What was minoan culture like

From B. If the Mycenaeans were not responsible for this destruction, they certainly took advantage of the events—administrative records from this period are written in Linear B, the script of Mycenaean Greeks.

Contemporary pottery shows a blend of Minoan and Mycenaean stylistic traits. Eventually, by the beginning of the eleventh century B. Higgins, Reynold. Minoan and Mycenaean Art. New York: Oxford University Press, Visiting The Met? Terracotta vase in the form of a bull's head. Agate Lentoid. Terracotta pyxis cylindrical box. Terracotta larnax chest-shaped coffin.

Terracotta stirrup jar with octopus. Bronze rod tripod. Minoans: Life in Bronze Age Crete. New York: Routledge, The Minoans painted their columns bright red and the capitals were often painted black. Restored interior stairwell : Palace at Knossos, Crete, Greece. Circa — BCE. Phaistos was inhabited from about BCE. Knossos, along with other Minoan sites, was destroyed at that time. The palace was rebuilt toward the end of the Late Bronze Age.

The first palace was built about BCE. This section is on a lower level than the west courtyard and has a nice facade with a plastic outer shape, a cobbled courtyard, and a tower ledge with a ramp that leads up to a higher level. The old palace was destroyed three times in a time period of about three centuries. After the first and second disaster, reconstruction and repairs were made, so there are three, identifiable construction phases.

The palace appears to have been unused thereafter. The Old Palace was built in the Protopalatial period. When the palace was destroyed by earthquakes, new structures were built atop the old. In one of the three hills of the area, remains from the Neolithic era and the Early Minoan period have been found.

Two additional palaces were built during the Middle and Late Minoan periods. The older one looks like the palace at Knossos, although the Phaistos complex is smaller. On its ruins probably destroyed by an earthquake around BCE , the Late-Minoan builders constructed a larger palace had several rooms separated by columns.

Like the complex at Knossos, the complex at Phaistos is arranged around a central courtyard and held grand staircases that led to areas believed to be a theater, ceremonial spaces , and official apartments. Materials such as gypsum and alabaster added to the luxurious appearance of the interior. View of the complex at Phaistos from the south : A view of the ruins of the complex at Phaistos. Minoan painting is distinguished by its vivid colors and curvilinear shapes that bring a liveliness and vitality to scenes.

Differentiate between Kamares ware and Marine-style vase painting, and describe Minoan wall paintings. The Minoans decorated their palace complexes and homes with fresco wall paintings.

Buon fresco is a form of painting where the pigment is painted onto a wet limestone plaster. When the plaster dries the painting also dries, becoming an integral part of the wall. In the Minoan variation, the stone walls are first covered with a mixture of mud and straw, then thinly coated with lime plaster, and lastly with layers of fine plaster.

The Minoans had a distinct painting style with shapes formed by curvilinear lines that add a feeling of liveliness to the paintings. The Minoan color palette is based in earth tones of white, brown, red, and yellow. Black and vivid blue are also used. These color combinations create vivid and rich decoration.

The frescoes discovered in locations such as Knossos and Akrotiri inform us of the plant and animal life of the islands of Crete and Thera Santorini , the common styles of clothing, and the activities the people practiced. For example, men wore kilts and loincloths. Women wore short-sleeve dresses with flounced skirts whose bodices were open to the navel, allowing their breasts to be exposed.

Fresco depicting three women : This fresco from the complex at Knossos depicts a popular fashion for Minoan women. Fragments of frescoes found at Knossos provide us with glimpses into Minoan culture and rituals. A fresco found on an upper story of the palace has come to be known as Bull Leaping.

The image depicts a bull in flying gallop with one person at his horns, another at his feet, and a third, whose skin color is brown instead of white, inverted in a handstand leaping over the bull.

While the different skin color of the figures may differentiate male dark and female light figures, the similarity of their clothing and body shapes lean with few curves suggest that the figures may all be male. The figures participate in an activity known as bull-leaping. The human figures are stylized with narrow waists, broad shoulders, long, slender, muscular legs, and cylindrical arms. Unlike the twisted perspective seen in Egyptian or Ancient Near Eastern works of art, these figures are shown in full profile, an element the adds to the air of liveliness.

Although the specifics of bull leaping remain a matter of debate, it is commonly interpreted as a ritualistic activity performed in connection with bull worship. In most cases, the leaper would literally grab a bull by his horns, which caused the bull to jerk his neck upwardly. This jerking motion gave the leaper the momentum necessary to perform somersaults and other acrobatic tricks or stunts. Bull Leaping appears to divide these steps between two participants, with a third extending his arms, possibly to catch the leaper.

The Minoans settled on other islands besides Crete, including the volcanic, Cycladic island of Thera present-day Santorini. Akrotiri was entombed by pumice and ash and since its rediscovery has been referred to as the Minoan Pompeii.

The frescoes on Akrotiri were preserved by the blanketing volcanic ash. The wall paintings found on Thera provide significant information about Minoan life and culture, depicting a highly developed society.

A fresco commonly called Flotilla or Akrotiri Ship Procession represents a culture adept at a variety of seafaring occupations. Differences in clothing styles could refer to different ranks and roles in society. Deer, dolphins, and large felines point to a sense of biodiversity among the islands of the Minoan civilization. Flotilla or Akrotiri Ship Procession : This panoramic fresco depicts the Minoans as a highly developed civilization. In one room is a wall painting known as the Landscape with Swallows, or as the Spring Fresco.

It depicts a whimsical, hilly landscape with lilies sprouting from the ground. Sparrows, painted in blue, white, and red, swoop around the landscape.

The lilies sway gracefully and the hills create an undulating rhythm around the room. The fresco does not depict a naturalistic landscape, but instead depicts an essence of the land and nature, whose liveliness is enhanced through the colors and curvilinear lines.

Minoan ceramics and vase painting are uniquely stylized and are similar in artistic style to Minoan wall painting. As with Minoan frescoes, themes from nature and marine life are often depicted on their pottery. Similar earth-tone colors are used, including black, white, brown, red, and blue. Kamares ware, a distinctive type of pottery painted in white, red, and blue over a black backdrop, is created from a fine clay. The paintings depict marine scenes, as well as abstract floral shapes, and they often include abstract lines and shapes, including spirals and waves.

These stylized, floral shapes include lilies, palms, papyrus , and leaves that fill the entire surface of the pot with bold designs. Crete was named after Cres, for who the name of his descendants were Curetes or if you prefer, Cretes by taking the u out. Rome knew them as Quirites.

Cres was of the family of the Titans, legendary spawners of the first overwhelming empire beyond memory, maybe BC. Many language explanations and small dictionaries, too. I suspect Germanic tribes were mixed in as well. I have the 1st 13 chapters of his book transcribed at truth1.

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