Year 9
Unit 1 - Bronze Age Greece
Lesson 1 - Minoan Civilisation
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100 years ago the British archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans conducted the first extensive archaeological excavation of Knossos of the island of Crete and uncovered evidence of Europe’s oldest civilised community. He called the civilisation ‘Minoan’, after a legendary Cretan king called Minos. Minoan civilisation lasted from approximately 2700 to 1450 B.C.
This period was during the Aegean Bronze Age. Bronze Age is regarded as the second part of a three-age system for prehistoric societies. (Stone Age comes before and Iron Age after). People had learned to mix copper with a little tin to make a metal called bronze. Sharper and stronger tools could be made with bronze. This made farming and building easier and better than ever before. |
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The farmers in Crete soon began to produce much more food than they needed for themselves. This meant that they could exchange surplus food for other things produced by other people. There was no need now for everyone to produce food for a living. Some people began to work as craftsmen or builders or artists. Trade developed with other lands. Towns and palaces were built and fine arts and crafts were produced.
In the late 1960s, BBC television invited the scientist Jacob Bronowski to explain the history the stages of human development in a series of documentaries. The following two short extracts provide an excellent introduction to the neolithic farming revolution and the importance of the Bronze age.
In the late 1960s, BBC television invited the scientist Jacob Bronowski to explain the history the stages of human development in a series of documentaries. The following two short extracts provide an excellent introduction to the neolithic farming revolution and the importance of the Bronze age.
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Written Language
The Minoans were the first ‘historical’ people of Europe because they developed a form of writing. This system is known as Linear A because the symbols consist of lines rather than pictures. Linear A was written on clay tablets which were then left in the Sun to dry. (The examples below taken from the Heraklion Archaeologocal Meseum would fit easily in the palm of your hand. ) They were reusable - adding water would soften the clay allowing the tablet to be erased. Luckily for us, some tablets were in buildings which burnt down. The fire hardened the tablets so that they survived, although we don't know what they mean. In 2021 a researcher at the University of Cambridge got one step closer to deciphering Linear A.
The Minoans were the first ‘historical’ people of Europe because they developed a form of writing. This system is known as Linear A because the symbols consist of lines rather than pictures. Linear A was written on clay tablets which were then left in the Sun to dry. (The examples below taken from the Heraklion Archaeologocal Meseum would fit easily in the palm of your hand. ) They were reusable - adding water would soften the clay allowing the tablet to be erased. Luckily for us, some tablets were in buildings which burnt down. The fire hardened the tablets so that they survived, although we don't know what they mean. In 2021 a researcher at the University of Cambridge got one step closer to deciphering Linear A.
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Other Evidence
Since organic evidence has generally decomposed over time, the most important surviving Minoan art is in ceramics (pottery), architecture with frescos (paintings on plaster) that include landscapes, and stone carvings. We know from ancient wall paintings how the Minoans dressed. The men seem to have worn short kilts which were probably made of wool or linen. Women dressed more elaborately in brightly-coloured long dresses with tight tops (perhaps the first fitted garments in history) or they were open to the navel allowing their breasts to be left exposed, perhaps during ceremonial occasions (see below). It must be remembered that other forms of dress may have been worn for which we have no record.
Minoan Religion
The Minoans seem to have been a very religious people. They believed in several Gods and Goddesses (female Gods) and the Goddesses appear to have been the more important. There were priests and priestesses to carry out sacred ceremonies. There were sacred symbols which the people regarded as important. One such symbol was the double-headed axe or ‘labrys’. (below) Another was the image of a bull's horns. The bull was a sacred animal to the Minoans.
The Minoans seem to have been a very religious people. They believed in several Gods and Goddesses (female Gods) and the Goddesses appear to have been the more important. There were priests and priestesses to carry out sacred ceremonies. There were sacred symbols which the people regarded as important. One such symbol was the double-headed axe or ‘labrys’. (below) Another was the image of a bull's horns. The bull was a sacred animal to the Minoans.
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One amazing Minoan activity was bull-leaping. This appears to have been a mixture of a very dangerous sport and a religious ceremony. Young men and women would grasp the horns of a bull as it charged towards them. They would then leap over the head of the bull, on to its back and then on to the ground.
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Activities
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Extension.
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BBC - Treasures of Ancient Greece
In the first episode Alastair Sooke explores the surprising roots of Greek art, beginning his journey in Crete at the palace of Knossos, legendary home of the Minotaur. He travels to Santorini to the 'Greek Pompeii', and finds gold in the fabled stronghold of Mycenae and dazzling remains from Greece's Dark Ages. Alastair discovers the beginnings of a defining spirit in Greek art, embracing mythology, a passion for symmetry, and an obsession with the human body. |