{"id":1635,"date":"2026-07-16T17:29:12","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T17:29:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/chapter\/the-ancient-aegean-world\/"},"modified":"2026-07-27T17:19:16","modified_gmt":"2026-07-27T17:19:16","slug":"the-ancient-aegean-world","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/chapter\/the-ancient-aegean-world\/","title":{"raw":"The Ancient Aegean World","rendered":"The Ancient Aegean World"},"content":{"raw":"<h2 id=\"chapter-overview-and-introduction-4\">Chapter Overview and Introduction<\/h2>\r\nMany people are surprised to learn that Ancient Greece is not a pristine civilization. Pristine civilizations develop independently with no contact with earlier civilizations. Ancient Sumer and Ancient Egypt are both pristine civilizations. In contrast, Ancient Greece has its origins in three ancient Aegean civilizations: Cycladic Islands, Minoans, and Mycenaeans. These are the communities and cultures living in the region before the \"Greeks\" emerged as we know and understand them.\r\n<h3 id=\"focus-artworks-4\">Focus Artworks<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li><em>Male Harp Player<\/em>\u00a0from Keros, c. 2600\u20132300 B.C.E., Early Cycladic period, marble<\/li>\r\n \t<li><em>Bull-leaping fresco<\/em>\u00a0from the east wing of the <em>Palace of Knossos<\/em> (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco<\/li>\r\n \t<li><em>Mask of Agamemnon<\/em>, from shaft grave V, grave circle A, c. 1550\u20131500 B.C.E., Mycenae, gold<\/li>\r\n \t<li><em>The Treasury of Atreus<\/em>, Mycenae, c. 1300-1250 B.C.E., stone<\/li>\r\n \t<li><em>Lion Gate<\/em>, Mycenae, c. 1300-1250 B.C.E., limestone, relief panel<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<h3 id=\"term-list-4\">Term List<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Aegean<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Cycladic<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Minoan<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Mycenean<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Linear A script<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Linear B script<\/li>\r\n \t<li><em>Wanax<\/em><\/li>\r\n \t<li>Palace of Knossos<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Citadel<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Shaft grave<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Megaron<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Tholos<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Dromos<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Corbelling technique<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Cyclopean masonry<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Minoan-style column<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<h2 id=\"the-ancient-aegean-an-introduction\">The Ancient Aegean, an introduction<\/h2>\r\nThe Aegean refers to the Aegean Sea, the northern portion of the Mediterranean between Greece and Turkey and extending south to the island of Crete. In art history this designation refers to the era of the Bronze Age, the 3rd\u00a0and 2nd\u00a0millennium B.C.E. This era encompasses three different but inter-related cultures:\r\n<ol type=\"1\">\r\n \t<li>the Cycladic islands<\/li>\r\n \t<li>the Minoans of Crete and<\/li>\r\n \t<li>the Mycenaeans of the mainland of Greece.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\nRelative to many ancient cultures, those of the Aegean were only recently discovered, at the end of the 19th\u00a0century. The Classical Greeks and Romans never faded from\u00a0memory but the Mycenaeans and Minoans were largely forgotten, except in myth; it is the people and places of Bronze Age Crete and Greece featured in the\u00a0<em>Iliad<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0<em>Odyssey<\/em>\u00a0of Homer.\r\n\r\nTwo archaeologists who set out to find the people mentioned in Homer\u2019s epics, Heinrich Schliemann and Sir Arthur Evans, had little more than the poems themselves and some obscure remains to lead them. Schliemann dug several Aegean Bronze Age sites, most famously Troy from 1870\u201373, and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/the-palace-and-grave-circle-a-mycenae\/\">Mycenae<\/a>\u00a0(the mythical house of Atreus, best known from the tragic play the\u00a0<em>Oresteia<\/em>\u00a0of Aeschylus) in 1876. In 1900, Evans, following the first explorations of the site by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Minos_Kalokairinos\">Minos Kalokairinos<\/a>\u00a0in 1877, began to fully uncover\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/ancient-mediterranean\/the-palace-at-knossos-crete\/\">Knossos<\/a>, the site associated with the mythical palace of King Minos of Crete.\r\n\r\nSince these early discoveries, the study of the Aegean has been primarily archaeological and not so much art historical. We now know that the Minoans and Mycenaeans both wrote languages, used sophisticated identity and security mechanisms as part of religious and economic bureaucracies which centered around large sites with imposing central buildings. They were great seafarers and traders, talented potters, painters, jewelers, weavers and carvers of stone.\r\n\r\nThe prehistoric Aegean was the first truly international age, and much of the art shows influence across cultures: Minoan wall painting owes much to Egyptian art; late Bronze Age Cypriot pottery imitates Mycenaean pieces. Today, the sites and art of the Minoans and Mycenaeans are some of the most popular of the ancient world.\r\n<h2 id=\"cycladic-art-an-introduction\">Cycladic art, an introduction<\/h2>\r\nThe Cyclades (often referred to as the Greek Islands) are a group of islands to the southeast of Mainland Greece in close proximity to one another, so much so, from each island you can nearly always see at least one other. This capacity to see each other, and invite travel between them, resulted in a common culture growing up among these islands in the Early Bronze age (around 3000 B.C.E.). For the next thousand years, until about 2000 B.C.E small farming settlements grew into large towns with neatly built stone buildings. Metal smelting became common and trade flourished with not only the mainland of Greece but also Crete and the Anatolian coast (today, Turkey).\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1611\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/14296479018_750fd73c70_k-1.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1611\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image91.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of a museum display featuring various ancient Cycladic figurines arranged by size and shape against a dark background. Figurines range from small, detailed busts to larger, full-body sculptures.\" width=\"870\" height=\"519\" \/><\/a> Cycladic period figures, marble (National Archaeological Museum, Athens, Photo: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/profzucker\/14296479018\/in\/photostream\/\">Steven Zucker<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-NC-SA 2.0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n<h3 id=\"found-in-the-tombs\">Found in the tombs<\/h3>\r\nThe Early Bronze Age people of the Cyclades had a unique way of burying their dead, in stone slab lined pits, sometimes in two stories. But, what is really remarkable is what has often been found in these tombs: elegantly carved small-scale marble sculptures, nearly all of women, known as\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/male-harp-player-from-keros-early-cycladic-period\/\">Cycladic figurines<\/a>. These form the first stylistically coherent sculptural type to develop in Europe and have featured prominently in the prehistoric art history of Greece. Several Modern artists were influenced by Cycladic figurines as well, including Pablo Picasso, Constantin Br\u00e2ncusi, and Amedeo Modigliani.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1612\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/male-harp-player-from-keros.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1612\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image92.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of an ancient marble Cycladic sculpture depicting a seated figure playing a harp, showcasing detailed carving and smooth texture. The sculpture highlights curved arms, a rounded head, and a harp with visible strings.\" width=\"870\" height=\"523\" \/><\/a> Male harp player from Keros, c. 2600\u20132300 B.C.E., Early Cycladic period, marble, 22.5 cm high (National Archaeological Museum, Athens, Photo: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/profzucker\/14481799002\">Steven Zucker<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-NC-SA 2.0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThe use and meaning of these sculptures have been a mystery since their first discovery at the end of the 19th century. The fact that some 75% of Early Cycladic archaeological\u00a0sites have been looted\u00a0in search of figurines to sell on the antiquities market hasn\u2019t helped;\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/elgin-marbles-debate-rages\/\">looting<\/a>\u00a0destroys the contextual information which enables us to understand artifacts. However, recent\u00a0archaeological excavations\u00a0on the island of Keros, have produced some fascinating information. Specifically, at the site of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cam.ac.uk\/research\/news\/island-of-broken-figurines\">Dhaskalio-Kavos two large deposits<\/a> have been found filled with hundreds of figures which were all purposefully broken in the Early Bronze Age before their burial. Archaeologists believe that the site was an important religious sanctuary which drew people from all over the Cyclades.\r\n\r\nThe dynamic early Bronze Age culture of the Cyclades ends abruptly, around 2000 B.C.E., when all settlement sites are abandoned. The reason for this abandonment remains a mystery. People don\u2019t again settle on the islands in large numbers for another two hundred years.\r\n<h2 id=\"cycladic-islands-male-harp-player-from-keros\">Cycladic Islands: <em>Male Harp Player<\/em>\u00a0from Keros<\/h2>\r\nModern artists fell in the love with these abstract 5000 year old sculptures\u2014but what was their real meaning?\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=7C7do85sfXA\r\n<h2 id=\"minoan-art-an-introduction\">Minoan art, an introduction<\/h2>\r\nThe Bronze Age culture of Crete, called Minoan, after\u00a0King Minos of Crete\u00a0from Greek mythology, is one of the most vibrant and admired in all of European prehistory.\r\n\r\nThe island itself is no doubt part of the story; at the watery intersection of Asia, Europe, and Africa, including snow covered mountain tops, lush agricultural plains, sandy beaches and dramatic gorges, Crete is exceptional for its natural richness and variety.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1613\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/knossospicwikimedia.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1613\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of ancient archaeological site at Knossos with stone walls and partially reconstructed buildings set against a backdrop of green hills and trees. The site features notable restored structures with red and white painted details, highlighting historical architecture and excavation efforts.\" width=\"870\" height=\"559\" \/><\/a> The archaeological site at Knossos, with restored rooms in the background, Crete (photo: <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/User:Jebulon\">Jebulon<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/publicdomain\/zero\/1.0\/deed.en\">CC0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThe Bronze Age history of the island is one of development, increasing influence, and eventual destruction of a culture centered around sites that have traditionally been called palaces (the most famous and largest one of which was\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/ancient-mediterranean\/the-palace-at-knossos-crete\/\">Knossos<\/a>). Therefore, the historical periods of Bronze Age Crete are called the Pre-palatial, Old Palace (or Protopalatial), New Palace (or Neopalatial) and Post-palatial. Within these historical periods there are more specific designations, largely deriving from pottery studies, which use the terms Early, Middle, and Late Minoan. These then divided again into I, II and III and then into A, B and C.\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li><strong>Pre-palatial period:\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0Early Minoan I \u2013 Middle Minoan IA (begins c. 3000 B.C.E.)<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Old Palace or Protopalatial period:\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0Middle Minoan IB \u2013 Middle Minoan IIB (begins c. 1900 B.C.E.)<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>New Palace or Neopalatial period:\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0Middle Minoan IIIA \u2013 Late Minoan IB (begins after 1730 B.C.E.)<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Post-palatial period<\/strong>: Late Minoan II-IIIC (begins after 1450 B.C.E.)<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1614\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"1429\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull_leaping_minoan_fresco_archmus_Heraklion-EDITED.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1614\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image94.jpeg\" alt=\"A fresco painting depicting a bull-leaping scene with a central figure vaulting over a large bull, flanked by two standing figures on either side. The artwork features a blue background with decorative borders containing circular patterns in earthy tones of brown, yellow, and white.\" width=\"1429\" height=\"787\" \/><\/a> Bull-leaping fresco from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (<a href=\"http:\/\/odysseus.culture.gr\/h\/4\/eh430.jsp?obj_id=7915\">Archaeological Museum of Heraklion<\/a>, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Bull_leaping_minoan_fresco_archmus_Heraklion.jpg\">Jebulon<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/publicdomain\/zero\/1.0\/deed.en\">CC0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n<h3 id=\"pre-palatial-period\">Pre-palatial period<\/h3>\r\nThe early Bronze Age history of Crete, the pre-palatial era, began around 3000 B.C.E. This period is marked by large towns, evidence of foreign contacts through trade, as well as very elaborate burial practices: large above-ground multi-use tombs which seems to indicate the existence of elite families. During this period, the skill of Minoan goldsmiths and potters becomes well established, producing finely detailed jewelry and beautiful pottery.\r\n<h3 id=\"old-palace-or-protopalatial-period\">Old Palace or Protopalatial period<\/h3>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1615\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/phaistos-annotated.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1615\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image95.jpeg\" alt=\"Architectural floor plan highlighting key areas of Knossos palace complex with labeled zones including King and Queen's apartments in orange, an open central court in blue, and storage rooms in purple. The plan uses color blocks and arrows to indicate spatial relationships and functional divisions within the structure.\" width=\"870\" height=\"635\" \/><\/a> Plan of Phaistos, Protopalatial period, showing typical characteristics of this period (open central court, storage spaces, and elite domestic spaces)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nBy around 1900 B.C.E., at the beginning of the Old Palace or Protopalatial period, the Minoan palaces were established, first at Knossos followed by Phaistos, Mallia, and Chania. Archaeologists have also discovered other smaller palaces at Petras, Galatas, and Monastiraki, although presently these sites are less well excavated and understood. These early palaces are extraordinary not only for the complexity of their construction but their striking similarity to one another, certainly a sign of a central administration of some kind. Built with large cut limestone ashlar blocks, Minoan palaces of the Old Palace period include a large open central court oriented north-south, storage spaces in the west of the structure, and a complex of decorated domestic rooms to the east which often feature elite details such as wall painting and indoor plumbing.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1616\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Kamaresvase_1_mod-EDITED.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1616\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image96.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of Kamares ware jug from Phaistos with a rounded body, narrow neck, and handle, decorated with intricate spiral and geometric patterns in black, white, and reddish-brown. Jug features a spout shaped like an animal head, showcasing artistic craftsmanship and cultural symbolism.\" width=\"870\" height=\"1270\" \/><\/a> Kamares ware jug from Phaistos,\u00a0c. 2000-1900 B.C.E., 27 cm (Archaeological Museum of Heraklion, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:AMI_-_Kamaresvase_1.jpg\">Wolfgang Sauber<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 3.0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nMinoan pottery of this period,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/kamares-ware-jug\/\">Kamares ware<\/a>, much of it produced in palace workshops, was widely traded and has been found in Kahun and Harageh in Egypt, Ras Shamra in Syria, and several sites on the island Cyprus.\r\n<h3 id=\"new-palace-or-neopalatial-period\">New Palace or Neopalatial period<\/h3>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1617\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Palaikastro.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1617\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image97.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of ancient stone ruins at Palaikastro with multiple low walls forming rectangular enclosures, partially covered by a large metal roof supported by wooden poles. The site is set in a grassy area with hills in the background, indicating an archaeological excavation of a historic settlement.\" width=\"870\" height=\"582\" \/><\/a> The ruins at Palaikastro (photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/7nrTTb\">Panegyrics of Granovetter<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThe Old Palace or Protopalatial period of Minoan history ends in a dramatic event, an earthquake, around 1730 B.C.E., which was so severe that the palaces had to be rebuilt, which they were, in an even more grand manner (and a new palace is built at Zakros). This era is referred to as the New Palace or Neopalatial period. Lots of big settlement sites thrive during this era as well, such as Palaikastro, Gournia and Kommos, with close connections to nearby palaces. It is from this period that written documents survive. Clay tablets (marked in a script called\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/nQdvgJ\">Linear A<\/a>) were used to keep administrative records at the palaces, recorded in a language which has yet to be fully deciphered.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/octopus-vase\/\">Pottery<\/a>\u00a0changes at this time as well, to feature marine animals, which perhaps reflects the sea power (thalassocracy) of the Minoans.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1618\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/25964693295_3d8fa1747a_o-scaled.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1618\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image98.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of an ancient fresco mural covering three walls of a small room, depicting stylized plants and figures in red, yellow, and gray tones. The artwork features tall floral motifs with elongated stems and clusters of flowers, set against a white background with a red border near the ceiling, illustrating decorative and symbolic elements from historical interior design.\" width=\"870\" height=\"566\" \/><\/a> \u201cSpring fresco,\u201d Building Complex Delta, room delta 2, west wall from Akrotiri, Thera (Santorini), Greece, 16th century B.C.E. (National Archaeological Museum, Athens; photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/FypQHM\">Steven Zucker<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-NC-SA 2.0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nDating to this period are some of the most remarkable figural frescos of the Aegean Bronze Age, including those from Santorini, an island, very much under Minoan influence. During this era, the Minoans were players in the international politics of the Eastern Mediterranean as recorded in Egyptian tomb paintings of the 18th\u00a0Dynasty in Thebes, which show Minoans bearing gifts for the Pharaoh.\r\n\r\nThe New Palace or Neopalatial era flourishes for two centuries. Then, beginning around 1500 B.C.E., Crete saw increasing influence from the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/intro-mycenaean-art\/\">Mycenaean culture<\/a>\u00a0of mainland Greece. Around 1450 B.C.E., over a period of approximately 50 years, nearly all sites on the island are burned and\/or abandoned, including all of the palaces. This dramatic end to such a prominent and dynamic culture is remarkable and still essentially mysterious; was it natural disaster, social upheaval, extended draught, or some combination?\r\n<h3 id=\"post-palatial-period\">Post-palatial period<\/h3>\r\nThe era following this turmoil on Crete is called the Post-palatial period, which has a distinctively Mycenaean flavor. Knossos and Chania are the only palace sites which are rebuilt although with new Mycenaean architectural forms; this is the period to which the famous throne room at Knossos dates, which looks a lot like the throne rooms at Mycenae, Pylos, and Tiryns on Mainland Greece.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1619\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/throneroom.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1619\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image99.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of Throne Room, Knossos with stone benches, a carved stone chair, and a large circular basin on a stone floor. Walls feature red background with decorative white and yellow frescoes of lions and floral patterns.\" width=\"870\" height=\"651\" \/><\/a> Throne Room, Knossos (photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Knossos_Thronsaal_01.jpg\">Olaf Bausch<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/3.0\/deed.en\">CC BY 3.0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nMost importantly in post-palatial Crete, a new script and language is used for administration, Linear B, which records an early form of the Classical Greek language, the same language and script which was used at Mycenaean sites on the mainland of Greece. What the texts describe is a theocratic society with a king (<em>Wanax<\/em>) and several high officials, priests, and priestesses who oversee religious ceremonies as well as the production of a massive and complex textile industry. This work employed over 700 shepherds harvesting between 50\u201375 tons of raw wool, woven by nearly 1,000 workers, men, women, and children, who produced some 20,000 individual textile pieces. New to Crete during this period is a warrior grave tradition. We find chamber tombs and shaft graves that include bronze vessels, swords, and daggers with the deceased interred on biers or in wooden coffins.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1620\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"1429\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Linear-B-Tablet-CC-BY-NC-SA-4.0.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1620\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image100.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of a stone tablet inscribed with Linear B script arranged in horizontal rows. The dark tablet contrasts with a light surface and black background, highlighting detailed carvings and signs of wear on the artifact.\" width=\"1429\" height=\"729\" \/><\/a> Tablet with Linear B script, c. 1375 B.C.E., Late Minoan IIIA, Knossos, Crete (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.britishmuseum.org\/collection\/object\/G_1910-0423-1\">The British Museum<\/a>, photo: Trustees of the British Museum, <a href=\"CC%20BY-NC-SA%204.0\">CC BY-NC-SA 4.0<\/a>) The British Museum translated the script as follows: \u201cIn the month of Lapatos: To *47-ku-to 1.6 litres oil, to Pipituna 1.6 litres, to Aurimos 6.4 litres oil, to all the gods 9.6 litres, to the augur 9.6 litres, to the priestess of the winds 28.8 litres oil, Itanos to the priestess of the winds 14.4 litres.\u201d[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThis Mycenaean-influenced period of Crete comes to an end over a period of perhaps 100 years, during which sites are either burned or abandoned. By 1200 B.C.E., the island appears to be radically depopulated with only a very few small and simple settlements high in the mountains with no evidence of writing or even the use of the potter\u2019s wheel.\r\n<h2 id=\"knossos-and-bull-leaping-fresco-from-the-palace-of-knossos\">Knossos and Bull-leaping fresco from the palace of Knossos<\/h2>\r\nThere aren\u2019t many places in the world like Knossos. Situated 6km south of the sea, on the north central coast of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/crete-scaled.jpg\">Crete<\/a>, several things make this archaeological site important: its great antiquity (it is 9,000 years old), many different cultural layers (<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/the-neolithic-revolution\/\">Neolithic<\/a>\u00a0through\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/a-beginners-guide-to-byzantine-art\/\">Byzantine<\/a>), its size (nearly 10 square Km) and its great popularity (the second most visited archaeological site in Greece after the Acropolis at Athens). Aside from these, however, Knossos is also exceptional because of its role in the writing of history. It is the\u00a0type site\u00a0for all of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/intro-minoan-art\/\">Minoan<\/a>\u00a0archaeology, was one of the first large-scale scientific excavations in Europe, and contains some of the most contentious\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/conservation-knossos\/\">restorations<\/a>\u00a0in the ancient Mediterranean. Because of all this, Knossos is a critical part of multiple discourses in the history and historiography of the ancient world. We can\u2019t stop talking about Knossos.\r\n<h3 id=\"a-palace\">A palace?<\/h3>\r\nBronze Age Knossos is traditionally called a palace, a description used by its most famous excavator, Sir Arthur Evans. Indeed, when Evans, just three weeks after beginning his work at the site, discovered a grandly paved and painted room with a large stone chair set in the wall he believed he had found the throne of Minos and the kings of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/crete-scaled.jpg\">Crete<\/a>. This royal interpretation of the site of Knossos stuck. Although it is now clear that the role of Knossos was at least as religious and economic as it was political, it is still just called a palace.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1613\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/knossospicwikimedia.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1613\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of ancient archaeological site at Knossos with stone walls and partially reconstructed buildings set against a backdrop of green hills and trees. The site features notable restored structures with red and white painted details, highlighting historical architecture and excavation efforts.\" width=\"870\" height=\"559\" \/><\/a> The archaeological site at Knossos, with restored rooms in the background, Crete (photo: <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/User:Jebulon\">Jebulon<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/publicdomain\/zero\/1.0\/deed.en\">CC0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n<h3 id=\"postpalatial-or-final-palatial-knossos\">Postpalatial or Final Palatial Knossos<\/h3>\r\nThere are signs that the palace suffered a series of destructions around 1450 B.C.E., at the same time that there are widespread destructions and abandonment of Minoan sites all over Crete. These events begin what is called the Postpalatial or Final Palatial period, which lasts approximately 150 years. Knossos is rebuilt after these destructions but differently. For instance, no more lavish limestone ashlar masonry was cut for the exterior of the palace and new interior walls were erected to change the flow of movement, seemingly to cut off certain areas, such as the West magazines (storage areas), presumably for security. Most importantly, the Throne Room was redesigned in this era to include the griffins seen in the archaeological reconstruction and possibly for the installation of the throne itself\r\n\r\nMuch of the palace interior was repainted in this Postpalatial era and this includes many of the most famous wall paintings from Knossos: the bull leaping or Toreador fresco, the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/procession-fresco-scaled.jpg\">Procession fresco<\/a>, and the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Camp-stool_Fresco_Minoan_from_Knossos_AMH_145371-scaled.jpg\">Camp Stool fresco<\/a>.\r\n<h3 id=\"taking-the-bull-by-the-horns\">Taking the bull by the horns<\/h3>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1621\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull_leaping_minoan_fresco_archmus_Heraklion-EDITED.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1621\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image101.jpeg\" alt=\"A fresco painting depicting a bull-leaping scene with a central figure vaulting over a large bull, flanked by two standing figures on either side. The artwork features a blue background with decorative borders containing circular patterns in earthy tones of brown, yellow, and white.\" width=\"870\" height=\"479\" \/><\/a> Bull-leaping fresco from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (<a href=\"http:\/\/odysseus.culture.gr\/h\/4\/eh430.jsp?obj_id=7915\">Archaeological Museum of Heraklion<\/a>, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Bull_leaping_minoan_fresco_archmus_Heraklion.jpg\">Jebulon<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/publicdomain\/zero\/1.0\/deed.en\">CC0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nBull sports\u2014including leaping over them, fighting them, running from them, or riding them\u2014have been practiced all around the globe for millennia. Perhaps the best-loved ancient illustration of this, called the bull-leaping or Toreador fresco, comes from the site of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/ancient-mediterranean\/the-palace-at-knossos-crete\/\">Knossos<\/a>\u00a0on the island of Crete. The wall painting, as it is now\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/conservation-knossos\/\">reconstructed<\/a>, shows three people leaping over a bull: one person at its front, another over its back, and a third at its rear.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1622\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"300\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Court-of-the-stone-spout-Evans.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1622\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image102.jpeg\" alt=\"Black and white photograph of ancient stone ruins featuring rectangular platforms, steps, and large stone blocks arranged in an open area. Background includes trees and a partially visible stone structure, highlighting archaeological site details and historical architecture. \" width=\"300\" height=\"246\" \/><\/a> The Court of the Stone Spout, where the pieces of the fresco were found, from Sir Arthur Evans,\u00a0The Palace of Minos\u00a0(London, 1930), p. 270 (<a href=\"http:\/\/digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de\/diglit\/evans1930\/0316\">Universit\u00e4ts-Bibliothek Heidelberg<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThe image is a composite of at least seven panels, each .78 meters (about 2.5 feet) high.\u00a0Fragments of this extensive wall painting were found very badly damaged in the\u00a0fill\u00a0above the walls in the Court of the Stone Spout, on the east side of the Central Court at Knossos. The fact that the paintings were found in fill indicates that this wall painting was destroyed as part of a renovation. The pottery which was found together with the fragments gives us its date, likely\u00a0LM II\u00a0(around 1400 B.C.E.).\r\n<h3 id=\"reconstructed-but-still-incomplete\">Reconstructed but still incomplete<\/h3>\r\nWhen Sir Arthur Evans, the first archaeologist to work at Knossos, found the fragments, he recognized them as illustrating an early example of bull sports, and he was eager to create a complete image that he could share with the world. \u00a0He hired a well-known archaeological restorer,\u00a0\u00c9mile Gilli\u00e9ron, to create the image we know today from the largest bits of the seven panels. Unfortunately, it is impossible to reconstruct all of the original panels and to get a sense of the painting at all, we are left with Gilli\u00e9ron\u2019s reconstruction.\r\n<h3 id=\"visual-gymnastics\">Visual gymnastics<\/h3>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1623\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull-leaping-from-side.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1623\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image103.jpeg\" alt=\"A fresco painting depicting a bull-leaping scene from ancient Minoan culture, showing three human figures interacting with a large bull in dynamic motion. The artwork features earthy tones with detailed borders of patterned semicircles and stripes, highlighting cultural and ritualistic significance.\" width=\"870\" height=\"668\" \/><\/a> Bull-leaping fresco from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (<a href=\"http:\/\/odysseus.culture.gr\/h\/4\/eh430.jsp?obj_id=7915\">Archaeological Museum of Heraklion<\/a>, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/29py4WQ\">Andy Montgomery<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nWhat we see is a freeze-frame of a very fast moving scene. The central image of the fresco as reconstructed is a bull charging with such force that its front and back legs are in midair. In front of the bull is a person grasping its horns, seemingly about to vault over it. The next person is in mid-vault, upside down, over the back of the bull, and the final person is facing the rear of the animal, arms out, apparently just having dismounted\u2014\u201csticking the landing,\u201d as they say in gymnastics.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1624\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull-leaping-left.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1624\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image104.jpeg\" alt=\"Bull-leaping fresco (detail) depicting a man holding the horn of a large bull, showcasing dynamic interaction between human and animal. The artwork features earthy tones with detailed line work on the bull's body and a fragmented background with visible cracks and missing sections.\" width=\"870\" height=\"595\" \/><\/a> Bull-leaping fresco (detail) from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (Archaeological Museum of Heraklion, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/MCMwXu\">Carole Raddato<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThe people on either side of the bull, as reconstructed, bear markers of both male and female gender: they are painted white, which indicates a female figure according to ancient Egyptian gender-color conventions, which we know the Minoans also used. But both characters wear merely a loincloth, which is male dress. The hairstyle (curls at the top with locks falling down the back) is not uncommon in representations of both youthful males and females. Many interpretations of this gender crossing are possible, but there is little evidence to support one over another, unfortunately. At the very least, we can say that the representation of gender in the Late Aegean Bronze Age was fluid.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1625\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"300\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull-leaping-right.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1625\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image105.jpeg\" alt=\"Bull-leaping fresco (detail) depicting a standing figure with arms raised behind the back legs and tail of the bull. The artwork features muted colors with visible cracks and wear.\" width=\"300\" height=\"471\" \/><\/a> Bull-leaping fresco (detail) from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (Archaeological Museum of Heraklion, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/NxowPJ\">Carole Raddato<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThe person at the center of the action, vaulting over the bull\u2019s back, is painted brown, which indicates male gender according to ancient Egyptian gender-color conventions, and this makes sense considering his loincloth. It is interesting to note that the muscles of all three of the bull leapers, at their thighs and chests, have been very delicately articulated, accentuating their athletic build.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1626\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull-leaping-middle.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1626\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image106.jpeg\" alt=\"Bull-leaping fresco (detail) showing the male figure in a hand-stand position on top of the bull mid-air. The artwork features earthy tones of red, brown, and yellow on a cracked, weathered stone surface.\" width=\"870\" height=\"579\" \/><\/a> Bull-leaping fresco (detail) from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (Archaeological Museum of Heraklion, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/carolemage\/30467261162\">Carole Raddato<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThe background of the scene is blue, white, or yellow monochrome, and indicate no architectural context for the activity. Moreover, the seven panels and Gilli\u00e9ron\u2019s composite reconstruction all show a border of painted richly variegated stones overlapping in patches. So, it seems we are meant to see these scenes as abstracted action within frames, not part of a wider visual field or narrative.\r\n<h3 id=\"a-rite-of-passage\">A rite of passage?<\/h3>\r\nThe most interesting question about the bull leaping paintings from Knossos is what they might mean. We cannot understand the whole bull-leaping cycle in detail as it is so fragmentary, but we know that it covered a lot of wall space and a considerable amount of resources must have been expended to create it.\r\n\r\nAs mentioned above, many cultures across space and time have engaged in bull sports, and they all have a few things in common. First, these sports are life-threatening. To race, dance with, leap over, or kill a bull might very well get you killed. Second, these activities are usually performed before a crowd: they are a civic event, publicly presented and recorded in memory. Third, those who participate in these bull activities are often youths at an age when they are passing from childhood into adulthood and the achievement of the bull sport contributes to that passage. Anthropologists refer this sort of activity as a \u201crite of passage,\u201d which, when witnessed by one\u2019s community, establishes the participant as an adult.\r\n\r\nTherefore, we might surmise that the bull leaping scenes from Knossos refer to such a rite of passage ceremony. Many have identified the Central Court (Theatral area) just beyond the west fa\u00e7ade of the palace at Knossos as locations where bull-leaping ceremonies might have taken place. We may never know the exact meaning of these paintings, but they continue to resonate with us today\u2014not only because of their beauty and dynamism, but because they represent an activity that is still an important part of many cultures around the world.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1627\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"300\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull-leaping-border.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1627\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image107.jpeg\" alt=\"Bull-leaping fresco (detail) close up of the border featuring muted colors like blue, yellow, and white. The artwork includes horizontal bands with geometric patterns and shows signs of wear and damage.\" width=\"300\" height=\"247\" \/><\/a> Bull-leaping fresco (detail) from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (Archaeological Museum of Heraklion, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Bull_leaping_minoan_fresco_archmus_Heraklion.jpg\">Jebulon<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/publicdomain\/zero\/1.0\/deed.en\">CC0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"textbox textbox--key-takeaways\"><header class=\"textbox__header\">\r\n<h2 class=\"textbox__title\">Practicing Visual Analysis<\/h2>\r\n<\/header>\r\n<div class=\"textbox__content\">\r\n\r\nThe scene on the Bull-leaping fresco from the palace of Knossos is a large<strong>-scale<\/strong> two-dimensional image. Devoid of any <strong>background<\/strong> for context, the <strong>forms<\/strong> appear to float in an ambiguous <strong>pictorial<\/strong> <strong>space<\/strong>. While the ancient artists here did not use any <strong>chiaroscuro<\/strong> modeling to create highlights and shadows (ex. no figure casts a shadow beneath), the artists used <strong>overlapping figures<\/strong> and variations in <strong>proportions<\/strong> to signify slight depth in the <strong>pictorial space<\/strong>. The rider\u2019s arms overlap with the bull\u2019s body. The figure on the far right is larger in proportion than the figure on the far left signifying they are closer to the viewer in space. Through <strong>overlapping<\/strong> figures and <strong>curvilinear forms,<\/strong> the artist also expressed the idea of movement. The front right leg of the bull is slightly higher than the front left leg while the hind legs stretch behind the bull and its tail creates a fluid curvilinear movement in space. As stated above, the <strong>colors<\/strong> on the human forms correspond to Ancient Egyptian conventions of gender. To create details, such as the <strong>pattern<\/strong> of fur on the bull, the artist used <strong>curvilinear line<\/strong>. Abstract <strong>patterns<\/strong> are further shown in the border that surrounds the entire scene.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h2 id=\"minoans-and-myceneans\">Minoans and Myceneans<\/h2>\r\n<h3 id=\"cretan-and-mainland-cultures\">Cretan and mainland cultures<\/h3>\r\nA lot about Postpalatial Knossos has a distinct Mycenaean flavor and this fact has led many archaeologists to conclude that the destructions at the beginning of the period were actually the Mycenaeans invading the island. However, many Minoan elements remain in Postpalatial culture, and obvious signs of warfare which would have resulted from a large-scale invasion have yet to be found. Therefore, we now like to think of the Postpalatial period at Knossos as one of a hybrid, between Cretan and Mainland cultures, likely created by a local elite who wished to maintain status in both spheres. As to who exactly these local elite were, we have some information. Those buried in warrior graves in the Postpalatial cemeteries around Knossos were born in the region, as recent analysis of skeletal materials has shown. The new Knossian elite did not come from the Mycenaean mainland.\r\n<h3 id=\"knossos-collapses-.-.-.-and-rises-again\">Knossos collapses . . . and rises again<\/h3>\r\nTowards the end of the Postpalatial period Knossos\u2019 status relative to other sites (especially to the south and west) on the island seems to wane. Eventually there is a massive destruction, collapse, and fire at the palace around 1300 B.C.E. From that point there is little reoccupation within the most important parts of the palace, although there is some small-scale reoccupation around its periphery.\r\n\r\nKnossos wasn\u2019t down for long. Rapidly after the late Bronze Age collapse a large Early Iron Age settlement emerged north of the palace and was clearly cosmopolitan as it was the only site of the period in Greece with imports ranging from the Middle East to Sardinia. This area eventually develops into a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/greek_intro\/\">Classical Greek<\/a>\u00a0polis (city-state) and in the 1st\u00a0century B.C.E. suffers\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/introduction-to-ancient-rome\/\">Roman<\/a>\u00a0conquest. Beautiful mosaics survive from a 2nd\u00a0century C.E. Roman home, the Villa Dionysos, evidence of the thriving Roman city at the site. A large Christian church is built at the north edge of the site in the 6th\u00a0century, witness to the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/innovative-architecture-in-the-age-of-justinian\/\">Byzantine<\/a>\u00a0history of Knossos.\r\n<h2 id=\"mycenaean-art-an-introduction\">Mycenaean art, an introduction<\/h2>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1628\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/12044295383_94f22a4d13_k.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1628\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image108.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of a person standing on ancient stone ruins overlooking a vast valley with mountains and sea in the distance. The scene highlights historical architecture with rugged stone walls and natural landscape under clear blue sky.\" width=\"870\" height=\"580\" \/><\/a> Looking past the \u201cPalace\u201d to the sea, Mycenae, Greece, c. 1600\u20131100 B.C.E. (photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/82032880@N00\/12044295383\/in\/photolist-liongate\">Steven Zucker<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-NC-SA 2.0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThe ancient citadel (fortified city) at Mycenae is located on top of an isolated hill and provides truly spectacular views of the surrounding area, making it an ideal location for a defensive stronghold. Mycenaean culture dominated southern Greece, but is perhaps best known for the site of Mycenae itself, which includes the citadel (with a palace), and is surrounded by different forms of tombs and other structures. Mycenaean culture firmly establishes itself in the late Bronze Age, specifically, around 1600 B.C.E.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1629\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/graveb.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1629\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image109.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of the \u201cPalace\u201d and Grave Circle A featuring a circular structure with tiered seating resembling an amphitheater or ceremonial site. The scene highlights weathered stone walls, grassy patches between tiers, and surrounding rocky terrain.\" width=\"870\" height=\"521\" \/><\/a> The \u201cPalace\u201d and Grave Circle A, Mycenae, c. 1600\u20131100 B.C.E. (photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/82032880@N00\/12044303683\/in\/photolist-liongate\">Steven Zucker<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-NC-SA 2.0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nAt around 1600 B.C.E.\u2014seemingly out of nowhere\u2014the\u00a0shaft graves\u00a0at the site of Mycenae are built.\u00a0These are two circular walled plots containing graves, built some 50 years apart, close to the fortification wall of the citadel. Archaeologists named these \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/the-palace-and-grave-circle-a-mycenae\/\">Grave Circle A<\/a>\u201d and \u201cGrave Circle B.\u201d Grave Circle B is earlier than A (but A was discovered first) and contained some 14 shaft graves with 24 burials; Grave Circle A held 6 shaft graves with 19 burials. These burials contained men, women, and children who were related to one another, recent DNA analysis has shown.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1630\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"960\"]<img class=\"size-full wp-image-1630\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image110.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of a gold funerary mask shaped like a human face with detailed eyes, nose, mouth, ears, and beard. The mask features a hammered texture and is displayed against a dark background, highlighting its metallic sheen and craftsmanship.\" width=\"960\" height=\"908\" \/> <em>Mask of Agamemnon<\/em>, from shaft grave V, Grave Circle A, Mycenae c.1550\u20131500 B.C.E., gold, 12\u2033 \/ 35 cm (National Archaeological Museum, Athens, Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Athens_%E2%80%94_Mask_of_Agamemnon.jpg\">Wikimedia<\/a>, License: <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/publicdomain\/mark\/1.0\/\">Public Domain<\/a> in the United States)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nMore importantly, along with the burials one of the largest deposits of precious metals, especially gold (including the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/mask-of-agamemnon\/\"><em>Mask of Agamemnon<\/em><\/a>), ever found in ancient Greece was discovered. An even wealthier single\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.griffinwarrior.org\/griffin-warrior-tomb\/\">shaft grave<\/a>\u00a0has been recently discovered near the Mycenaean palace at Pylos. The wealth of the shaft graves is shocking, a huge change from the earlier rather modest remains of Bronze Age mainland Greece, and initiates an era of Mycenaean activity and power which stretches across most of the region.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1631\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/EB1911_Mycenae_-_plan_of_the_citadel.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1631\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image111.jpeg\" alt=\"Black and white historical map showing layout of the ancient fortified site of the Citadel of Mycenae with labeled areas including Circle Graves, Houses, Palace, Doric Temple, and House Remains. Map features thick boundary walls, pathways, and terrain shading to indicate elevation and structural divisions within the site.\" width=\"870\" height=\"543\" \/><\/a> Plan of the Citadel of Mycenae[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThe focus sites of this era are Mycenaean palaces which all have several aspects in common: a central megaron or throne room with a large hearth which is adjacent to an open court, commanding views of an agricultural plane, colorful and often figural wall painting, and associations with grand burial structures such as tholoi (beehive tombs). These types of sites can be found not only at Mycenae but also at Tiryns, Iolkos, Orchomenos, Gla, Pylos, Thebes, and on the acropolis at Athens.\r\n<h3 id=\"written-and-visual-records\">Written and visual records<\/h3>\r\nWe know a lot about the Mycenaeans because they left written records which can be read. They wrote in a script called Linear B (related to the early Minoan Linear A) which recorded an early form of the Classical Greek language. At the sites of Mycenae, Pylos, Tiryns, and Thebes clay tablets inscribed in Linear B have been found describing a theocratic administration, very similar to the one described in the Linear B tablets found at\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/ancient-mediterranean\/the-palace-at-knossos-crete\/\">Knossos<\/a>\u00a0on Crete. A\u00a0<em>Wanax<\/em>\u00a0(the central figure of authority in Mycenaean society) presided over a complex religious and economic system which, at Pylos, was centered around a perfume oil and textile industry.\r\n\r\nAt that time there was regular contact and exchange between Mycenaean elite and the Pharaonic court in Egypt. Stirrup jars, the uniquely branded vessels of the wildly successful Mycenaean perfume oil trade, are found all over the Mediterranean basin. The design and decoration of Mycenaean pottery riffs off older\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/kamares-ware-jug\/\">Minoan styles<\/a>\u00a0in almost modernist abstractions and produces the first narrative pottery painting tradition in the ancient Greek world.\r\n\r\nThe motif of armed combat, hand-to-hand (parry and thrust), was perfected by Mycenaean artists, and can be seen beautifully represented in the minute scale of\u00a0gem engraving.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1632\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"862\"]<img class=\"size-full wp-image-1632\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image112.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of an ancient carved gemstone depicting three warriors in dynamic battle poses, with one holding a shield and spear and another wielding a sword. The translucent stone features intricate details highlighting muscular forms and flowing hair, emphasizing movement and conflict.\" width=\"862\" height=\"564\" \/> Two warriors in hand-to-hand combat, Pylos Combat Agate, discovered in the Grave of the Griffin Warrior at Pylos, c. 1450 B.C.E., 1.5 inches wide (Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Pylos_Combat_Agate.jpg\">Wikimedia<\/a>, License: Fair Use)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nAt the same time, Mycenaean architects and engineers embraced a massive scale with huge hydraulic projects, far-flung road works, and defensive walls so gigantic they never succumb to burial, remaining largely intact and providing the inspiration for mythological explication until the modern era.\r\n<h2 id=\"mycenae-the-palace-and-grave-circle-a\">Mycenae, The \u201cPalace\u201d and Grave Circle A<\/h2>\r\nSeeking the mythic cities of Homer, Heinrich Schliemann identified Mycenae in the 19th century.\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=S7HJB0PtiW0\r\n<h2 id=\"mask-of-agamemnon\">Mask of Agamemnon<\/h2>\r\n\u201cI have gazed into the face of Agamemnon,\u201d boasted the man who discovered it\u2014but is it really the Homeric hero?\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=1PKOiYY9SPA\r\n<h2 id=\"the-treasury-of-atreus\">The Treasury of Atreus<\/h2>\r\nBelow the great citadel of Mycenae, a passage into a hillside leads to a massive beehive-shaped tomb.\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Cc9cLmgXp_A\r\n<h2 id=\"lion-gate\">Lion Gate<\/h2>\r\nApproaching Mycenae was awe inspiring: a massive hill, walls of enormous stones, and the fearsome Lion Gate.\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=tu5mKn3_h7Y\r\n<h2 id=\"the-decline-of-mycenaean-sites\">The Decline of Mycenaean Sites<\/h2>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1633\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"870\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/12043943365_72ae28bb78_k.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-1633\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image113.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of Lion Gate, Mycenae with massive, weathered blocks forming walls and a lintel featuring carved reliefs. A person stands near the right wall, highlighting scale, while sunlight illuminates a pathway leading through the gateway toward distant hills.\" width=\"870\" height=\"569\" \/><\/a> Approach to the Lion Gate, Mycenae, c. 1300\u20131250 B.C.E. (photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/82032880@N00\/12044295383\/in\/photolist-liongate\">Steven Zucker<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-NC-SA 2.0<\/a>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nAround 1200 B.C.E. nearly all major Mycenaean sites experienced massive destruction, the cause of which is unclear. Many sites were quickly reinhabited, but the elite areas, such as the spaces where it is believed the\u00a0<em>Wanax<\/em>\u00a0ruled, were not rebuilt. For the next 50 to 75 years, pottery production and even wall painting continues but becomes less fine and increasingly regional, eventually ceasing all together. Burial practice changes as well, from shaft graves to small individual cist graves (small below-ground stone boxes) containing cremated remains.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1634\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"1242\"]<img class=\"size-full wp-image-1634\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image114.png\" alt=\"Map showing Mycenaean civilization during 1400-1100 BCE, highlighting palaces, important fortresses, and settlements in red and pink shades. Key locations like Mycenae, Tiryns, Pylos, Athens, and Knossos are labeled, with a legend indicating areas of Mycenaean influence and non-Mycenaean cities with Mycenaean wares.\" width=\"1242\" height=\"1090\" \/> Map of Mycenaean Greece 1400\u20131200 B.C.E. Palaces, main cities and other settlements.[\/caption]\r\n\r\nBy 1050 B.C.E., at the end of the Bronze Age, the Greek world (the Cycladic islands, Crete, and the Mainland), have only memories left of the once wealthy and far reaching polities which had ruled for nearly a millennium, an era soon to be beautifully enshrined in the oral epic tradition of Homer.\r\n<h2 id=\"conclusion-4\">Conclusion<\/h2>\r\nThe Ancient Aegean world provided the foundations for Ancient Greece, including language, culture, and the visual arts. From the Cycladic Islands abstract renderings of the human body to the Linear B script of the Myceneans, these ancient civilizations introduced concepts to the larger Greek world. The Myceneans were legendary to the Ancient Greeks, and they remain legendary today.\r\n<h3 id=\"citation-and-licensing-4\">Citation and Licensing<\/h3>\r\nThe following sections were written by Chelsea Wright and are licensed <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">CC BY-NC-SA 4.0<\/a>:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Chapter Overview and Introduction<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Focus artwork and term list compiled by Chelsea Wright<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Practicing Visual Analysis<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Conclusion<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nThe following articles from <em>Smarthistory<\/em> licensed <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">CC BY-NC-SA 4.0<\/a> were remixed and adapted for the chapter:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Dr. Senta German, \"<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/an-introduction-to-the-ancient-aegean\/\">The ancient Aegean, an introduction<\/a>,\" in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, August 25, 2020.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Dr. Senta German, \"<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/intro-cycladic-art\/\">Cycladic art, an introduction<\/a>,\" in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, August 25, 2020.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker, \"<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/male-harp-player-from-keros-early-cycladic-period\/\"><em>Male Harp Player<\/em>\u00a0from Keros<\/a>,\" in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, December 15, 2015.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Dr. Senta German, \"<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/intro-minoan-art\/\">Minoan art, an introduction<\/a>,\" in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, August 25, 2020.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Dr. Senta German, \"<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/knossos\/\">Knossos<\/a>,\" in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, September 19, 2020.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Dr. Senta German, \"<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/bull-leaping-fresco\/\">Bull-leaping fresco from the palace of Knossos<\/a>,\" in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, August 15, 2018.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Dr. Senta German, \"<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/intro-mycenaean-art\/\">Mycenaean art, an introduction<\/a>,\" in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, August 25, 2020.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Beth Harris, \"<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/the-palace-and-grave-circle-a-mycenae\/\">Mycenae, The \u201cPalace\u201d and Grave Circle A<\/a>,\" in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, December 14, 2015.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Beth Harris, \"<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/mask-of-agamemnon\/\"><em>Mask of Agamemnon<\/em><\/a>,\" in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, December 14, 2015.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Beth Harris, \"<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/the-treasury-of-atreus-mycenae\/\">The Treasury of Atreus<\/a>,\" in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, December 14, 2015.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Beth Harris, \"<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/lion-gate-mycenae\/\">Lion Gate<\/a>,\" in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, December 13, 2015.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>","rendered":"<h2 id=\"chapter-overview-and-introduction-4\">Chapter Overview and Introduction<\/h2>\n<p>Many people are surprised to learn that Ancient Greece is not a pristine civilization. Pristine civilizations develop independently with no contact with earlier civilizations. Ancient Sumer and Ancient Egypt are both pristine civilizations. In contrast, Ancient Greece has its origins in three ancient Aegean civilizations: Cycladic Islands, Minoans, and Mycenaeans. These are the communities and cultures living in the region before the &#8220;Greeks&#8221; emerged as we know and understand them.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"focus-artworks-4\">Focus Artworks<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Male Harp Player<\/em>\u00a0from Keros, c. 2600\u20132300 B.C.E., Early Cycladic period, marble<\/li>\n<li><em>Bull-leaping fresco<\/em>\u00a0from the east wing of the <em>Palace of Knossos<\/em> (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco<\/li>\n<li><em>Mask of Agamemnon<\/em>, from shaft grave V, grave circle A, c. 1550\u20131500 B.C.E., Mycenae, gold<\/li>\n<li><em>The Treasury of Atreus<\/em>, Mycenae, c. 1300-1250 B.C.E., stone<\/li>\n<li><em>Lion Gate<\/em>, Mycenae, c. 1300-1250 B.C.E., limestone, relief panel<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 id=\"term-list-4\">Term List<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Aegean<\/li>\n<li>Cycladic<\/li>\n<li>Minoan<\/li>\n<li>Mycenean<\/li>\n<li>Linear A script<\/li>\n<li>Linear B script<\/li>\n<li><em>Wanax<\/em><\/li>\n<li>Palace of Knossos<\/li>\n<li>Citadel<\/li>\n<li>Shaft grave<\/li>\n<li>Megaron<\/li>\n<li>Tholos<\/li>\n<li>Dromos<\/li>\n<li>Corbelling technique<\/li>\n<li>Cyclopean masonry<\/li>\n<li>Minoan-style column<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"the-ancient-aegean-an-introduction\">The Ancient Aegean, an introduction<\/h2>\n<p>The Aegean refers to the Aegean Sea, the northern portion of the Mediterranean between Greece and Turkey and extending south to the island of Crete. In art history this designation refers to the era of the Bronze Age, the 3rd\u00a0and 2nd\u00a0millennium B.C.E. This era encompasses three different but inter-related cultures:<\/p>\n<ol type=\"1\">\n<li>the Cycladic islands<\/li>\n<li>the Minoans of Crete and<\/li>\n<li>the Mycenaeans of the mainland of Greece.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Relative to many ancient cultures, those of the Aegean were only recently discovered, at the end of the 19th\u00a0century. The Classical Greeks and Romans never faded from\u00a0memory but the Mycenaeans and Minoans were largely forgotten, except in myth; it is the people and places of Bronze Age Crete and Greece featured in the\u00a0<em>Iliad<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0<em>Odyssey<\/em>\u00a0of Homer.<\/p>\n<p>Two archaeologists who set out to find the people mentioned in Homer\u2019s epics, Heinrich Schliemann and Sir Arthur Evans, had little more than the poems themselves and some obscure remains to lead them. Schliemann dug several Aegean Bronze Age sites, most famously Troy from 1870\u201373, and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/the-palace-and-grave-circle-a-mycenae\/\">Mycenae<\/a>\u00a0(the mythical house of Atreus, best known from the tragic play the\u00a0<em>Oresteia<\/em>\u00a0of Aeschylus) in 1876. In 1900, Evans, following the first explorations of the site by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Minos_Kalokairinos\">Minos Kalokairinos<\/a>\u00a0in 1877, began to fully uncover\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/ancient-mediterranean\/the-palace-at-knossos-crete\/\">Knossos<\/a>, the site associated with the mythical palace of King Minos of Crete.<\/p>\n<p>Since these early discoveries, the study of the Aegean has been primarily archaeological and not so much art historical. We now know that the Minoans and Mycenaeans both wrote languages, used sophisticated identity and security mechanisms as part of religious and economic bureaucracies which centered around large sites with imposing central buildings. They were great seafarers and traders, talented potters, painters, jewelers, weavers and carvers of stone.<\/p>\n<p>The prehistoric Aegean was the first truly international age, and much of the art shows influence across cultures: Minoan wall painting owes much to Egyptian art; late Bronze Age Cypriot pottery imitates Mycenaean pieces. Today, the sites and art of the Minoans and Mycenaeans are some of the most popular of the ancient world.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"cycladic-art-an-introduction\">Cycladic art, an introduction<\/h2>\n<p>The Cyclades (often referred to as the Greek Islands) are a group of islands to the southeast of Mainland Greece in close proximity to one another, so much so, from each island you can nearly always see at least one other. This capacity to see each other, and invite travel between them, resulted in a common culture growing up among these islands in the Early Bronze age (around 3000 B.C.E.). For the next thousand years, until about 2000 B.C.E small farming settlements grew into large towns with neatly built stone buildings. Metal smelting became common and trade flourished with not only the mainland of Greece but also Crete and the Anatolian coast (today, Turkey).<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1611\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1611\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/14296479018_750fd73c70_k-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1611\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image91.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of a museum display featuring various ancient Cycladic figurines arranged by size and shape against a dark background. Figurines range from small, detailed busts to larger, full-body sculptures.\" width=\"870\" height=\"519\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image91.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image91-300x179.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image91-768x458.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image91-65x39.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image91-225x134.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image91-350x209.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1611\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Cycladic period figures, marble (National Archaeological Museum, Athens, Photo: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/profzucker\/14296479018\/in\/photostream\/\">Steven Zucker<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-NC-SA 2.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"found-in-the-tombs\">Found in the tombs<\/h3>\n<p>The Early Bronze Age people of the Cyclades had a unique way of burying their dead, in stone slab lined pits, sometimes in two stories. But, what is really remarkable is what has often been found in these tombs: elegantly carved small-scale marble sculptures, nearly all of women, known as\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/male-harp-player-from-keros-early-cycladic-period\/\">Cycladic figurines<\/a>. These form the first stylistically coherent sculptural type to develop in Europe and have featured prominently in the prehistoric art history of Greece. Several Modern artists were influenced by Cycladic figurines as well, including Pablo Picasso, Constantin Br\u00e2ncusi, and Amedeo Modigliani.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1612\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1612\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/male-harp-player-from-keros.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1612\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image92.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of an ancient marble Cycladic sculpture depicting a seated figure playing a harp, showcasing detailed carving and smooth texture. The sculpture highlights curved arms, a rounded head, and a harp with visible strings.\" width=\"870\" height=\"523\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image92.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image92-300x180.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image92-768x462.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image92-65x39.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image92-225x135.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image92-350x210.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1612\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Male harp player from Keros, c. 2600\u20132300 B.C.E., Early Cycladic period, marble, 22.5 cm high (National Archaeological Museum, Athens, Photo: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/profzucker\/14481799002\">Steven Zucker<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-NC-SA 2.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The use and meaning of these sculptures have been a mystery since their first discovery at the end of the 19th century. The fact that some 75% of Early Cycladic archaeological\u00a0sites have been looted\u00a0in search of figurines to sell on the antiquities market hasn\u2019t helped;\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/elgin-marbles-debate-rages\/\">looting<\/a>\u00a0destroys the contextual information which enables us to understand artifacts. However, recent\u00a0archaeological excavations\u00a0on the island of Keros, have produced some fascinating information. Specifically, at the site of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cam.ac.uk\/research\/news\/island-of-broken-figurines\">Dhaskalio-Kavos two large deposits<\/a> have been found filled with hundreds of figures which were all purposefully broken in the Early Bronze Age before their burial. Archaeologists believe that the site was an important religious sanctuary which drew people from all over the Cyclades.<\/p>\n<p>The dynamic early Bronze Age culture of the Cyclades ends abruptly, around 2000 B.C.E., when all settlement sites are abandoned. The reason for this abandonment remains a mystery. People don\u2019t again settle on the islands in large numbers for another two hundred years.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"cycladic-islands-male-harp-player-from-keros\">Cycladic Islands: <em>Male Harp Player<\/em>\u00a0from Keros<\/h2>\n<p>Modern artists fell in the love with these abstract 5000 year old sculptures\u2014but what was their real meaning?<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"oembed-1\" title=\"Harp Player, Early Cycladic period\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/7C7do85sfXA?feature=oembed&#38;rel=0\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"minoan-art-an-introduction\">Minoan art, an introduction<\/h2>\n<p>The Bronze Age culture of Crete, called Minoan, after\u00a0King Minos of Crete\u00a0from Greek mythology, is one of the most vibrant and admired in all of European prehistory.<\/p>\n<p>The island itself is no doubt part of the story; at the watery intersection of Asia, Europe, and Africa, including snow covered mountain tops, lush agricultural plains, sandy beaches and dramatic gorges, Crete is exceptional for its natural richness and variety.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1613\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1613\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/knossospicwikimedia.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1613\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of ancient archaeological site at Knossos with stone walls and partially reconstructed buildings set against a backdrop of green hills and trees. The site features notable restored structures with red and white painted details, highlighting historical architecture and excavation efforts.\" width=\"870\" height=\"559\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93-300x193.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93-768x493.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93-65x42.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93-225x145.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93-350x225.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1613\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The archaeological site at Knossos, with restored rooms in the background, Crete (photo: <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/User:Jebulon\">Jebulon<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/publicdomain\/zero\/1.0\/deed.en\">CC0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The Bronze Age history of the island is one of development, increasing influence, and eventual destruction of a culture centered around sites that have traditionally been called palaces (the most famous and largest one of which was\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/ancient-mediterranean\/the-palace-at-knossos-crete\/\">Knossos<\/a>). Therefore, the historical periods of Bronze Age Crete are called the Pre-palatial, Old Palace (or Protopalatial), New Palace (or Neopalatial) and Post-palatial. Within these historical periods there are more specific designations, largely deriving from pottery studies, which use the terms Early, Middle, and Late Minoan. These then divided again into I, II and III and then into A, B and C.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Pre-palatial period:\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0Early Minoan I \u2013 Middle Minoan IA (begins c. 3000 B.C.E.)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Old Palace or Protopalatial period:\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0Middle Minoan IB \u2013 Middle Minoan IIB (begins c. 1900 B.C.E.)<\/li>\n<li><strong>New Palace or Neopalatial period:\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0Middle Minoan IIIA \u2013 Late Minoan IB (begins after 1730 B.C.E.)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Post-palatial period<\/strong>: Late Minoan II-IIIC (begins after 1450 B.C.E.)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1614\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1614\" style=\"width: 1429px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull_leaping_minoan_fresco_archmus_Heraklion-EDITED.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1614\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image94.jpeg\" alt=\"A fresco painting depicting a bull-leaping scene with a central figure vaulting over a large bull, flanked by two standing figures on either side. The artwork features a blue background with decorative borders containing circular patterns in earthy tones of brown, yellow, and white.\" width=\"1429\" height=\"787\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image94.jpeg 1429w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image94-300x165.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image94-1024x564.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image94-768x423.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image94-65x36.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image94-225x124.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image94-350x193.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1429px) 100vw, 1429px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1614\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Bull-leaping fresco from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (<a href=\"http:\/\/odysseus.culture.gr\/h\/4\/eh430.jsp?obj_id=7915\">Archaeological Museum of Heraklion<\/a>, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Bull_leaping_minoan_fresco_archmus_Heraklion.jpg\">Jebulon<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/publicdomain\/zero\/1.0\/deed.en\">CC0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"pre-palatial-period\">Pre-palatial period<\/h3>\n<p>The early Bronze Age history of Crete, the pre-palatial era, began around 3000 B.C.E. This period is marked by large towns, evidence of foreign contacts through trade, as well as very elaborate burial practices: large above-ground multi-use tombs which seems to indicate the existence of elite families. During this period, the skill of Minoan goldsmiths and potters becomes well established, producing finely detailed jewelry and beautiful pottery.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"old-palace-or-protopalatial-period\">Old Palace or Protopalatial period<\/h3>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1615\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1615\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/phaistos-annotated.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1615\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image95.jpeg\" alt=\"Architectural floor plan highlighting key areas of Knossos palace complex with labeled zones including King and Queen's apartments in orange, an open central court in blue, and storage rooms in purple. The plan uses color blocks and arrows to indicate spatial relationships and functional divisions within the structure.\" width=\"870\" height=\"635\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image95.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image95-300x219.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image95-768x561.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image95-65x47.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image95-225x164.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image95-350x255.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1615\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Plan of Phaistos, Protopalatial period, showing typical characteristics of this period (open central court, storage spaces, and elite domestic spaces)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>By around 1900 B.C.E., at the beginning of the Old Palace or Protopalatial period, the Minoan palaces were established, first at Knossos followed by Phaistos, Mallia, and Chania. Archaeologists have also discovered other smaller palaces at Petras, Galatas, and Monastiraki, although presently these sites are less well excavated and understood. These early palaces are extraordinary not only for the complexity of their construction but their striking similarity to one another, certainly a sign of a central administration of some kind. Built with large cut limestone ashlar blocks, Minoan palaces of the Old Palace period include a large open central court oriented north-south, storage spaces in the west of the structure, and a complex of decorated domestic rooms to the east which often feature elite details such as wall painting and indoor plumbing.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1616\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1616\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Kamaresvase_1_mod-EDITED.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1616\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image96.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of Kamares ware jug from Phaistos with a rounded body, narrow neck, and handle, decorated with intricate spiral and geometric patterns in black, white, and reddish-brown. Jug features a spout shaped like an animal head, showcasing artistic craftsmanship and cultural symbolism.\" width=\"870\" height=\"1270\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image96.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image96-206x300.jpeg 206w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image96-701x1024.jpeg 701w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image96-768x1121.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image96-65x95.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image96-225x328.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image96-350x511.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1616\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kamares ware jug from Phaistos,\u00a0c. 2000-1900 B.C.E., 27 cm (Archaeological Museum of Heraklion, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:AMI_-_Kamaresvase_1.jpg\">Wolfgang Sauber<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 3.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Minoan pottery of this period,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/kamares-ware-jug\/\">Kamares ware<\/a>, much of it produced in palace workshops, was widely traded and has been found in Kahun and Harageh in Egypt, Ras Shamra in Syria, and several sites on the island Cyprus.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"new-palace-or-neopalatial-period\">New Palace or Neopalatial period<\/h3>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1617\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1617\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Palaikastro.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1617\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image97.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of ancient stone ruins at Palaikastro with multiple low walls forming rectangular enclosures, partially covered by a large metal roof supported by wooden poles. The site is set in a grassy area with hills in the background, indicating an archaeological excavation of a historic settlement.\" width=\"870\" height=\"582\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image97.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image97-300x201.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image97-768x514.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image97-65x43.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image97-225x151.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image97-350x234.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1617\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The ruins at Palaikastro (photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/7nrTTb\">Panegyrics of Granovetter<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The Old Palace or Protopalatial period of Minoan history ends in a dramatic event, an earthquake, around 1730 B.C.E., which was so severe that the palaces had to be rebuilt, which they were, in an even more grand manner (and a new palace is built at Zakros). This era is referred to as the New Palace or Neopalatial period. Lots of big settlement sites thrive during this era as well, such as Palaikastro, Gournia and Kommos, with close connections to nearby palaces. It is from this period that written documents survive. Clay tablets (marked in a script called\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/nQdvgJ\">Linear A<\/a>) were used to keep administrative records at the palaces, recorded in a language which has yet to be fully deciphered.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/octopus-vase\/\">Pottery<\/a>\u00a0changes at this time as well, to feature marine animals, which perhaps reflects the sea power (thalassocracy) of the Minoans.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1618\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1618\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/25964693295_3d8fa1747a_o-scaled.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1618\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image98.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of an ancient fresco mural covering three walls of a small room, depicting stylized plants and figures in red, yellow, and gray tones. The artwork features tall floral motifs with elongated stems and clusters of flowers, set against a white background with a red border near the ceiling, illustrating decorative and symbolic elements from historical interior design.\" width=\"870\" height=\"566\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image98.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image98-300x195.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image98-768x500.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image98-65x42.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image98-225x146.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image98-350x228.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1618\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">\u201cSpring fresco,\u201d Building Complex Delta, room delta 2, west wall from Akrotiri, Thera (Santorini), Greece, 16th century B.C.E. (National Archaeological Museum, Athens; photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/FypQHM\">Steven Zucker<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-NC-SA 2.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Dating to this period are some of the most remarkable figural frescos of the Aegean Bronze Age, including those from Santorini, an island, very much under Minoan influence. During this era, the Minoans were players in the international politics of the Eastern Mediterranean as recorded in Egyptian tomb paintings of the 18th\u00a0Dynasty in Thebes, which show Minoans bearing gifts for the Pharaoh.<\/p>\n<p>The New Palace or Neopalatial era flourishes for two centuries. Then, beginning around 1500 B.C.E., Crete saw increasing influence from the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/intro-mycenaean-art\/\">Mycenaean culture<\/a>\u00a0of mainland Greece. Around 1450 B.C.E., over a period of approximately 50 years, nearly all sites on the island are burned and\/or abandoned, including all of the palaces. This dramatic end to such a prominent and dynamic culture is remarkable and still essentially mysterious; was it natural disaster, social upheaval, extended draught, or some combination?<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"post-palatial-period\">Post-palatial period<\/h3>\n<p>The era following this turmoil on Crete is called the Post-palatial period, which has a distinctively Mycenaean flavor. Knossos and Chania are the only palace sites which are rebuilt although with new Mycenaean architectural forms; this is the period to which the famous throne room at Knossos dates, which looks a lot like the throne rooms at Mycenae, Pylos, and Tiryns on Mainland Greece.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1619\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1619\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/throneroom.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1619\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image99.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of Throne Room, Knossos with stone benches, a carved stone chair, and a large circular basin on a stone floor. Walls feature red background with decorative white and yellow frescoes of lions and floral patterns.\" width=\"870\" height=\"651\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image99.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image99-300x224.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image99-768x575.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image99-65x49.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image99-225x168.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image99-350x262.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1619\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Throne Room, Knossos (photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Knossos_Thronsaal_01.jpg\">Olaf Bausch<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/3.0\/deed.en\">CC BY 3.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Most importantly in post-palatial Crete, a new script and language is used for administration, Linear B, which records an early form of the Classical Greek language, the same language and script which was used at Mycenaean sites on the mainland of Greece. What the texts describe is a theocratic society with a king (<em>Wanax<\/em>) and several high officials, priests, and priestesses who oversee religious ceremonies as well as the production of a massive and complex textile industry. This work employed over 700 shepherds harvesting between 50\u201375 tons of raw wool, woven by nearly 1,000 workers, men, women, and children, who produced some 20,000 individual textile pieces. New to Crete during this period is a warrior grave tradition. We find chamber tombs and shaft graves that include bronze vessels, swords, and daggers with the deceased interred on biers or in wooden coffins.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1620\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1620\" style=\"width: 1429px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Linear-B-Tablet-CC-BY-NC-SA-4.0.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1620\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image100.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of a stone tablet inscribed with Linear B script arranged in horizontal rows. The dark tablet contrasts with a light surface and black background, highlighting detailed carvings and signs of wear on the artifact.\" width=\"1429\" height=\"729\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image100.jpeg 1429w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image100-300x153.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image100-1024x522.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image100-768x392.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image100-65x33.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image100-225x115.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image100-350x179.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1429px) 100vw, 1429px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1620\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tablet with Linear B script, c. 1375 B.C.E., Late Minoan IIIA, Knossos, Crete (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.britishmuseum.org\/collection\/object\/G_1910-0423-1\">The British Museum<\/a>, photo: Trustees of the British Museum, <a href=\"CC%20BY-NC-SA%204.0\">CC BY-NC-SA 4.0<\/a>) The British Museum translated the script as follows: \u201cIn the month of Lapatos: To *47-ku-to 1.6 litres oil, to Pipituna 1.6 litres, to Aurimos 6.4 litres oil, to all the gods 9.6 litres, to the augur 9.6 litres, to the priestess of the winds 28.8 litres oil, Itanos to the priestess of the winds 14.4 litres.\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>This Mycenaean-influenced period of Crete comes to an end over a period of perhaps 100 years, during which sites are either burned or abandoned. By 1200 B.C.E., the island appears to be radically depopulated with only a very few small and simple settlements high in the mountains with no evidence of writing or even the use of the potter\u2019s wheel.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"knossos-and-bull-leaping-fresco-from-the-palace-of-knossos\">Knossos and Bull-leaping fresco from the palace of Knossos<\/h2>\n<p>There aren\u2019t many places in the world like Knossos. Situated 6km south of the sea, on the north central coast of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/crete-scaled.jpg\">Crete<\/a>, several things make this archaeological site important: its great antiquity (it is 9,000 years old), many different cultural layers (<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/the-neolithic-revolution\/\">Neolithic<\/a>\u00a0through\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/a-beginners-guide-to-byzantine-art\/\">Byzantine<\/a>), its size (nearly 10 square Km) and its great popularity (the second most visited archaeological site in Greece after the Acropolis at Athens). Aside from these, however, Knossos is also exceptional because of its role in the writing of history. It is the\u00a0type site\u00a0for all of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/intro-minoan-art\/\">Minoan<\/a>\u00a0archaeology, was one of the first large-scale scientific excavations in Europe, and contains some of the most contentious\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/conservation-knossos\/\">restorations<\/a>\u00a0in the ancient Mediterranean. Because of all this, Knossos is a critical part of multiple discourses in the history and historiography of the ancient world. We can\u2019t stop talking about Knossos.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"a-palace\">A palace?<\/h3>\n<p>Bronze Age Knossos is traditionally called a palace, a description used by its most famous excavator, Sir Arthur Evans. Indeed, when Evans, just three weeks after beginning his work at the site, discovered a grandly paved and painted room with a large stone chair set in the wall he believed he had found the throne of Minos and the kings of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/crete-scaled.jpg\">Crete<\/a>. This royal interpretation of the site of Knossos stuck. Although it is now clear that the role of Knossos was at least as religious and economic as it was political, it is still just called a palace.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1613\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1613\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/knossospicwikimedia.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1613\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of ancient archaeological site at Knossos with stone walls and partially reconstructed buildings set against a backdrop of green hills and trees. The site features notable restored structures with red and white painted details, highlighting historical architecture and excavation efforts.\" width=\"870\" height=\"559\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93-300x193.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93-768x493.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93-65x42.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93-225x145.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image93-350x225.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1613\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The archaeological site at Knossos, with restored rooms in the background, Crete (photo: <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/User:Jebulon\">Jebulon<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/publicdomain\/zero\/1.0\/deed.en\">CC0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"postpalatial-or-final-palatial-knossos\">Postpalatial or Final Palatial Knossos<\/h3>\n<p>There are signs that the palace suffered a series of destructions around 1450 B.C.E., at the same time that there are widespread destructions and abandonment of Minoan sites all over Crete. These events begin what is called the Postpalatial or Final Palatial period, which lasts approximately 150 years. Knossos is rebuilt after these destructions but differently. For instance, no more lavish limestone ashlar masonry was cut for the exterior of the palace and new interior walls were erected to change the flow of movement, seemingly to cut off certain areas, such as the West magazines (storage areas), presumably for security. Most importantly, the Throne Room was redesigned in this era to include the griffins seen in the archaeological reconstruction and possibly for the installation of the throne itself<\/p>\n<p>Much of the palace interior was repainted in this Postpalatial era and this includes many of the most famous wall paintings from Knossos: the bull leaping or Toreador fresco, the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/procession-fresco-scaled.jpg\">Procession fresco<\/a>, and the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Camp-stool_Fresco_Minoan_from_Knossos_AMH_145371-scaled.jpg\">Camp Stool fresco<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"taking-the-bull-by-the-horns\">Taking the bull by the horns<\/h3>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1621\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1621\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull_leaping_minoan_fresco_archmus_Heraklion-EDITED.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1621\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image101.jpeg\" alt=\"A fresco painting depicting a bull-leaping scene with a central figure vaulting over a large bull, flanked by two standing figures on either side. The artwork features a blue background with decorative borders containing circular patterns in earthy tones of brown, yellow, and white.\" width=\"870\" height=\"479\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image101.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image101-300x165.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image101-768x423.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image101-65x36.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image101-225x124.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image101-350x193.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1621\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Bull-leaping fresco from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (<a href=\"http:\/\/odysseus.culture.gr\/h\/4\/eh430.jsp?obj_id=7915\">Archaeological Museum of Heraklion<\/a>, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Bull_leaping_minoan_fresco_archmus_Heraklion.jpg\">Jebulon<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/publicdomain\/zero\/1.0\/deed.en\">CC0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Bull sports\u2014including leaping over them, fighting them, running from them, or riding them\u2014have been practiced all around the globe for millennia. Perhaps the best-loved ancient illustration of this, called the bull-leaping or Toreador fresco, comes from the site of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/ancient-mediterranean\/the-palace-at-knossos-crete\/\">Knossos<\/a>\u00a0on the island of Crete. The wall painting, as it is now\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/conservation-knossos\/\">reconstructed<\/a>, shows three people leaping over a bull: one person at its front, another over its back, and a third at its rear.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1622\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1622\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Court-of-the-stone-spout-Evans.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1622\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image102.jpeg\" alt=\"Black and white photograph of ancient stone ruins featuring rectangular platforms, steps, and large stone blocks arranged in an open area. Background includes trees and a partially visible stone structure, highlighting archaeological site details and historical architecture.\" width=\"300\" height=\"246\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image102.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image102-65x53.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image102-225x185.jpeg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1622\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Court of the Stone Spout, where the pieces of the fresco were found, from Sir Arthur Evans,\u00a0The Palace of Minos\u00a0(London, 1930), p. 270 (<a href=\"http:\/\/digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de\/diglit\/evans1930\/0316\">Universit\u00e4ts-Bibliothek Heidelberg<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The image is a composite of at least seven panels, each .78 meters (about 2.5 feet) high.\u00a0Fragments of this extensive wall painting were found very badly damaged in the\u00a0fill\u00a0above the walls in the Court of the Stone Spout, on the east side of the Central Court at Knossos. The fact that the paintings were found in fill indicates that this wall painting was destroyed as part of a renovation. The pottery which was found together with the fragments gives us its date, likely\u00a0LM II\u00a0(around 1400 B.C.E.).<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"reconstructed-but-still-incomplete\">Reconstructed but still incomplete<\/h3>\n<p>When Sir Arthur Evans, the first archaeologist to work at Knossos, found the fragments, he recognized them as illustrating an early example of bull sports, and he was eager to create a complete image that he could share with the world. \u00a0He hired a well-known archaeological restorer,\u00a0\u00c9mile Gilli\u00e9ron, to create the image we know today from the largest bits of the seven panels. Unfortunately, it is impossible to reconstruct all of the original panels and to get a sense of the painting at all, we are left with Gilli\u00e9ron\u2019s reconstruction.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"visual-gymnastics\">Visual gymnastics<\/h3>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1623\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1623\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull-leaping-from-side.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1623\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image103.jpeg\" alt=\"A fresco painting depicting a bull-leaping scene from ancient Minoan culture, showing three human figures interacting with a large bull in dynamic motion. The artwork features earthy tones with detailed borders of patterned semicircles and stripes, highlighting cultural and ritualistic significance.\" width=\"870\" height=\"668\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image103.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image103-300x230.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image103-768x590.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image103-65x50.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image103-225x173.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image103-350x269.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1623\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Bull-leaping fresco from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (<a href=\"http:\/\/odysseus.culture.gr\/h\/4\/eh430.jsp?obj_id=7915\">Archaeological Museum of Heraklion<\/a>, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/29py4WQ\">Andy Montgomery<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>What we see is a freeze-frame of a very fast moving scene. The central image of the fresco as reconstructed is a bull charging with such force that its front and back legs are in midair. In front of the bull is a person grasping its horns, seemingly about to vault over it. The next person is in mid-vault, upside down, over the back of the bull, and the final person is facing the rear of the animal, arms out, apparently just having dismounted\u2014\u201csticking the landing,\u201d as they say in gymnastics.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1624\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1624\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull-leaping-left.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1624\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image104.jpeg\" alt=\"Bull-leaping fresco (detail) depicting a man holding the horn of a large bull, showcasing dynamic interaction between human and animal. The artwork features earthy tones with detailed line work on the bull's body and a fragmented background with visible cracks and missing sections.\" width=\"870\" height=\"595\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image104.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image104-300x205.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image104-768x525.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image104-65x44.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image104-225x154.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image104-350x239.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1624\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Bull-leaping fresco (detail) from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (Archaeological Museum of Heraklion, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/MCMwXu\">Carole Raddato<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The people on either side of the bull, as reconstructed, bear markers of both male and female gender: they are painted white, which indicates a female figure according to ancient Egyptian gender-color conventions, which we know the Minoans also used. But both characters wear merely a loincloth, which is male dress. The hairstyle (curls at the top with locks falling down the back) is not uncommon in representations of both youthful males and females. Many interpretations of this gender crossing are possible, but there is little evidence to support one over another, unfortunately. At the very least, we can say that the representation of gender in the Late Aegean Bronze Age was fluid.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1625\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1625\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull-leaping-right.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1625\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image105.jpeg\" alt=\"Bull-leaping fresco (detail) depicting a standing figure with arms raised behind the back legs and tail of the bull. The artwork features muted colors with visible cracks and wear.\" width=\"300\" height=\"471\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image105.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image105-191x300.jpeg 191w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image105-65x102.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image105-225x353.jpeg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1625\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Bull-leaping fresco (detail) from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (Archaeological Museum of Heraklion, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/NxowPJ\">Carole Raddato<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The person at the center of the action, vaulting over the bull\u2019s back, is painted brown, which indicates male gender according to ancient Egyptian gender-color conventions, and this makes sense considering his loincloth. It is interesting to note that the muscles of all three of the bull leapers, at their thighs and chests, have been very delicately articulated, accentuating their athletic build.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1626\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1626\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull-leaping-middle.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1626\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image106.jpeg\" alt=\"Bull-leaping fresco (detail) showing the male figure in a hand-stand position on top of the bull mid-air. The artwork features earthy tones of red, brown, and yellow on a cracked, weathered stone surface.\" width=\"870\" height=\"579\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image106.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image106-300x200.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image106-768x511.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image106-65x43.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image106-225x150.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image106-350x233.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1626\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Bull-leaping fresco (detail) from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (Archaeological Museum of Heraklion, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/carolemage\/30467261162\">Carole Raddato<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The background of the scene is blue, white, or yellow monochrome, and indicate no architectural context for the activity. Moreover, the seven panels and Gilli\u00e9ron\u2019s composite reconstruction all show a border of painted richly variegated stones overlapping in patches. So, it seems we are meant to see these scenes as abstracted action within frames, not part of a wider visual field or narrative.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"a-rite-of-passage\">A rite of passage?<\/h3>\n<p>The most interesting question about the bull leaping paintings from Knossos is what they might mean. We cannot understand the whole bull-leaping cycle in detail as it is so fragmentary, but we know that it covered a lot of wall space and a considerable amount of resources must have been expended to create it.<\/p>\n<p>As mentioned above, many cultures across space and time have engaged in bull sports, and they all have a few things in common. First, these sports are life-threatening. To race, dance with, leap over, or kill a bull might very well get you killed. Second, these activities are usually performed before a crowd: they are a civic event, publicly presented and recorded in memory. Third, those who participate in these bull activities are often youths at an age when they are passing from childhood into adulthood and the achievement of the bull sport contributes to that passage. Anthropologists refer this sort of activity as a \u201crite of passage,\u201d which, when witnessed by one\u2019s community, establishes the participant as an adult.<\/p>\n<p>Therefore, we might surmise that the bull leaping scenes from Knossos refer to such a rite of passage ceremony. Many have identified the Central Court (Theatral area) just beyond the west fa\u00e7ade of the palace at Knossos as locations where bull-leaping ceremonies might have taken place. We may never know the exact meaning of these paintings, but they continue to resonate with us today\u2014not only because of their beauty and dynamism, but because they represent an activity that is still an important part of many cultures around the world.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1627\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1627\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Bull-leaping-border.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1627\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image107.jpeg\" alt=\"Bull-leaping fresco (detail) close up of the border featuring muted colors like blue, yellow, and white. The artwork includes horizontal bands with geometric patterns and shows signs of wear and damage.\" width=\"300\" height=\"247\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image107.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image107-65x54.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image107-225x185.jpeg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1627\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Bull-leaping fresco (detail) from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (Archaeological Museum of Heraklion, photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Bull_leaping_minoan_fresco_archmus_Heraklion.jpg\">Jebulon<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/publicdomain\/zero\/1.0\/deed.en\">CC0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"textbox textbox--key-takeaways\">\n<header class=\"textbox__header\">\n<h2 class=\"textbox__title\">Practicing Visual Analysis<\/h2>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"textbox__content\">\n<p>The scene on the Bull-leaping fresco from the palace of Knossos is a large<strong>-scale<\/strong> two-dimensional image. Devoid of any <strong>background<\/strong> for context, the <strong>forms<\/strong> appear to float in an ambiguous <strong>pictorial<\/strong> <strong>space<\/strong>. While the ancient artists here did not use any <strong>chiaroscuro<\/strong> modeling to create highlights and shadows (ex. no figure casts a shadow beneath), the artists used <strong>overlapping figures<\/strong> and variations in <strong>proportions<\/strong> to signify slight depth in the <strong>pictorial space<\/strong>. The rider\u2019s arms overlap with the bull\u2019s body. The figure on the far right is larger in proportion than the figure on the far left signifying they are closer to the viewer in space. Through <strong>overlapping<\/strong> figures and <strong>curvilinear forms,<\/strong> the artist also expressed the idea of movement. The front right leg of the bull is slightly higher than the front left leg while the hind legs stretch behind the bull and its tail creates a fluid curvilinear movement in space. As stated above, the <strong>colors<\/strong> on the human forms correspond to Ancient Egyptian conventions of gender. To create details, such as the <strong>pattern<\/strong> of fur on the bull, the artist used <strong>curvilinear line<\/strong>. Abstract <strong>patterns<\/strong> are further shown in the border that surrounds the entire scene.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 id=\"minoans-and-myceneans\">Minoans and Myceneans<\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"cretan-and-mainland-cultures\">Cretan and mainland cultures<\/h3>\n<p>A lot about Postpalatial Knossos has a distinct Mycenaean flavor and this fact has led many archaeologists to conclude that the destructions at the beginning of the period were actually the Mycenaeans invading the island. However, many Minoan elements remain in Postpalatial culture, and obvious signs of warfare which would have resulted from a large-scale invasion have yet to be found. Therefore, we now like to think of the Postpalatial period at Knossos as one of a hybrid, between Cretan and Mainland cultures, likely created by a local elite who wished to maintain status in both spheres. As to who exactly these local elite were, we have some information. Those buried in warrior graves in the Postpalatial cemeteries around Knossos were born in the region, as recent analysis of skeletal materials has shown. The new Knossian elite did not come from the Mycenaean mainland.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"knossos-collapses-.-.-.-and-rises-again\">Knossos collapses . . . and rises again<\/h3>\n<p>Towards the end of the Postpalatial period Knossos\u2019 status relative to other sites (especially to the south and west) on the island seems to wane. Eventually there is a massive destruction, collapse, and fire at the palace around 1300 B.C.E. From that point there is little reoccupation within the most important parts of the palace, although there is some small-scale reoccupation around its periphery.<\/p>\n<p>Knossos wasn\u2019t down for long. Rapidly after the late Bronze Age collapse a large Early Iron Age settlement emerged north of the palace and was clearly cosmopolitan as it was the only site of the period in Greece with imports ranging from the Middle East to Sardinia. This area eventually develops into a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/greek_intro\/\">Classical Greek<\/a>\u00a0polis (city-state) and in the 1st\u00a0century B.C.E. suffers\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/introduction-to-ancient-rome\/\">Roman<\/a>\u00a0conquest. Beautiful mosaics survive from a 2nd\u00a0century C.E. Roman home, the Villa Dionysos, evidence of the thriving Roman city at the site. A large Christian church is built at the north edge of the site in the 6th\u00a0century, witness to the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/innovative-architecture-in-the-age-of-justinian\/\">Byzantine<\/a>\u00a0history of Knossos.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"mycenaean-art-an-introduction\">Mycenaean art, an introduction<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1628\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1628\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/12044295383_94f22a4d13_k.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1628\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image108.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of a person standing on ancient stone ruins overlooking a vast valley with mountains and sea in the distance. The scene highlights historical architecture with rugged stone walls and natural landscape under clear blue sky.\" width=\"870\" height=\"580\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image108.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image108-300x200.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image108-768x512.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image108-65x43.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image108-225x150.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image108-350x233.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1628\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Looking past the \u201cPalace\u201d to the sea, Mycenae, Greece, c. 1600\u20131100 B.C.E. (photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/82032880@N00\/12044295383\/in\/photolist-liongate\">Steven Zucker<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-NC-SA 2.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The ancient citadel (fortified city) at Mycenae is located on top of an isolated hill and provides truly spectacular views of the surrounding area, making it an ideal location for a defensive stronghold. Mycenaean culture dominated southern Greece, but is perhaps best known for the site of Mycenae itself, which includes the citadel (with a palace), and is surrounded by different forms of tombs and other structures. Mycenaean culture firmly establishes itself in the late Bronze Age, specifically, around 1600 B.C.E.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1629\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1629\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/graveb.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1629\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image109.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of the \u201cPalace\u201d and Grave Circle A featuring a circular structure with tiered seating resembling an amphitheater or ceremonial site. The scene highlights weathered stone walls, grassy patches between tiers, and surrounding rocky terrain.\" width=\"870\" height=\"521\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image109.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image109-300x180.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image109-768x460.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image109-65x39.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image109-225x135.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image109-350x210.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1629\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The \u201cPalace\u201d and Grave Circle A, Mycenae, c. 1600\u20131100 B.C.E. (photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/82032880@N00\/12044303683\/in\/photolist-liongate\">Steven Zucker<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-NC-SA 2.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>At around 1600 B.C.E.\u2014seemingly out of nowhere\u2014the\u00a0shaft graves\u00a0at the site of Mycenae are built.\u00a0These are two circular walled plots containing graves, built some 50 years apart, close to the fortification wall of the citadel. Archaeologists named these \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/the-palace-and-grave-circle-a-mycenae\/\">Grave Circle A<\/a>\u201d and \u201cGrave Circle B.\u201d Grave Circle B is earlier than A (but A was discovered first) and contained some 14 shaft graves with 24 burials; Grave Circle A held 6 shaft graves with 19 burials. These burials contained men, women, and children who were related to one another, recent DNA analysis has shown.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1630\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1630\" style=\"width: 960px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1630\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image110.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of a gold funerary mask shaped like a human face with detailed eyes, nose, mouth, ears, and beard. The mask features a hammered texture and is displayed against a dark background, highlighting its metallic sheen and craftsmanship.\" width=\"960\" height=\"908\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image110.jpeg 960w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image110-300x284.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image110-768x726.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image110-65x61.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image110-225x213.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image110-350x331.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1630\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>Mask of Agamemnon<\/em>, from shaft grave V, Grave Circle A, Mycenae c.1550\u20131500 B.C.E., gold, 12\u2033 \/ 35 cm (National Archaeological Museum, Athens, Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Athens_%E2%80%94_Mask_of_Agamemnon.jpg\">Wikimedia<\/a>, License: <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/publicdomain\/mark\/1.0\/\">Public Domain<\/a> in the United States)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>More importantly, along with the burials one of the largest deposits of precious metals, especially gold (including the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/mask-of-agamemnon\/\"><em>Mask of Agamemnon<\/em><\/a>), ever found in ancient Greece was discovered. An even wealthier single\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.griffinwarrior.org\/griffin-warrior-tomb\/\">shaft grave<\/a>\u00a0has been recently discovered near the Mycenaean palace at Pylos. The wealth of the shaft graves is shocking, a huge change from the earlier rather modest remains of Bronze Age mainland Greece, and initiates an era of Mycenaean activity and power which stretches across most of the region.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1631\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1631\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/EB1911_Mycenae_-_plan_of_the_citadel.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1631\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image111.jpeg\" alt=\"Black and white historical map showing layout of the ancient fortified site of the Citadel of Mycenae with labeled areas including Circle Graves, Houses, Palace, Doric Temple, and House Remains. Map features thick boundary walls, pathways, and terrain shading to indicate elevation and structural divisions within the site.\" width=\"870\" height=\"543\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image111.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image111-300x187.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image111-768x479.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image111-65x41.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image111-225x140.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image111-350x218.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1631\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Plan of the Citadel of Mycenae<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The focus sites of this era are Mycenaean palaces which all have several aspects in common: a central megaron or throne room with a large hearth which is adjacent to an open court, commanding views of an agricultural plane, colorful and often figural wall painting, and associations with grand burial structures such as tholoi (beehive tombs). These types of sites can be found not only at Mycenae but also at Tiryns, Iolkos, Orchomenos, Gla, Pylos, Thebes, and on the acropolis at Athens.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"written-and-visual-records\">Written and visual records<\/h3>\n<p>We know a lot about the Mycenaeans because they left written records which can be read. They wrote in a script called Linear B (related to the early Minoan Linear A) which recorded an early form of the Classical Greek language. At the sites of Mycenae, Pylos, Tiryns, and Thebes clay tablets inscribed in Linear B have been found describing a theocratic administration, very similar to the one described in the Linear B tablets found at\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/ancient-mediterranean\/the-palace-at-knossos-crete\/\">Knossos<\/a>\u00a0on Crete. A\u00a0<em>Wanax<\/em>\u00a0(the central figure of authority in Mycenaean society) presided over a complex religious and economic system which, at Pylos, was centered around a perfume oil and textile industry.<\/p>\n<p>At that time there was regular contact and exchange between Mycenaean elite and the Pharaonic court in Egypt. Stirrup jars, the uniquely branded vessels of the wildly successful Mycenaean perfume oil trade, are found all over the Mediterranean basin. The design and decoration of Mycenaean pottery riffs off older\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/kamares-ware-jug\/\">Minoan styles<\/a>\u00a0in almost modernist abstractions and produces the first narrative pottery painting tradition in the ancient Greek world.<\/p>\n<p>The motif of armed combat, hand-to-hand (parry and thrust), was perfected by Mycenaean artists, and can be seen beautifully represented in the minute scale of\u00a0gem engraving.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1632\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1632\" style=\"width: 862px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1632\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image112.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of an ancient carved gemstone depicting three warriors in dynamic battle poses, with one holding a shield and spear and another wielding a sword. The translucent stone features intricate details highlighting muscular forms and flowing hair, emphasizing movement and conflict.\" width=\"862\" height=\"564\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image112.jpeg 862w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image112-300x196.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image112-768x502.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image112-65x43.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image112-225x147.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image112-350x229.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 862px) 100vw, 862px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1632\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Two warriors in hand-to-hand combat, Pylos Combat Agate, discovered in the Grave of the Griffin Warrior at Pylos, c. 1450 B.C.E., 1.5 inches wide (Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Pylos_Combat_Agate.jpg\">Wikimedia<\/a>, License: Fair Use)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>At the same time, Mycenaean architects and engineers embraced a massive scale with huge hydraulic projects, far-flung road works, and defensive walls so gigantic they never succumb to burial, remaining largely intact and providing the inspiration for mythological explication until the modern era.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"mycenae-the-palace-and-grave-circle-a\">Mycenae, The \u201cPalace\u201d and Grave Circle A<\/h2>\n<p>Seeking the mythic cities of Homer, Heinrich Schliemann identified Mycenae in the 19th century.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"oembed-2\" title=\"The &quot;Palace&quot; and Grave Circle A, Mycenae, c. 1600-1100 B.C.E.\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/S7HJB0PtiW0?feature=oembed&#38;rel=0\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"mask-of-agamemnon\">Mask of Agamemnon<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cI have gazed into the face of Agamemnon,\u201d boasted the man who discovered it\u2014but is it really the Homeric hero?<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"oembed-3\" title=\"Mask of Agamemnon, Mycenae, c. 1550-1500 B.C.E.\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/1PKOiYY9SPA?feature=oembed&#38;rel=0\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"the-treasury-of-atreus\">The Treasury of Atreus<\/h2>\n<p>Below the great citadel of Mycenae, a passage into a hillside leads to a massive beehive-shaped tomb.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"oembed-4\" title=\"The Treasury of Atreus, c. 1300-1250 B.C.E., Mycenae, Greece\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Cc9cLmgXp_A?feature=oembed&#38;rel=0\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"lion-gate\">Lion Gate<\/h2>\n<p>Approaching Mycenae was awe inspiring: a massive hill, walls of enormous stones, and the fearsome Lion Gate.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"oembed-5\" title=\"Lion Gate, Mycenae, c. 1300-1250 B.C.E.\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/tu5mKn3_h7Y?feature=oembed&#38;rel=0\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"the-decline-of-mycenaean-sites\">The Decline of Mycenaean Sites<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1633\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1633\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/12043943365_72ae28bb78_k.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1633\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image113.jpeg\" alt=\"Photograph of Lion Gate, Mycenae with massive, weathered blocks forming walls and a lintel featuring carved reliefs. A person stands near the right wall, highlighting scale, while sunlight illuminates a pathway leading through the gateway toward distant hills.\" width=\"870\" height=\"569\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image113.jpeg 870w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image113-300x196.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image113-768x502.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image113-65x43.jpeg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image113-225x147.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image113-350x229.jpeg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1633\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Approach to the Lion Gate, Mycenae, c. 1300\u20131250 B.C.E. (photo:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/82032880@N00\/12044295383\/in\/photolist-liongate\">Steven Zucker<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-NC-SA 2.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Around 1200 B.C.E. nearly all major Mycenaean sites experienced massive destruction, the cause of which is unclear. Many sites were quickly reinhabited, but the elite areas, such as the spaces where it is believed the\u00a0<em>Wanax<\/em>\u00a0ruled, were not rebuilt. For the next 50 to 75 years, pottery production and even wall painting continues but becomes less fine and increasingly regional, eventually ceasing all together. Burial practice changes as well, from shaft graves to small individual cist graves (small below-ground stone boxes) containing cremated remains.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1634\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1634\" style=\"width: 1242px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1634\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image114.png\" alt=\"Map showing Mycenaean civilization during 1400-1100 BCE, highlighting palaces, important fortresses, and settlements in red and pink shades. Key locations like Mycenae, Tiryns, Pylos, Athens, and Knossos are labeled, with a legend indicating areas of Mycenaean influence and non-Mycenaean cities with Mycenaean wares.\" width=\"1242\" height=\"1090\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image114.png 1242w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image114-300x263.png 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image114-1024x899.png 1024w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image114-768x674.png 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image114-65x57.png 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image114-225x197.png 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2026\/07\/image114-350x307.png 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1242px) 100vw, 1242px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1634\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Map of Mycenaean Greece 1400\u20131200 B.C.E. Palaces, main cities and other settlements.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>By 1050 B.C.E., at the end of the Bronze Age, the Greek world (the Cycladic islands, Crete, and the Mainland), have only memories left of the once wealthy and far reaching polities which had ruled for nearly a millennium, an era soon to be beautifully enshrined in the oral epic tradition of Homer.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"conclusion-4\">Conclusion<\/h2>\n<p>The Ancient Aegean world provided the foundations for Ancient Greece, including language, culture, and the visual arts. From the Cycladic Islands abstract renderings of the human body to the Linear B script of the Myceneans, these ancient civilizations introduced concepts to the larger Greek world. The Myceneans were legendary to the Ancient Greeks, and they remain legendary today.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"citation-and-licensing-4\">Citation and Licensing<\/h3>\n<p>The following sections were written by Chelsea Wright and are licensed <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">CC BY-NC-SA 4.0<\/a>:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Chapter Overview and Introduction<\/li>\n<li>Focus artwork and term list compiled by Chelsea Wright<\/li>\n<li>Practicing Visual Analysis<\/li>\n<li>Conclusion<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The following articles from <em>Smarthistory<\/em> licensed <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">CC BY-NC-SA 4.0<\/a> were remixed and adapted for the chapter:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Dr. Senta German, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/an-introduction-to-the-ancient-aegean\/\">The ancient Aegean, an introduction<\/a>,&#8221; in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, August 25, 2020.<\/li>\n<li>Dr. Senta German, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/intro-cycladic-art\/\">Cycladic art, an introduction<\/a>,&#8221; in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, August 25, 2020.<\/li>\n<li>Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/male-harp-player-from-keros-early-cycladic-period\/\"><em>Male Harp Player<\/em>\u00a0from Keros<\/a>,&#8221; in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, December 15, 2015.<\/li>\n<li>Dr. Senta German, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/intro-minoan-art\/\">Minoan art, an introduction<\/a>,&#8221; in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, August 25, 2020.<\/li>\n<li>Dr. Senta German, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/knossos\/\">Knossos<\/a>,&#8221; in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, September 19, 2020.<\/li>\n<li>Dr. Senta German, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/bull-leaping-fresco\/\">Bull-leaping fresco from the palace of Knossos<\/a>,&#8221; in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, August 15, 2018.<\/li>\n<li>Dr. Senta German, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/intro-mycenaean-art\/\">Mycenaean art, an introduction<\/a>,&#8221; in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, August 25, 2020.<\/li>\n<li>Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Beth Harris, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/the-palace-and-grave-circle-a-mycenae\/\">Mycenae, The \u201cPalace\u201d and Grave Circle A<\/a>,&#8221; in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, December 14, 2015.<\/li>\n<li>Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Beth Harris, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/mask-of-agamemnon\/\"><em>Mask of Agamemnon<\/em><\/a>,&#8221; in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, December 14, 2015.<\/li>\n<li>Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Beth Harris, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/the-treasury-of-atreus-mycenae\/\">The Treasury of Atreus<\/a>,&#8221; in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, December 14, 2015.<\/li>\n<li>Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Beth Harris, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/smarthistory.org\/lion-gate-mycenae\/\">Lion Gate<\/a>,&#8221; in\u00a0<em>Smarthistory<\/em>, December 13, 2015.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"menu_order":7,"template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-1635","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"part":3,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/1635","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/1635\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1982,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/1635\/revisions\/1982"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/3"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/1635\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1635"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=1635"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=1635"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.palomar.edu\/arthc1100\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=1635"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}