Chapter 4- Minoan Society Flashcards
What were the major aspects of the environment in/around Crete?
The Aegean Sea, forests, mountains, rock, caves and farm land
How large is Crete?
260km long, 60km wide
Describe the Aegean Sea and its uses
Source of food
Provided safety- no walls? No wars?
Strong Minoan Navy- re known for seamanship
Navigation by the sun/stars
Natural bays an harbours for trade/settlements
Describe the forests of Crete and their uses
Found on lower slopes of Highlands- primarily Cypress
Used timber for building and trade (Greece/Egypt)
Herbs and flowers also useful
What were the 3 mountain ranges of Crete?
White Mountains Ida Range The Highlands with Mt Dikte All over 1800m high, peaks up to 2400m Gorges- some 600m deep
Describe the rocks found in Crete
Limestone/stone- exterior building materials, paths, courtyards, pots
Clay- pottery
Copper- bronze-work
Other- calcite, gypsum, marble, and serpentine
Describe the caves in Crete
In hills or mountains
In Neolithic times, used as shelter, burials, refuge, housed myths?
Ritual Centres
Describe the nature of farming for the Minoans
Farmed on coastal plains/fertile- grew fruit and vegetables
Hardier crops- barley, wheat, olives, grapes
Hunting- fowl, game
Livestock- sheep, goats, pigs, cattle
What are the main Minoan settlements found in Crete?
Knossos, Phaistos, Malia, Zakros, Agia Triada, Gournia
What are the main features or Knossos?
It is the largest palace containing a central court, a labyrinth, elaborate frescoes, the grand staircase, shrine rooms, toilets and royal/domestic quarters.
What are the special artefacts found at Knossos?
The ‘Snake Goddess’ figurines, Bull’s Head Rhyton, ‘Minoan town Mosaic’ and pillar crypt shrines
Describe the main features of Phaistos?
Massive stairway, peristyle court, lustral basins, magazines, royal/domestic quarters, covered entrance area
Describe the main features of Malia?
Large stone-lined pits as grain stores or cisterns, domestic quarters, ceremonial area
Describe the main features of Zakros?
Circular pool with underground spring, storerooms containing Syrian tusks, as well as perfumes and dyes for trade.
Describe the main features of Agia Triada?
Smaller palace.
Knossos style frescoes, large banqueting room, paved roads to harbour
Describe the main features of Gournia?
A town with a small palace complex within.
Small houses close together, narrow paved streets contoured by the hill, Snake Goddess public shrine
What are the special artefacts found at Phaistos?
The Phaistos Disc, a variety of Kamares-ware, cisterns or ‘kouloures’ for grain storage
What are the special artefacts found at Malia?
Bronze dagger and sword with a crystal hilt (weaponry?), marine-themed pottery, large circular altar (Kernos), Gold Bee Pendant in tomb
What are the special artefacts found at Zakros?
Archive of Linear A tablets, Bull’s head Rhyton, stone Rhyton depicting peak sanctuary, olive oil/wine presses, bronze-work furnace
What are the special artefacts found at Agia Triada?
Archive room with clay slealings, Harvester Vase, Chieftain’s Cup, bronze figurines of animals/humans, Agia Triada sarcophagus
What are the special artefacts found at Gournia?
Bronze tools, potter’s wheel, coppersmith’s forge, oil presses, decorated larnaxes in local cemetery
What are the main theories on who ruled Crete?
Homer- Minos lived as King, monarchy renewed every 9th year
Thucydides- Cretan King ruled Aegean Sea with Navy
Platon- Theocratic, King was a God
Castleden- Confederate city states/constitutional monarchy
Basileus were local chiefs, Lawageias was political leader, Wanax was ceremonial figurehead
Chadwick- Wanax was powerless King, Lawageias had followers
What does the archaeological evidence suggest about who ruled Crete?
Palaces- ruled by King? Yet no royal burials
Throne Room at Knossos- Evans thinks it was for a female bum
Sphinxes- Female themed, for priestesses? Priest King?
Linear B Tablets- Wanax was the King, Basileus were local chiefs?
Who were the Palace Elite in Minoan Society?
They were primarily priests and priestesses who ran the bureaucracy according to the Tablets. Women may have been more prominent. They wore jewellery, ornate hairstyles, layered skirts and jackets as seen in La Parisienne Fresco/Ladies in Blue. Men wore togas, had simpler hairstyle and had a sacrificial axe, seen on Harvester Vase and Agia Triada Sarcophagus.
What were the various social classes in Minoan Society?
The Leadership/Palace Elite Scribes Artisans/artists, farmers, fishermen, labourers, Slaves Families Women
What other theories on the leadership of the Minoans are there?
Klawiphoros was Religious leader?
District governors and local deputies
Who were the Scribes?
Intelligentsia class- ran administration/record keeping
Created Linear A/B tablets, recorded info on Palaces/industry
Possibly high social status? Perhaps only middle class
Who were the Artists/artisans?
This was a specialised class, manufactured items for extra income
Masons- stone workers as seen by stone chipping in workshops
Faience workers- metal workers as seen by furnaces
General artisans- engravers, ‘gem cutters’, potters
Who were the Farmers?
Contributed to agricultural/livestock economy
There were farming communities- found in Branigan excavation, also recorded in Linear B Tablets
Pithoi held surplus storage- found in magazines, also seen on Harvester Vase
Who were the fishermen?
They fished the sea as prime source of food/protein
Know a were familiar with the sea- seen by imagery on pottery
There was also specialised fishing, like for shellfish used for purple dyes in Zakros
What was the shellfish fished that would produce the purple eyes?
Murex Mollusc
Who were the Labourers?
They performed heavy duty jobs
Worked in quarries or forests- possibly in farms seen at Vathy Petro
Not much evidence of this class- Harvesters Vase?
Who were the Slaves?
In Post-Mycanean invasion, there were slaves recorded on Linear B Tablets.
Perhaps only servant or ‘Slaves of God’?
Possibly skates in the Minoan Period as well?
What were the representations of family in Minoan Society?
No familial representations in art.
There were communal burials, possibly for clans or families as seen by the shared bones and skulls in tombs.
Children worked with mothers in textile industry? As seen in Linear B tablets and Ivory figurines
What were women’s role in Minoan Society?
Only archaeological evidence of women, like the ‘Snake Goddess’ statuettes, and the Ladies in Blue Fresco
They were active in religious activities, as seen on the Agia Triada Sarcophagus
What were the main industries in Minoan Crete?
Pottery Textile Oil Stone Bronze
Describe the Pottery industry in Minoan Crete
They were used practically like as Pithoi or cooking containers/bowls
They were also used ceremonially, like with ewers or rhyta
Many styles/designs- distinctly Minoan
Primarily female potters
Describe the textile industry in Minoan Crete
It employed carders, spinners, weavers/finishers, dyers and embroiders
It was a palace industry as seen by the loom-weights and spindles
There were also rural weavers
It was worked by men, women and possibly slave children.
500 workers at Knossos? Killen predicts 1000 women
Describe the oil industry in Minoan Crete
Pithoi and presses found at Vathy Petro
Sometimes oil used in perfume industry
Describe the stone industry in Minoan Crete
Used for building tombs, roadways and buildings as well as fine stone for veneering walls
Also used to make lamps and vases as s en by the stone-chip pings and workshops in Knossos. Malia, Zakros
Also made engraved seals
Describe the Bronze industry in Minoan Crete
Minoans sometimes imported copper and tin for bronze. There are Egyptian paintings of their trade
There were furnaces at Phaistos, Zakros, Agia Triada
Used for: weaponry, cauldrons, mirrors, Abrys, tools, figurines
What other minor industries were there in Minoan Society?
Chariot- tablets records/chariots found at Knossos
Perfume- oil used in perfume, aesthetic purpose, tools at Zakros
Wine- only for wealthy seen on Tablets, processing vessels in villas
Painting- found in Hyskos Palace in Egypt, Buon fresco/fresco secco, final coast of fine lime plaster pre-painting
Dye- made from shellfish, their remains at Kastro/Zakros
Jewellery- gold, silver, faience. Made accessories/jewellery
What did the Palace Economy involve?
The palaces were producers/consumers, internal/external regulators, accumulators/redistributors
They primarily dealt in agricultural products, including crops and livestock. They would be processed into useful items, stored away, traded or distributed as rations/religious sacrifice
How did the Minoans deal in trade?
It was a barter economy, no money.
Main Exports:
gold, swords, pottery, textiles, Ivory, metalwork, timber
Main Imports:
copper, pumice, obsidian, silver, lead, marble,
stone vessels, hippo pieces, Ivory, scarabs, statues
What cultural influences did the Minoans pick up through trade?
Griffin/God Imagery from Mesopotamia
Sistrum/Larnax/Spinx/Design/Colours from Egypt
Animal/land imagery from Africa
How did towns contribute to the Minoan Economy?
Towns were the precursor to Palaces like Malia
Gournia was excavated by HB Haves in the 1990s. They found evidence of trade with the harbour and 2 main trade routes. There was fertile land nearby. There were also several workshops including a carpenter, potter, and smith.
Describe the deities of Minoan Religion
The were polytheistic and based on the natural world
E.g. Snake, Poppy, Sky and Mother Goddesses
Sources are questionable as there is a lot of fantastical imagery
Snake Goddess- symbol of life/fertility. Found 2 faience figurines of her bare breasted and entwined with snakes.
Linear B tablets also refer to various Goddesses.
What were some of the religious symbols in Minoan Religion?
Horns of Consecration- like Bull’s horns, architectural features
Labrys- double-headed axe, ceremonial function, sacrfice, Labyrinth?
Bulls- sacrifice of Bulls, link to Minotaur, strength/fertility, Bull Rhytons
Snakes- linked to Goddess, immortality/fertility/earth
Birds- on Horns of Consecration on the AT Sarcophagus, on Goddess figurine, found as votive offerings at Peak Sanctuary
Sacred Knot- found on La Parisienne Fresco, patterned on fabrics
What are some of the sacred sites in Minoan Crete?
Palaces may have been temples, according to Castleden
Peak Sanctuaries- made to commune with Sky Gods, 25 found on hills/mountains, Walrous says they had differing functions
Cave Sanctuaries- worshipped rock formations for earth God
Palace Shrines- Small rooms, also Tripartite Shrines
Pillar Crypts- made offerings to pillars, libation basin
Lustral Basins- sunken rooms for ritual purification
What did Minoan religious rituals involve?
Often communal feasting, drinking and dancing
Dancing displayed on the Sacred Grove Fresco
Processions displayed on Procession Fresco and AT Sarcophagus
Sacrifices- animals or humans (Castleden)
What are the myths associated with Minoan Crete
Creation of Crete- Zeus took Europa to Crete, birthed Minos
Minotaur Legend
Labyrinth
What kind of art is prevalent in Minoan Society?
Buon/secco technique on Frescoes, final coat of lime plaster pre-paint, often depicting nature or ritual activities
Many styles/variations of pottery showing marine life e.g. Octopus Vase
Figurines are made of faience, bronze or Ivory. Depicting deities, bull-leaping and used as votive offerings
Seals are impressions into wet clay with precision drilling, depicting symbols/scenes e.g. The Master Impression
What kind of architecture do Minoans employ?
Palatial architecture is a good example
Asymmetrical, multi-storied, grand staircases
Storage magazines and workshops on lower levels
Theatre area for performances
Porticoes and porches
Ashland masonry- using wooden beams/timber frames for flexibility
What sort of writing did the Minoans use?
Hieroglyphic- 100 signs found, there are 45 on Phaistos Disc. It is an ancient script according to Castleden.
Linear A- Minoan, used for records/accounting, 70 symbols, hasn’t been translated but understood through Linear B
Linear B- translated, influenced by Mycaneans, found also on mainland
What did the Minoans believe about the afterlife? And what then, were their burial customs?
They may have believed in the afterlife- when flesh decayed on a body, their spirit was freed. They kept the skulls and often buried possessions it them.
The Butterfly may have symbolises the spirit- the golden scales with this symbol may have symbolised judgement.
Usually they had 1 body per chamber, adding more bodies, eventually only leaving the skulls. Mainly they were communally buried
What rituals did the Minoans practice in relation to the dead?
Agia Triada Sarcophagus depicts funeral rites
Often involved religious sacrifices and offerings.
May have also have been ritual feasting
They were rarely cremated but rather placed in the foetus position in a tomb, or also inside a pithoi or a larnax.
What types of burials did the Minoans use?
Caves burials- bodies inside pithoi or larnax, communal burial in a cave as seen in the Valley of the Dead
Rock-shelter burials- communal, some were buried with possessions,male inside pithoi
Cist burials- box shaped pits, lined with stone, open corpse inside
What types of tombs did the Minoans use?
House tombs- rectangular structure, freestanding, above ground, usually built on infertile land, like at Mochlos and Gournia
Tholos tombs- freestanding, circular, like Mycaneans Tholoi, found in Kamilari
Chamber tombs- smaller, less burials, used by Mycanean warrior elite, built on hillside or dromos
Shaft tombs- like Cist burials, with a shaft like a large stone-capped grave, about the size of a room
What leisure activities did the Minoans partake in?
Plenty of fitness- boxing/wrestling depicted on Boxer Rhyton, acrobatics, bull leaping depicting on Fresco
Dancing and feasting
Game board was found similar to Chess
What kinds of food did the Minoans eat?
Cereals like wheat, barley and millet Veges like chick peas, lentils, beans, cabbage, lettuce and asparagus Milk and meat from livestock Seafood Honey, herbs and fruit Did use cooking ware
What kind of occupations did the Minoans have?
Labourers like builders for infrastructure or ships
Agriculturalists like farmers, fishermen and herders
Artisans like artists, carpenters, jewellers, metalworkers, pasterers, potters and stone masons
Others like architects, textile workers and traders/merchants
What sort of housing and furniture did the Minoans use?
Often single room village houses, 2 or 3 storied town houses or large villas. Models are seen in the Gown Mosaic at Knossks or Arkhanes’ clay model house. They often had few windows, a staircase and a pergola
Houses usually had a sewerage/water systems like cisterns and stone covered drains
Rooms included living quarters, hall/court, shrines, workshops, stores or industrial areas
What sorts of clothing did the Minoans wear?
Men wore minimal clothing, usually just cod pieces, loin cloths or kilts
Women wore long multi-layered skirts and open bodices as seen in La Parisienne fresco. Other frescos display jewellery/cosmetic apparel.
Some people wore no shoes- otherwise their wore calf-length boots or shin-pads.
What was the general health of the Minoans?
Studies done by Tina McGeorge
Life expectancy was 30-35 for men, and 28 for women. Although som lived till their 40s/50s
There is evidence of ideas from animals/children
Deteriorating dental health
General health was also deteriorating as people started moving to towns/palaces, eating less fresh food.
