test 2 Flashcards
why did Poseidon curse the Minoans with the Minotaur?
Because he gave Minos an amazing bull to sacrifice but Minos kept it for himself and sacrificed a lesser bull
what did Minos use the Minotaur for? and why was he angry at Athens
He used the Minotaur in the Labrynth to kill tributes from Athens. he was angry at Athens because his son died there.
Why did the peaceful Minoans practice human sacrifice?
to appease Poseidon who was the only one who could control the earthquakes and tidal waves and that required sacrifice
Describe the Minoan civilization
it was an advanced archaic city with no fortifications. it was a Thalassocracy.
what are the major minoan exports
gold silver pottery saffron and bronze (tin and copper make up bronze)
what architectural features of their cities suggest that the Minoans had a powerful navy?
no defenses on land because their protection came from their ships
what was the Minoan Peace?
a time of peace and trade when no pirates bugged them because of their navy
what are the anthropological ties between Minoan and other ANE cultures?
Minoan exports such as pottery gold sliver are found in remains of ANE cultures.
what are the possible reasons fro the decline of Minoan civilization?
volcano ash fall tsunami electrical storms cloud covering the sun lead to little crop production
Why did Aegeus throw himself into the sea?
his son Theseus went to fight the Minotaur of Minoa and if he lived he said he would change his black sails to white but he forgot once he came home to change them so his father threw himself into the sea in grief
who were the Mycenaean’s major trading partner?
the Minoans
what important skill did the Minoans contribute to the Mycenaeans?
the ability to write
the actions of Theseus and the words of Herodotus demonstrate what Greek attitude toward other civilizations?
ethnocentrism
why do you suppose the relatively isolated early Greek city-states shared trade language and culture?
descended from common ancestor and kept evolving together
what evidence in Minoa/Crete suggests that Mycenaeans might not have taken the kingdom by force?
life did not seem to change- tombs still designed the same Linear B was still used and the pottery did not change. the structures were still intact.
what is the physical evidence fro the Trojan War?
walls broke down and bodies and bones were unburied in the streets.
who are the key players in the Trojan war and where they are from
Achilleus- Pythia Paris- Troy Helen- Sparta Menelaos- Sparta Agamemnon- Mycenea Hektor- Troy
Is the idea of starting a war over a captive princess likely? why?
yes. there were diplomatic marriages that involved a lot of national pride that would be lost if a princess were lost.
What does this epic say is the final undoing of Troy?
a wooden horse that the Greeks planted and hid in and at night when it was in the city they came out and attacked.
What does Bauer mean by Historical Fiction used by Homer and Virgil
an Imaginative reconstruction of historical events and people.
what are the reasons for the decline of Myenae?
the overstretching of their military power invaders, crops death of leaders population decreased economy fell
what age of Greece did the end of the Mycenaean culture bring about?
the Dark Age of Greece
what are some characteristics of oral history?
repetition of words phrases descriptions and formulas called runs
what are the 3 aspects of Troy that are eyewitness accounts from the Iliad?
- Sacred Tower of Troy
- Greeks broke into Troy after Patroklus tried to clear the wall 3 times
- the Western wall of Troy was weak
palatial culture
a culture centered around palaces
pantheon
the gods of a particular culture considered collectively
Achaeans
what the Greeks called themselves
Achilles
king of Pythia a hero and a central character in the Iliad who kills Hektor
anachronism
something or someone that is not in its correct historical or chronological time
Crete
largest of the Greek islands home of one the most advanced Archaic Greek civilizations
Minos
legendary king of Crete son of Zeus and Europe
Minotaur
mythical half bull half man living beneath Minos’ palace
Labyrinth
a complex maze of passages difficult to navigate
Knossos
one of 5 major cities of Minoan culture
Poseidon
mythic god of the sea known as the earthshaker
Archipelago
a large group or chain of islands
Thera
small island in the Cyclades archipelago near Crete destroyed by a volcano
Arthur Evans
amateur archaeologist who discovered Knossos in 1900
fresco
the technique of painting on a moist plaster surface with colors ground up in a water or limewater mixture
Theseus
Greek hero killed the minotaur among other acts.
Ariadne
daughter of Minos helped Theseus kill the Minotaur and eventually married Dionysus.
archaic
marked by the characteristics of an earlier period forming the earliest stage prior to full development
Linear A
early pictographic language found on Crete currently undeciphered
Linear B
hieroglyphic language representing earliest confirmed form of Greek it was decpihered in 1953
some people speculate that Minoan culture represents what fabled civilization?
Atlantis
Plutarch
Greek historian and philosopher
Heinrich Schliemann
ameteur German archaeologist who discovered Troy and Mycenae
Aegeus
father of Theseus the Aegean Sea is named after him after he threw himself into it in grief thinking Theseus was dead
Mycenae
first Greek state
Tholos
a dry-stone beehive shaped tomb associated with the Mycenaean culture of Greece in the 16th to 12th century BC
Assimilation
merging cultural traits from distinct groups by force or by gradual adoption
Ethnocentric
the belief in the inherent superiority of ones own ethnic group or culture
thalassocracy
an empire or sea power due to trade exploration or colinization. dominion over the sea
bronze
main trading item made of copper and tin
wanax
what the Mycenaeans called their kings
cyclopean stone
stone walls of the Mycenaeans that were so big it was thought only cyclopes could get in
Ilion
what the Greeks called Troy
Agamemnon
the king of the Mycenaeans in the Iliad.
Menelaos
the king of Sparta in the Iliad his wife Helen was taken by Paris
Hektor
favored son of Priam great war hero whom Achilles kills.
Paris
epithet for Alexandros the prince of Troy and son of Priam. he takes Helen from Menelaos and this starts the Trojan war
Helen
wife of Menelaos taken by Paris.princess of Sparta and then Troy
