty, Pergamon was a flourishing artistic center. Classical Athens inspired many features of Pergamon, beginning with its architectural magnificence. Among the performing arts, drama, which originated in Athens, enjoyed great popularity, notably the tragedies of Euripides and the comedies of Menander. Singers, dancers, mimes, and charlatans offered other forms of entertainment. In Egypt and the eastern Mediterranean kingdoms, the royal foundation of libraries sent a message of culture and power. King Eumenes II (r. 197–159 B.C.), who created the library in Pergamon, vied with Ptolemy V of Egypt for the acquisition of texts written on scrolls of papyrus or animal skins. Libraries became connected with gymnasia that evolved into centers of learning, attracting scholars, teachers, and students.

For the cosmopolitan and diverse population of Pergamon, artists and craftsmen provided embellishments such as sculpture and mosaics for royal and civic structures, utilitarian necessities including pottery for daily use, and small-scale works of art in bronze and terracotta for private enjoyment or dedication. Athena—the patron goddess of Pergamon characterized by wisdom, the protection of artistic industry, and a martial presence—fittingly presides over this gallery.

Pergamon was resplendent with monumental sanctuaries, lavish palaces, and impressive public architecture. Built during the reigns of several Attalid rulers, the Sanctuary of Athena Polias Nikephoros (Athena of the City and Bearer of Victory)—Pergamon's patron deity—stood at the center of the citadel and functioned as the primary site for the commemoration of the dynasty's military victories.

The Attalids, emulating the Athenians of the fifth century B.C., invested in art to promote their political aspirations as defenders of Hellenic culture against "barbarism." On both the Pergamene and Athenian acropolises, the Attalids dedicated imposing multi-figure bronze groups to celebrate the victories of Attalos I (r. 241–197 B.C.) over the Gauls, the Celtic tribes that, after settling in central Asia Minor, began plundering and exacting tribute from the Greek cities when not employed as mercenaries by belligerent Hellenistic kings.

These sculptural groups, known today as the Greater and Lesser Attalid dedications due to their difference in scale, masterfully express the heroic valor in defeating a fearsome enemy, in a style meant to elicit a strong emotional response from the viewer. By such royal commissions, the Attalids associated themselves with an august mythical and historical past to ensure the legacy of their kingdom.

The Great Altar was the most spectacular building erected at Pergamon. A sacrificial altar of extravagant proportions, likely dedicated to Zeus, as well as a dynastic monument of the Attalids, it is a marvel of Hellenistic architecture and sculpture. Prominently placed on a terrace to the south of and below the Sanctuary of Athena, the altar comprised an enclosed court upon a massive podium surrounded by an Ionic colonnade and reached by a wide stairway to the west.

The sculptural and architectural elements from the Great Altar as well as the large-scale sculptures from its terrace presented here convey the dramatic style of the monument. Among them are acroteria, sculptures in the round that crowned the roof, and slabs from the smaller frieze in the altar's inner court that narrates the myth of Pergamon's foundation by the hero Telephos, son of Herakles and legendary ancestor of the Attalid kings.

Sculpted in remarkably high relief and originally vividly painted, the large frieze that enveloped the altar's podium illustrates the Gigantomachy, a cosmic battle between the giants, the powerful, monstrous offspring of primordial gods Gaia (Earth) and Uranos (Sky), and the victorious Olympian gods led by Zeus and assisted by the Titans. This venerated subject of Greek religious art and architecture is executed in a radically new style characterized by exaggerated forms and dynamic poses that generate emotional drama and exuberance, a style known today as Hellenistic "baroque."

The vast wealth available after Alexander the Great's conquest of the Persian Achaemenid Empire enabled Hellenistic kings to exploit their desire for extravagant display via artistic commissions. Drawing on the natural resources of lands far beyond Greece itself, they used exotic and expensive materials to ornament lavishly their royal courts and dress. This ostentation was in sharp contrast to the Classical Greek tradition, in which the city-state was responsible on behalf of the citizen body for erecting temples, monuments, and statues, and public displays of personal wealth were penalized.

Presented in this gallery is a selection of some of the finest known luxury works from the Hellenistic period, including stunning gold jewelry, often richly decorated with garnets and other gems, impressive coins, glass tableware, and exquisite bronzes, as well as works in ivory, faience, and semiprecious stone. These objects show the inventiveness and skill of the craftsmen employed by the Hellenistic kings, their courtiers, and wealthy private individuals. They also display the taste and refinement of their owners, who used such luxuries to enhance their status in relation to rivals and subjects alike.

During this time, collectors and connoisseurs amassed great treasures, some of which were buried for safety or dispersed in times of danger, passing from hand to hand. What survives represents a mere fraction of the richness of the Hellenistic world.

During the course of the second century B.C., Rome became the center of the Hellenistic world through victorious battles in southern Italy, Sicily, Greece, Macedonia, and finally the Greek cities of Asia Minor. Attalos III bequeathed Pergamon to Rome at his death in 133 B.C., further strengthening Rome's presence in Asia Minor. Displayed in this gallery are Hellenistic sculptures that especially appealed to Roman tastes as well as some of the best portraits of the Late Hellenistic period—both representations of famous persons and realistic images of unknown individuals portrayed with great pathos.

Roman upper classes gradually adopted elements of Greek culture. Greek teachers tutored their children, and Greek philosophers were their houseguests. With Greek learning came an increased interest in Greek art. Roman generals requisitioned sculptures from conquered cities in order to parade them triumphantly before their fellow countrymen, and famous works of art were set up in Roman victory temples. Romans began collecting Greek art and displaying it in their homes. The growing demand was at first filled only by workshops in Greece, primarily in Athens. This is demonstrated by the cargoes of art aboard a number of Late Hellenistic ships that wrecked en route to Rome. By the first century B.C., the workshops were no longer able to satisfy the enormous demand and Greek craftsmen migrated to Rome, where a thriving art market was established.

With the accession of Augustus in 27 B.C., politics contributed to a definitive turn in Roman tastes toward Classical Greek art of the fifth century B.C. In the East, Augustus's rival Mark Antony, with the Ptolemaic queen Kleopatra (the famous "Cleopatra") at his side, had himself celebrated as a new Dionysos (god of wine and theater), much like Hellenistic rulers. This posturing prompted Augustus to claim an opposing allegiance to Apollo (god of the sun, music, and poetry). Augustus shaped a pious image for himself and Rome, heralding a new golden age meant to recall but outshine the glories of Classical Greece and surpass the achievements of the Hellenistic kingdoms. The new artistic program of the Augustan age could be seen throughout the Roman Empire.

While the ideologically charged classicism of the Augustan age persisted in the later Roman Empire, enthusiasm for Hellenistic art was not eradicated. For whole areas of Greek imagery there were no Classical models, only Hellenistic ones. This was true above all for representations of Dionysos with his entourage of ecstatic revelers and of the nude Aphrodite. Similarly, for depictions of battles, sculptors could rely on Hellenistic models such as the royal Attalid monuments. Although the Hellenistic kingdoms' power dwindled in the first century B.C., the innovations of Hellenistic artists fostered by their royal patrons influenced Roman Imperial art for centuries. Hellenistic art has inspired various later artistic movements, notably during the Renaissance and Baroque periods.