middle east aegean region 1800-1300 iia

7/28/2019 Middle East Aegean Region 1800-1300 IIa

1/27

CHAPTER XIITHE ZENITH OF MINOANCIVILIZATION

I. T H E C H R O N O L O G Y OF TH E L A T E P A L A C EP E R I O D (


2/27

558 T H E Z E N I T H O F M I N O A N C I V I L I Z A T I O Nimportant developments in the history of the ancient world. Thebeginning of the new era is therefore marked by a change inCrete and in her external relations. This came about not betweenM . M . I l l and L .M . I as Evans suggested but between M .M . IIand M . M . I l l , when the zenith of Minoan civilization beganabou t 1700 B.C. and lasted throughou t the Late Palace Period .The sub-divisions of the Late Palace Period are based on theconsiderations of the stratigraphy and the typology, especially ofpottery, at Cnossus. The end of the M . M . Il l group is markedby a layer of destruction. Characteristic closed deposits which laybelow it are the 'Tem ple Repo sitories' and the 'M ag azin e ofLily Vases '. As finds from the tom b of the Queen M othe rAhhotpe (15601550 B.C.) at Thebes in Upper Egypt show con-nexions with early L .M . I , the destruction layer is to be dated about1570 B.C. A similar layer occurs in the later course of L .M . I, andit can be assigned to the years about 1500 B.C. mainly throughaffinities with representations of the Keftiu on the walls ofEgyptian private tombs. The layer seems to be linked with anerup tion of the volcano of Th era (Santorin).1 T he so-called Palacestyle of p ottery was developed as a new form from L .M . I b potteryat Cnossus, and vases of this style were found in a tomb near theseaport of Cnossus (today Katsaba) in association with anEgyptian alabaster vessel which bore the name of Tuthmosis III(15041450 B.C.) .2 The Palace style which lasted until the finaldestruction of Cnossus probably began therefore about themiddle of the century. The mainland pottery (L.H. IIIa2),which was found at El-Amarna and is to be dated about1370 B.C., was already different from the mainland styles whichhad been associated with th e Palace style of Cnossus and with con-temporary parallels in Minoan pottery. Thus the catastrophewhich befell the Minoan palaces is dated some time after1400 B.C. T h e designation L .M . II can, strictly speaking, bevalid only for one kind of pottery at Cnossus. As the changein ceramic style there is accompanied by other radical changes, itis still useful to consider the period between say 1475 B.C. and1380 B.C. as the last phase in the history of the Palace period(see pp. 579 f.).

1 * i . 2 . 1 ,1 .

Cambridge Histories Online Cambridge University Press, 2008


3/27



4/27

Met r e s

F i g . 7. Plan of the Palace at Cnossus . (Fro m J. D. S. Pendleb ury, Handbook to the Palace of Minos, plan 9.)

cAana/Jcr6eV2

10 5 0 10 20 30 40 50L i i i f I i i i I I I i i i

H Actaof orCcrtoh Mosavy

EZ3 Caj/cctarot

\

pro/xtM JAWJ or to

\ tarter V

Coe///

Nor/% das/ rVoosi

J&Ztt?

aasftaaft.

InitiatoryQrea

SfMft Corrector

occa/atiaAy 1

i

Pa/aa ana

atA/naSrca/zonr

lafzr ffovsi c&is/rt/ct'/an

Nar/h-Htst Teiasare tioeai.

\ to

, /v. wr/tmi

Jtcfipect

TteotrvtAT60

fbncfi I



5/27

T H E Z E N I T H O F M I N O A N C I V I L I Z A T I O N 559I I . T H E E V I D E N C E O F T H E M O N U M E N T S

Our knowledge of the period is based almost entirely upon evi-dence provided by the monuments, and among them the palacesgive the most obvious indication of changes in the development ofCrete and in her external relations. See Map 1 on p. 142 above.At Cnossus the state rooms and the living rooms received theirfinal form about 1700 B.C.1 Only the general features of the staterooms are know n, because being situated above the basement theywere destroyed and left only a few remains. The royal apartmentslay on the east side of the central court (Dom estic Qu arter) . H ererubble from neolithic dwellings which had formed a slope wasremoved so that two storeys with the same ground plan could beconstructed on the edge of the court but at a lower level. A tleast two more storeys were built on top of them, and a stairwellopened onto a pillared court with several storeys above groundlevel.2 The main room below was a pillared hall, three of itswalls opening through a row of pillars onto vestibules withcolonnades, in front of which there are light-wells. A short,twisting corridor led into a similarly arranged, smaller and moreintimate suite of rooms, grouped round a bedroom . It contained alatrine with a water flushing system, and it was linked with theupper storeys by two flights of backstairs.3 Characteristic of thehigh technical level of the whole building is an ingenious drain-age system, which is a further development of what had originatedin the Early Palace Period . T he rain water was brought down fromthe roof through clay pipes, and pipes and channels laid under thefloor took care of its discharge. W ha t is striking is not only thedomestic luxury, with which the palaces of Egypt and the NearEast have nothing comparable, but also the feeling for a generousand adventurous use of space, the charms of which are enhancedby a carefully planned alternation of light and shade.There are similar groups of rooms at Phaestus, Mallia andHagia Triada, where a dominant feature is the use of colonnadesin the courts and the halls of entry.4 At the small palace of H ag iaTriada there are towering hills on the south and east and a m agn i-ficent panorama over land and sea on the north and west. Con-sequently the buildings were not arranged round a central court,but two wings, at right angles to one another, enclosed a courtwhich lay behind them and faced the hillside.T he architects of the period endeavoured to relate the outside tothe inside of the palace in such a way that space was used effectively

1 See Fig. 7. 2 See Plate 111 (&). a See Fig . 8. * See Figs. 9 - 1 1 .



6/27

560 TH E ZEN ITH OF MINOAN C IVIL IZA TIO N

M e t r e sFig . 8. Plan of the domestic quarter and adjoining halls at Cnossus.(From Annual of the British School at Athens vm (1901/2), 56,fig.29.)



7/27

THE EVIDENCE OF TH E MONUMENTS 561

- - . - . ...T

Fig. 9. Plan of the Palace at Phaestus. (From J. W. Graham, Palaces of Crete,fig.4.)



8/27

562 THE ZENITH OF MINOAN C IVILIZA TIO N

10

SouthEntryFig. 10. Plan of the Palace at Mallia. (From S. Marinatos and M . Hirmer,Kreta und das Mykenische Hellas, p. 88 ,fig.14.)



9/27

THE EVIDENCE OF TH E MO NUM ENTS 563

N

ReceptionRooms

0 5 10 20 30 40 50

Fig. 11 . Plan of the Palace at Hagia Triada. (L. Pernier, Festos, 1, ij,fig.8.)



10/27

564 T H E Z E N I T H O F M I N O A N C I V I L I Z A T I O N

10 5 0 10 20 30Metres ir-

Fig. 1 2. Plan of the town of Gourn ia. (Ha rriet A. Boyd, Gournia, plan.)



11/27

T H E E V I D E N C E O F T H E M O N U M E N T S 565and artistically.1 Direct entrances to the court became rare. Inthe elevation the twisting flights of stairs corresponded with thetwisting corridors which led within from outside. So visitors tothe palace were led by a circuitous route to the reception room ofthe prince or to his living room, and they were conducted outagain by a route of the same kind. As a group of rooms was heldtogether by the pillared hall, so the whole palace was held to-gether by the court.2 In consequence the architects had aninterest in the opening towards the outer world, and in this re-spect they differed from the contem porary architects of Eg yp t andthe Ea st. At Cnossus the main entrance from the south, whichwas used by visitors from the M essara or Eg yp t, lay at the south-west corner of the palace, whence a corridor ran east and thenbent north, to lead into the central court. On the outside of theentrance there was the 'stepped portico' which extended downto the point where it met the road from the south. 3 The porticodescended with two bends to a ravine over which it was carriedon a massive viaduct, the arches being built on the system knownas the 'false vault'.4 On the other side of the ravine, opposite thecen tre of the south front of the palace, there stood a small bu ildingwhich the excavators called the caravanserai. It was arranged insuch a way that it gave a vivid impression of the size and splen-dour of the palace before the visitor entered it. In the same waythe architects were concerned with the view outwards, and theyused the arrangement of colonnades and porticos for this pur-pose so that the eye could range over the landscape. There areexamples at Phaestus and Hagia T riada (Figs. 9 and 11), bu t not atCnossus and Mallia, where too little survives of the upp er storeys.T he downward-tapering columns of M inoan a rt are a veryimportant feature of such openings in the walls of the palace.Sometimes architectural features were employed in the facadewhich were unrelated to what lay behind; for example the smalltripartite shrine on the west side of the central court at Cnossus 5and the so-called propylon in the west facade at Phaestus. Thename propylon is misleading because there is nothing insidecorresponding with the flight of steps and the wide opening w ithits mighty central column. Instead, narrow doors lead into roomsof humble character and to backstairs. Even the light shaft has nogenu ine function; for it served only to provide a light backgroundto the porch and to people stepping forth from it. Religious

1 See Figs . 7 -1 1 . 2 See Figs. 7, 9, 10.3 See Plate 11 3. * See Plate 112 (J>).6 See Plate n\{a).



12/27

566 T H E Z E N I T H O F M I N O A N C I V I L I Z A T I O Nceremonies were therefore enacted on the landing above the flightof steps, and the spectators presumably stood in the west court.

There has been a deeply rooted belief that there was no realorgan ization of space in M inoan architecture, but this does not dojustice to the combination of refined and primitive features in thepalaces. Above all it does not take into consideration the skilfulcomposition and co-ordination, in which the outlying partsdepend on the centre. This is a salient quality of other depart-m ents of Minoan art too. Therefore an understanding of M inoanarchitecture in th is regard affects not only the history of art but alsothe historical picture. In this period the arrangem ent and con-nexion of the peripheral parts with the central court underwent aricher development, and achieved a more individual characterthan in the Early Palace Period. Thus finally Minoan art gainedits full stature. There can be no doubt that it reflects a corres-ponding development in state and society.The palaces were surrounded by aristocratic private houses.They are best known from excavations at Cnossus and Mallia.Most magnificent of all is the 'Little Palace', about 200 m. westof the great palace of Cnossus, which is supposed to have been th epalace of the Crown Prince or something similar. The architec-tural features of the palaces are repeated in more modest pro-portionspillared halls, porticos, peristyles, light shafts, pillaredcrypts, bathrooms, stairwells, etc. We know also a number ofcountry mansions of the same type. At Tylissus there is a smallgroup; others have been discovered at Achladia, Amnisus,Apodulu, Arkhanes, Korakies, Niru Khani, Sklavokampos,Vathypetros and Kato Zakro. The catastrophe in L.M. Ilia putan end to them all.

Small towns of this period have been excavated at Gournia1 andPalaikastro and on the little island of Pseira in the Gulf of Mira-bello. A t Gourn ia small houses, sharing outer walls, werecrowded together along narrow paved streets or stepped lanes. 2The houses had a rather high foundation of undressed stonecemented with earth, and the upper parts of the walls wereusually of sun-dried brick with a timber framework. The roomswere grouped in several storeys round a tiny inner court resemb-ling a light-shaft. W e can p icture the ou tside appearance of thehouses with the help of the little faience plaques from Cnossus,which are known as the 'Town Mosaic' and belong probably tothe earlier period. We can see the lavish and decorative use ofbeams, the projections, the shapes of windows and doors and1 See Fig. 12. 2 See Plate



13/27

T H E E V I D E N C E O F T H E M O N U M E N T S 567a lantern-like superstructure above the light shaft. These littletowns were peopled by agricultural workers, artisans, fishermenand sailors, and there is no reason to assume any considerablesocial differences among them. In G ournia there is an assemblyplace and on one side of it a small palace for the governor.Only one royal grave has been discovered, the 'Temple Tomb'south of Cnossus, built in the sixteenth century B.C.1 Its burialroom is constructed with an antechamber in the slope of a hill.A paved forecourt with a small hall opposite the entrance and anupper storey with a terrace over the antechamber and the dromoswere evidently used for the cult of the dead. T he rock chambers ofMavro Spilio, which face the palace of Cnossus from the easternslope of the Kairatos ravine, probably contained the burials of thearistocratic families who lived in the private houses. Th e cham bertomb at Isopata between Cnossus and the sea, where the keelvault was formed by projecting layers of stone, was built at theearliest about 1500 B.C. for a prince or a high official. The exist-ence of an intermediate link between the beehive-shaped tholoiof the Messara and the later domed tombs of the mainland hasbeen found at Cnossus (Kephala Hill) . It is probably to be datedto the sixteenth century B.C.2Cnossus is rich in frescoes. At Hagia T riada there is a smallroom painted in a masterly way, and frescoes have also been foundat Amnisus and at Tylissus. There are practically none atPhaestus and Mallia. Contemporary Egyptian examples are notknown, and the frescoes at Acana derive from Cretan models ofthe seventeenth century B.C. In general, however, Egypt and theOrient supplied the models for the art of painted frescoes. Eventhe earliest Minoan examples are not inferior in technique andform to the later ones. It is possible, however, to trace a stylisticdevelopment3 from the stage of the Amnisus frescoes or of theCnossian 'Saffron Gatherer' through the examples from the so-called fresco house at Cnossus and from Hagia Triada to theCnossian 'Campstool Fresco'4 and 'Toreador Fresco' whichalready form a transition to the stage of L .M . II. 5 The cult per-formances and the court ceremonial which were carried out in thepalaces are illustrated on the walls. Thus the processions of life-sized bearers of gifts in the corridors are a Minoan version of anEgyptian theme.6 T he painted stucco relief of the 'P rince w ith theFeather Crown', the fragments of the 'Ladies in Blue', who areprobably spectators at a public function, the 'Jewel Fresco', the

1 See Plate 115 (a). 2 11, 3. 3 11, 6.4 11, 5. s See Plate 115(3). 6 See Plates 112(0) and n6(


14/27

568 T H E Z E N I T H O F M I N O A N C I V I L I Z A T I O N'Campstool Fresco' and those with a Cretan officer leading atroop of black soldiers may be mentioned here. There are bull-games on a large scale and on a small scale. The miniature fres-coes too show cult practices.1 A keen effort is made to reproducecrowds of people, a subject which art does not attempt again untilthe Roman imperial period. The decorative rows of plants andflowers on the walls develop into prospects giving the illusionof a view over the park scenery which lies beyond the walls of theroom . Birds, cats, apes and deer animate the scene. Hum anfigures are rare. The painted alcove at Hagia Triada is of thiskind.2 Sea-scapes with dolphins, flying-fish and octopuses aresimilar in outlook. The most beautiful one, from the hand of aCretan master, has been found at Phylakopi in Melos.It is hardly a matter of chance that, except for one doubtfulcase, there are no remains of life-sized statues. The monumentalcharacter of the architecture too is restricted not so much by apreference for small rooms as by a desire for open spaces andfreedom of movem ent in the whole. M odelled figures of men andanimals are small, and Minoan cult still knows nothing of imageworship . In this period too we mostly find votive offerings orutensils and the ir parts. Skill in portraying natural form andmovement in this medium does not lag behind that shown in thefrescoes. The faience figures from the Temple Repositories whichare usually described as goddesses represent priestesses.3 T heCretan prayer gesture with the right hand raised to the brow isoften seen in bronze statuettes of men and women. Vaulting overthe back of a cha rging bull is represented by groups of ivory andbronze figurines, in which the boldness of the modelling corres-ponds with tha t of the actual movement. Libation vessels of stoneand terracotta appear in the form of bulls or heads of cattle and lions.The figured relief which is used on a large scale in paintedstucco for wall decoration is employed also for the embellishment ofvessels of gold, silver, serpentine, steatite, ivory and faience. T hesesupply us with innumerable pieces of information about the life ofthe M inoan s. Fo r instance, funnel-shaped libation vessels show usa procession of agricultural workers, bull-games, boxing matchesand peak sanctuaries. A beaker found at Hagia Triada portraysforeigners, perhaps ambassadors, standing before a high-rankingMinoan.4 Fragments from Cnossus represent a youth pickingflowers in a shrine. T he capture of wild bulls and the peacefulexistence of a herd of cattle which are portrayed on two golden

1 See Plate 117(4). See Plate n6(i).3 See Plate 117 (a). * See Plate 118 {a).



15/27

T H E E V I D E N C E O F T H E M O N U M E N T S 569cups from the domed tomb at Vaphio on the Greek m ainland, arethe work of a Cretan master, and they rank among the most sig-nificant achievements in the whole of Minoan art. All thesevessels originated in the late sixteenth and early fifteenth centuryB.C. (L .M . I).The painted vases of the first period of the later palaces arelinked stylistically with the fresco-painting and with the gem-cutting of the period M .M . Il l b. The naturalistic achievement ofthe lilies and the crocuses on the finest examples reaches the samelevel. The use of white paint on a dark ground which was takenover from the preceding phase, and the subsequent addition ofyellow or red paint ceased about the middle of the sixteenthcentury B.C. Late Minoan pottery was marked by the applicationof dark paint to a light ground, and it continued to use the glazepaint of the preceding epochs and supplementary white paint fordetails, a technique which lasted longer in East Crete than else-where. In the earlier stage which extended up to the destructionof the palaces about 1500 B.C, that is in L.M. la, floral patternswere most in use and the wavy tendril occurred for the first timea decorative motif which came later to Greece probably throughthe exchange of tapestries and assumed an extraordinary import-ance in western art. The Doric capital too is due to Minoan art.We know for certain that it was modelled by Greek architects ofthe seventh century B.C. upon examples which survived from theBronze Age. In the later stage of L .M . I the floral motifs werejoined by motifs from the fauna and flora of the sea: octopus,nautilus, triton shell, star-fish, fish, seaweed, coral.1 The shapesof the vessels are as expressive as the painting, and they help usto classify the plain utility ware. Slender forms were preferredwith elegant rising curves and wide-spreading at the top. Thefirst stirrup-jars were evolved at this time. They were moreslender in their proportions and less standardized than theybecame later. Towards the end of L.M. Ib the representationsbecame conventional and less vigorous, especially in painting.The latest wares of L.M. Ib were produced until the destructionof the palaces and perhaps even for some time afterwards. InCnossus from about 1475 B.C. they are contemporary with the'Palace Style', which is marked by a new hardening of thenatural forms and a more positive emphasis upon the decorativeaspect. The pottery of the Palace Style is directly derived fromthe class of L .M . I b pottery which drew its decorative motifsfrom the sea.2 But in it a more monumental effect was achieved,

1 See Plate 118 {/>). 2 See Plates 118 ().



16/27

570 T H E Z E N I T H O F M I N O A N C I V I L I Z A T I O Nfor instance in the large three-handled amphorae, and there was aremarkable agreement with the contemporary products of themainland which adhered to the Minoan traditions (L.H. II).T h e art of gem -cutting reached its classical phase in L .M . I.The gem-cutters of the Ancient East and of later Greek art fellfar short of the Minoan artist in his combination of technicalmastery, wealth of imagination, inventive genius, skill in com-position and feeling for miniature. The invention of the picturein the sense of an artistic unit, which had been the great and trulyEu rop ean achievement of the Early Palace Period , now found itsfull development in an unequalled wealth and skill of representa-tion. Gem -cutting is the most characteristic form of M inoan art, assculpture is of Greek art.1Three large finds of sealings enable us to classify the seals ofthis period. The 150 or so impressions from the Temple Reposi-tories at Cnossus were deposited as early as about 1570 B.C.2 T hefinds from Hagia Triada (about 290 impressions) and fromZakro (about 230)3 belong to the following period (L.M. I) butinclude impressions closely connected with the preceding period.4W e depend upon thesefindsfor the dating of the original stones andfor the relationship between Minoan products and mainland imi-tations and the independent products of the mainland which werenow emerging.5 The Shaft Graves of the citadel at Mycenae con-tained not only M ino an pieces but also pieces tha t were definitelymainland in origin and others that occupied a middle position andhad probably been made by Cretan lapidaries on the mainland.The relationship was the same almost 100 years later in the sealsfrom the domed tomb at Vaphio, where the buried prince wore abracelet consisting of twenty-eight seal-stones strung together andtwelve others were found. Clay impressions which are connectedwith finds of tablets of Linear Script B and which may themselveshave characters of this script scratched on them were found atCnossus and belonged to the last decades of the Palace's history.Stylistically they are of the same type as the original seals, and itis worth noting tha t th is group of seals has the same hardening ofstyle and monumental character as the Palace Style vases.6Features which are common to seals from the warrior graves atCnossus and to those from Vaphio help us to establish a chrono-logical basis; for the warrior graves belong to the L .M . I I level.7The evolution of the amulet as a special glyptic type has nowbeen completed; for there is a class of stones which can be under-

1 See Plates I2o(rf) and (&). 2 11, 4, 41. 3 See Plate I2o(c).4 11, 4, 50. 5 11, 1. 11, 4, 56. 7 m, 9.



17/27

T H E E V I D E N C E O F T H E M O N U M E N T S 571stood only as amulets, and impressions from them no longer occur.Among the forms of seal the signet disappears, and the lentoid isby far the most frequent. There are also masterpieces in the formof flat cylinders and amygdaloids. Steatite is only used formodest pieces. Agate , amethyst, chalcedony, cornelian, jasper,rock-crystal and similar stones are used. Their precious natureheightens the charm of the pictures. The highest level of achieve-ment is marked by a group of golden rings, worn as pendants,each with a convex oval surface, and this group is often used withgood reason to illustrate the best of M inoan produc tion. Researchhas been concerned above all with the subject matter of the picturewhich represents cults, games and fighting, bu t many which por-tray demonic beings, animals or plants are in no way inferior tothem . Study of the seals tends to raise questions which concernthe history of art and religion. But it can also provide im portantinformation on the social and economic life of the times. W e are,however, still handicapped by the large number of them and bytheir scattered publication.

I I I . T H E H I S T O R I C A L C O N C L U S IO N SOur ideas about the Minoan state and especially the Minoanmonarchy of this epoch are at the best vague. The only certainfact is that the development of a centralized system with a princeat its head continues. One may conjecture tha t the prince was alsoa priest, but the conjecture cannot be substantiated. This mayseem surprising in view of the abundance of M inoan pictures, butthe character of Minoan religion is such tha t portraits of the kingswere not necessary, whereas they were in Egypt and the NearEast. The ecstatic religion of the Minoans was not concerned toconfer immortality on the king himself by means of his portrait,as was done in Egypt, nor to magnify his connexions with thegods, as was done in the Near East. The peculiarity of Minoanpictures lies in the ability to conjure up an appearance of life, avision, and not in an attempt to recreate existence.1 This qualitymarks a fundamental difference between the character of theM inoans and that of the O rient, so that it is possible to understandthe absence or at least the unobtrusiveness of the king in monu-ments of art.It has already been inferred from the sources of the EarlyPalace Period that the king exercised his government with thesupport of a nobility (p. 161). It is hardly fortuitous that clear

1 111, 17, 423 ff.



18/27

572 T H E Z E N I T H O F M I N O A N C I V I L I Z A T I O Ntraces of this class have been found outside the palaces as well aswithin them during the Early Palace Period; for in the roundtombs of the Messara we see the resting-place of the aristocraticlando wn ing families. In the La te Palace Period they have largelychanged into a court nobility. Their luxurious dwellings aregrouped round the palace both at Cnossus and at Mallia. To themtoo belong the chamber tombs of Mavro Spilio and Hagios Eliason the east slope of the Kairatos ravine which faces the palace ofCnossus, and of Hagios Ioannes and G ipsades to the north and thesou th of it. W e must imagine that the noble lords also resided inthe villas scattered up and down the country, for example at Tylissusand V athype tros (p. 566). W e have, however, no means of jud gin gwhether they exercised their power in the name of the king or asfree lords possessing free estates and owing only certain servicesto the court. T h e relationship between city and palace at Gourniamay be taken as typical. In fact the lords of these small palacescan have discharged their duties only in the name of the king. Agreat deal about the forms in which they did so will probably bediscovered if Linear Script A is deciphered.The highly developed system of seals indicated, as we haveseen, the existence of a noble class in the Early Palace Period . Itsmagnificence and the variety of shapes and motifs in the LatePalace Period not only bear witness generally to the creativespirit, imagination and enthusiastic nature of the M inoan s, but theyalso convey an impression of the self-consciousness, the enjoymentof life and the passionate nature of the ruling class. Representativesof this nobility, w ithin which there were no doubt wide differences,are to be seen in many pictures, for example in the 'Prince withthe Feather Crown', the 'Cup-bearer', the figures of the Pro-cession Fresco, the Keftiu of the Egyptian tomb paintings1 andthe long-haired youth with a staff on the serpentine beaker fromHag ia Triada.2 T h e 'Ladies in B lue ', the ladies of the 'CampstoolFresco' with the famous 'Petite Parisienne', those on the minia-ture frescoes and the figures on a stucco relief from Pseira maybe mentioned as representing their feminine counterparts. Thefact that the ladies play an important role in the pictures ischarac teristic of Min oan life in general. In accordance with thepre-eminent position of the mother-goddess they appear in cultscenes, and we learn from the miniature frescoes that, when theywere spectators at public functions, they were separate from themen and occupied privileged positions. The acrobatic feats whichare performed by women as well as by men in the bull-games are

1 See Plate 116 (*). 2 See Plate 118 (a).



19/27

T H E H I S T O R I C A L C O N C L U S I O N S 573most remarkable. It has even been suggested that M inoan societyas a whole had a matriarchal basis, but there is no clear proof tha tthis was so.T he small towns also yield some evidence for th e existence of amiddle class whose economic standards were modest. W e cannotsay how far members of this class participated in agriculture andseafaring, but they certainly carried on handicrafts, especiallythose of an artistic kind. The small clay tablets of a later periodon the mainland indicate a wide variety of handicrafts, and thisvariety may have been taken over from Minoan C rete. M em bersof the middle classes may also figure in the crowds of spectatorson the miniature frescoes. The procession on a steatite rhytonfrom Hagia Triada probably gives us an insight into the life ofthe serfs. Th ey are going to the olive harvest. Agriculture andbuilding in particular suggest that plentiful supplies of slavelabour were available.This outline of state and society has so far been based on themonuments. The documents in Linear Script B, which can beread since the decipherment by Michael Ventris in 1953, beginonly in the course of the fifteenth century, and they showthat the Greeks of the mainland had taken over the con-trol of Cnossus, the only place in the island where the tabletshave been found; for the tablets are in their language, an earlyform of Greek. The similarity of these tablets to the small main-land tablets which are dated to the late thirteenth century hasgiven rise to doubts whether the excavators made a correct recordof their stratigraphy,1 and it has even been conjectured that thetablets originate from the period after the destruction of thepalaces, that is from the so-called reoccupation phase . This conjec-ture and the far-reaching historical conclusions to be drawn fromit have not stood up to further archaeological investigation. Theconnexions with the seal impressions which have been mentioned(p. 570) and the clarification of the stratigraphical findings makeit certain that most of the small tablets belong to the destructionlevel. The fact that there are also some later ones, especially fromthe Little Palace, which are to be dated to L .M . I li a , is impo rtantenough but does not fundamentally alter either the archaeologicalor the historical picture.2 The information provided by these

1 $111, 2. On the other hand 111, 21 .2 in , 11. L . R. Palmer, Mycenaeans an d Minoans (Lon don , 1 961), a book wh ich isintended for a wide circle of readers, has summarized his archaeological grounds forthe late date to which he attributes the Linear B tablets. See now in, 20 where heputs forward his reasons again and J. Boardman maintains the contrary view.



20/27

574 T H E Z E N I T H O F M I N O A N C I V I L I Z A T I O NL .M . II and L .M . Il ia documents for the form of governmentand social relations cannot be projected backwards without somerese rvations, because they come after a clear historical break. T hesame is true of what they have to say about religious cult. Butthe highly developed forms of administration and economy wereof course taken over substantially by the new lords. In this con-nexion the small clay tablets can supply welcome information asa supplement to the monuments.A system of archives and government offices, which was neces-sary for any thorough organization of administration, hadalready been developed together with Linear Script A in the oldpalaces. Th is system was extended in the later palaces and remainsof archives have been preserved in the finds of seal impressionsfrom Hagia Triada and Zakro. The written documents them-selves have perished, because they consisted of perishablematerial, papyrus or palm leaves.1 Traces of the lacing have beenpreserved on the clay of the sealings. Inscriptions on someterracotta vases show that ink too was used for writing. The smallclay tablets that have been preserved served administrative andeconomic ends only. Those with Linear Script A come fromvarious sites. Those with Linear Script B are much more numer-ous, although they are found only at Cnossus. The excavatorswere able to see that the tablets had once been collected togetherand stored in chests or baskets. The records, and the tablets onwhich they were inscribed, were probably destroyed at intervals,when the matters with which they were concerned had beensettled, and we may therefore say that the tablets which have beenfound refer fairly precisely to the time when the palaces weredestroyed.

There are, for example, records of deliveries going into thepalace and of goods redirected to an outside destination. It isessentially a primitive economy arranged to suit trade by barter.No standard of value such as money was used. Accounts werekept too for the dom ains of the palace, for their administrators andfor the obligations of the latter. The herdssheep, goats, cattle,pigswere checked by people who are mentioned individually.At the same time the prescribed deliveries to the court and thelosses discovered during the checking were also listed. Oneseparate group was made up of entries concerning receipts ofgrain , oil or spices and their issue. Slave workers, men or women,the latter sometimes with children, are mentioned. There werealso lists of vessels and textiles. Reasons why the con tents of th e

1 " is-



21/27

T H E H I S T O R I C A L C O N C L U S I O N S 575armouries played an important part swords, lances, bows, arrows,cuirasses, chariots and chariot parts being listedare to be foundin the situation of the fifteenth century to which the documentsbelong (p. 580).Am ong the workshops which functioned inside the palaces theexcavations have revealed potteries and the workshops of lapi-daries as well as weaving-rooms. Th ere will have been many morebesides. If we add to this what is known about Min oan foreigntrade during the period (p. 577), then we can see how far thepalaces, apart from their function as seats of government andadministration and apart from their religious significance, wereimportant as economic centres. Not only was the storing ofagricultural and industrial products organized in them but alsotheir commercial exploitation to a large extent.1 The importanceattached to commerce may indicate a fundamental difference of theMinoan palace in its organization from its Near Eastern andEgyptian coun terparts. Even the size and the number of thestorerooms in Crete are symptomatic, and so is the fact that theyare grouped together in the basement. At M ari, U ga rit, Beyce-sultan and El-Amarna they are unobtrusive in comparison.A commercial purpose also was served by the highways withbridges and watch-houses which were constructed at the latestin the Late Palace Period.

There is a remarkable lack of interest in pictures of battlesand of warriors generally. Finds of weapons are rare in Cretantombs before the L . M . I I level, whereas they are common onthe Mycenaean mainland. The introduction of the horse into theisland in the middle part of the Late Palace Period (L.M. la),when it also appeared on the mainland, brought with it newmethods of warfare and new arms. The small shield, curved at thetop but otherwise rectangular, which still occurred on seals of theTemple Repositories, was replaced by the figure-of-eight towershield, which was a Minoan invention; it presupposes that thewarrior carrying it was brought to the battlefield by chariot. Atthe same time the boar's tusk helmet with cheek protector andplume came into use, and the sword blade was refined andlengthened to form a rapier. The finest pieces from the ShaftGraves of Mycenae are rightly considered to be Cretan products.Cuirasses, consisting of buff-coats overlaid with bronze plates,are known from ideograms on the small clay tablets. A nearlycomplete specimen was recently found during the excavationof a mainland tomb of L .H . I l b / I I I a . All this formed a set of

1 m, 1.



22/27

576 T H E Z E N I T H O F M I N O A N C I V I L I Z A T I O Nequipment for aristocratic warriors, as was later the case in theIliad. Clearly in the course of the sixteenth century B.C. the feel-ing of absolute security in the island was shaken, and the nobilitydrew the logical conclusions.In the Late Palace Period Minoan religion, which originallyhad no cult images, underwent a change and became stronglyinfluenced by the Oriental representations of gods.1 Even sothere were still no cult images, and there were no idols until afterthe destruction of the palaces. The belief in a divine epiphanywhich was induced by ecstatic ritesdancing, sacrifice, prayerappeared in a richer form, as pictures on seals and frescoes bearwitness . In th is connexion the importance of the bull sacrifice isindicated by the double axe,2 the most frequent cult symbol inthis world of monuments. The 'Horns of Consecration' too areprobably to be connected with the sacrificial victim. The mothergoddess was differently represented. She appeared naked orclothed, with lions, griffins, birds or snakes accompanying her,and she sometimes carried a large shield. A male partner joinedher. The inspiration and the prototypes of this are found in Syriaand Asia Minor. The scene of the epiphany was usually a sacredtree or a shrine-facade, such as has been identified in the course ofexcavations at Cnossus and Vathypetros. The epiphany of coursesheds light in a concentrated form on the religious nature of thewhole palace and emphasizes its sacred character. In addition welearn from the pictures that the priestess too could appear in thecostume and role of the goddess and that processions took placein which the goddess or the god was carried in a litter. Greatfans of peacock feathers were used on these occasions. Theassumption that in these cases priestess and queen were identicalcan hardly be avoided. The question may then also be raisedwhether something similar does not obtain for the king. For thecult of the dead we possess invaluable evidence in the set of pic-tures on the painted limestone sarcophagus from Hagia Triada,which was made about the time of the final destruction of thepalaces.3 If it is studied in conjunction with the other monu-ments of the cult of the dead, it gives us reason to believe that thedead were thoug ht to depart to a happy world, an Elysium,4 andthat attem pts were made to evoke them by means of cult practicesand to secure their temporary reappearance.All this was different from the religion of the Achaeans on themainland which led on to Greek religion. Nevertheless if thedeeper levels of Greek beliefs are examined, features can be found

1 m, 17. 2 111, 5. 8 S e e P l a t e 1 2 1 . * 111, 14.



23/27

T H E H I S T O R I C A L C O N C L U S I O N S 577which may be incomprehensible without this M inoan background.They are of an ancient Aegean and pre-Greek kind but alreadyin the Late Palace Period they represent the result of a richdevelopment.As we depend upon archaeological material for any view offoreign relations, we must look first for trading connexions. Inthe relationship with Egypt the change which took place duringthis period was made apparent. At first exchange between Creteand Egypt was at least as intensive as previously, as we see fromthe lid with the cartouche of the Hyksos king Khyan from about1600 B.C, the objects found in the tomb of Queen A hho tpe fromthe first half of the sixteenth century B.C, the large number ofEgyptian motifs in Minoan art, especially in the fresco painting,and the representations of Keftiu w hich begin early in the fifteenthcentury B.C., as well as the Egyptian scarabs and alabaster vasesof the fifteenth century B.C. found in Crete. It is therefore all themore surprising that only two L.M. I painted vases from Egyptare known (a jug in M arseilles, an alabastron from Sedm ent),whereas a long list could be compiled of L.H. I and II potteryfrom the mainland found in Egypt.1 Indeed L .M . I I ware has notbeen found in Egypt at all. Thus in this area the mainlandAchaeans outstripped the Minoans in the competitive struggleeven before the destruction of the palaces.

In Syria and Cyprus there are strikingly few Aegean importsduring this period.2 A stirrup-jar at M inet el-Beidha and a stonelamp at Acana are isolated cases. There is, however, evidence ofan intensive exchange in other areas. Reference has already beenmade (p. 575) to the introduction of the horse into Crete, toM inoan influence in the fresco pain ting of Acana and to Anatolianand Syrian influences on Minoan religion. One Syrian pieceimported into Crete is a steatite sphinx, found at Hagia Triada. 3T o this must be added the growth of so-called M itannian art fromthe fifteenth century B.C. onwards, which was strongly influencedby Aegean forms.4 The L.M. II motifs which occur in it cannothave come by the roundabout route via the Mycenaean main-land, and direct relations may be assum ed. It should also beremembered that the form of keel-vaulted tomb which is knownfrom Ras Shamra exerted an influence on Crete in the fifteenthcentury B.C. (Isopata). It came, however, to the mainland too , asis shown by grave Rho in grave circle B at Mycenae.

1 111, 22.2 Though the name 'Kuprios' is read on some Linear B tablets.3 11, 2, 134 f. N r. 300 ( H itt ite ). 4 111, 16.



24/27

578 T H E Z E N I T H O F M I N O A N C I V I L I Z A T I O NConnexions with the interior of Anatolia, where the Hittiteem pire arose at the end of the period, are hardly discernible. Some

features of the Minoan cult may have come from here. The claydisk from Phaestus which was found w ith M . M . I l l b pottery andwhich is covered with an otherwise unknown hieroglyphic scriptprobably had its origin in Asia M ino r. T he ships on it show that itcame from a coastal region. In Crete from L .M . I onwards arelatively large number of copper ingots have been found in theform of plates with four concave sides.1 A hoard of eighteen hasbeen discovered at Hagia Triada.2 The shape which is suitablefor tying them together was no doubt determined by the needs oftransport; it is not an imitation of an ox-hide as was at firsttho ug ht. M ore than sixty such ingots are known from varioussites. They mark the route taken in the Mediterranean areaduring the second half of the second millennium by the copperextracted in Cyprus. That Crete at least in the sixteenth centuryB.C. took part in th is trade is a fact which emerges from the finds ofingots on the island and from their connexion with what theM inoans carry on the Egyptian p ictures of Keftiu. As theydiffer in weight they cannot have served for payment. They repre-sent only the form in which the unworked copper was trans-ported. That western Mediterranean trade was dominated by theMycenaean mainlanders at the end of the sixteenth century B.C. isdemonstrated by the finds of L . H . I and II pottery in the LipariIsles. M inoan imports went with them at first (in L .M . I) b utthey soon ceased.3 Vessels of liparite stone (p. 163) were made inthe Late Palace Period as well, and they confirm the existenceof these connexions. For bringing copper and tin into theAegean area this route seems to have been of only secondaryimportance. What later antiquity had to say about the con-nexions of King Minos with Sicily may contain a kernel of his-torical fact.4 T he tradition is, however, of a mythological characterand has not yet been confirmed by archaeology. Aegean imports intoSicily are unknown before the fourteenth centuryB.c. (L .H . I l i a ) .Within the Aegean area Minoan settlements on Thera andM elos (at Phylakopi) are attested as early as the beginning of theLate Palace Period, and at Miletus5 and Rhodes (at Trianda)6for the second half of the sixteenth century B.C. This goes beyondanything in the Early Palace Period, but of course it can only betaken as an expression of a flourishing trade, not as proof of anypolitical organization of this area under the leadership of Crete.

1 111, 4, 6. 2 See Plate 122(4). 3 m, 3.* 111, 7- 6 i" 23- 8 m 8> 17-



25/27

T H E H I S T O R I C A L C O N C L U S I O N S 579In Miletus, as in the Lipari Isles and Egypt, ceramic importsfrom the mainland replaced Cretan ones in the fifteenth centuryB. C .The shift of forces is apparent in the developments which tookplace on the Greek mainland during this period. M inoan potterywas imported at various places and it was imitated locally. Ingeneral an increasing Minoanization in all branches of artistichandicraft showed itself more and more clearly. This has frequentlybeen noticed, and it dem ands an explanation. Schliemann'sfinds in the Shaft Graves of the citadel of Mycenae, beginningwithin the level of M . M . I l l and ending in L .M . la , made itnecessary to draw a distinction between native and importedMinoan products. A third group should be added, namelyobjects made by Minoan craftsmen on the mainland (p. 570). Th egraves of grave circle B discovered in 1951, which begin earlier(probably as early as the seventeenth century B.C.) and overlap intime with the early parts of the later group , contain fewer M inoanimports. On the other hand even before the end of the sixteenthcentury B.C. the Minoan tholos, of which there had already beensome older examples on the mainland, became the rule for theroyal burials. T o this may be added the similarity of L .M . II andL.H. II pottery. As the former develops from L.M. I b, the lattermust be seen as the product of Cretan potters who went over tothe mainland. That these influences were reciprocal can be seenfrom the so-called Ephyraean goblets. This mainland shape wastaken over by the L .M . II workshops, but the decoration of gobletsmade on the mainland came from Crete.Earlier scholars,' following the lead of Evans, tended to see inthis state of affairs the effects of Minoan overlordship on the main-land. Now the opposite opinion has trium phed : Creta captaferumvictorem cepit. For the discussion was settled by the deciphermentof Linear Script B and by the discovery that the language of thescript was an early form of Greek. But how are we to explain thechange of control in Crete within the fifteenth century B.C. ?An important penultimate level of destruction has been ob-served round about the turn of the sixteenth to the fifteenthcentury B.C. (p. 558). It was caused by an earthquake and wasfollowed by reconstruction. T he new features which characterizedthe next phase were numerous at Cnossus, whereas there was astandstill elsewhere and even a decline in pottery. The palacestyle of the Cnossian vases was accompanied by a new, monu-mental and firm style in wall painting. The Griffin Fresco 1 in

1 See Plate 122 (a).



26/27

580 T H E Z E N I T H O F M I N O A N C I V I L I Z A T I O Nthe small throne room on the west edge of the central court is anexample.1 Later in date are some paintings from a house near thepalace of Hagia Triada, and these come from the same work-shop as those of the famous limestone sarcophagus. A certaindegree of stiffening is noticeable, and gem engraving undergoesthe same change in style (p. 570). Some 'warrior graves' atCnossus, which differ from the customary forms of Minoanburial, were abundantly provided with weapons: swords, daggers,lances, arrow-heads, helmets and cuirasses.2 In the shaping ofthe h ilt attachment, the sword form shows a characteristic changewith important consequences. Fu rthe r, weapons and war-chariots are mentioned very frequently on the small clay tablets,and even helmets occur on the painted vases of L .M . II . From thisintere st in weapons it has been inferred tha t people were beginningto prepare themselves for danger even before the turn of thecen tury (p. 576). At the same time there is no evidence of such achange outside Cnossus, and the ruling position of mainlandGreeks at Cnossus is shown above all by the tablets.W e m us t assume that peaceful relations between Crete and themainland lasted throughout the seventeenth and sixteenth cen-turies B.C. (p. 164) in spite of the cultural advance and the grow-ing strength of the Helladic powers. The wealth in gold which isapparent in the Shaft Graves at Mycenae cannot be explained asthe result of looting in Crete, unless there is a clear reflexion ofsuch looting in the Minoan palaces. We have explained already(p. 579) that Minoan overlordship on the mainland cannot beassumed either. The silver rhyton from the fourth Shaft Grave ofthe citadel of Mycenae, which tells of an overseas enterprise andwhich is probably a Minoan work of art, must therefore berelated to events which had nothing to do with a conflict betweenM inoans and m ainlanders, but which resulted from collaborationbetween the two peoples in operations somewhere on the coastsof the Aegean Sea. W e may then ask whether the M ycenaeanlords acquired their gold in the course of such enterprises; wemay prefer to suppose that subsidies were paid to them by theMinoans. The peaceful transfer of power in Crete from theM inoans to the M ycenaeans is difficult to explain. Since all otherhypotheses do violence to the archaeological evidence in one wayor an other, we may be justified in sugges ting that a passiverenunciation of power was in accord with Minoan character,just as the skill of the Mycenaeans in usurping the position of

1 in, 21.2 111, 9, 10.



27/27

T H E H I S T O R I C A L C O N C L U S I O N S 581their Minoan predecessors in the overseas markets was typical oftheir energy and thrust.

In the present state of our knowledge, any further step wouldbe speculative and it is unwise to make any assertion on the reasonsfor thefinalcatastrophe about 1380 B.C. It may be supposed thatafter the earthquake of about 1500 B.C. the Mycenaeans turnedto account the confusion which must have followed, and it ispossible to see in the catastrophe a century later some evidence fora revolt against the new lords or for a quarrel am ong them . Butthese are mere possibilities. The only certainty is that the palaceslay in ruins after 1380 B.C. Any political and administrativecentres in Crete were thereafter of a very limited and subordinatekind (p. 573). The centre of historical activity in the Mediter-ranean area was no longer in Crete but in Hellas throughout theremaining centuries of the Late Bronze Age.

middle east aegean region 1800-1300 iia

Documents