Minoan and Mycenean Cultures

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Hi,

Interesting topic and assignment! One approach to a question like this one is to look at information from various sources, which you can then draw on for your final copy. This is the approach this response takes.

RESPONSE:

1. Compare and contrast in 200 words the Minoan and Mycenaean cultures. Discuss the archaeological evidence and the clues it provides about these cultures. Discuss both new features and the influences of other cultures.

Minoan Culture

Minoan Culture was during the Bronze Age (3000-1070? BCE), which arose on Crete, an island in the Aegean Sea. It was the earliest form of "Greekish" culture, named after mythical King Minos. The Minoan civilization believed in cultural myths, such as the myths of minotaurs and labyrinths. (1) which Evans identified as the site at Knossos. Knossos is the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete, probably the ceremonial and political center of the Minoan civilization and culture. It is a popular tourist destination today, as it is near the main city of Heraklion and has been substantially if imaginatively "rebuilt", making the site accessible to the casual visitor in a way that a field of unmarked ruins is not (2).

The structure of the civilization was a class hierarchy, with the nobles living communally in "palaces" (around 1900). Minoan palaces are the best known building types to have been excavated on the island. They are monumental buildings serving administrative purposes as evidenced by the large archives unearthed by archaeologists. Each of the palaces excavated to date have their own unique features, but they also share features, which set them apart from other structures. The palaces were often multi-storied with interior and exterior staircases, light wells, massive columns, storage magazines and courtyards (3). In fact, "[t]hese palaces concentrated political and economic power, as well as artistic activity, and may have served as centers for the redistribution of agricultural commodities. Major palaces were built at Knossos and Mallia in the northern part of Crete, at Phaistos in the south, and at Zakros in the east. These palaces are distinguished by their arrangement around a paved central court and sophisticated masonry. In general, there were no defensive walls, although a network of watchtowers punctuating key roads on the island has been identified. The walls and ...