The Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations at the origins of ancient Greece

The Minoan culture, considered by some to be the first European civilization, flourished in Crete in the 2nd millennium BC. A halo of mystery still surrounds the Minoans today, as scholars have not yet been able to decipher their writing. It is no coincidence that, as the basis of ancient Greek civilization, historians tend to consider the Minoan civilization as the precursor of classical civilization. Their influence extended across the Mediterranean, leaving evidence in many areas of mainland Greece and on some Aegean islands. The flowering of their civilization is demonstrated by the presence of many large palaces in Crete, elegantly decorated and unfortified, suggesting that the people lived in peace.

From the mid-15th century BC, the Mycenaeans, established in mainland Greece, became the dominant power. They were a warrior people who traded goods with peninsular Italy, Sicily, and Sardinia but, as demonstrated by their impressive fortified palaces and imposing walls, they also exercised military power. Their writing, known as Linear B, has been deciphered and was used to write an archaic form of Greek. The Mycenaeans created independent states in mainland Greece and settlements on many islands. Each state had a palace at its center, and they were able to carry out complex engineering projects, such as stone fortifications, bridges, dams, and roads. After about 1100 BC, disputes between the different states may have contributed to the decline of the Mycenaean civilization.

MYCENAEAN TRADE (1450-1100 BC)

In Mycenaean settlements and tombs, a large number of artifacts indicate the type of objects traded in Greece by the people of the Bronze Age. Raw materials such as copper and tin crossed the region by land and sea to be used in refined Mycenaean metallurgy. Archaeologists have also found numerous ceramic jars, used to transport wine and oil.

In the Bronze Age, the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations dominated the Aegean. Both the former, settled in Crete and on other islands, and the latter, in mainland Greece, had settlements on the coast or nearby. From their ports, they sent merchant ships not only into the Aegean, but much further into the Mediterranean.

At the height of its existence, Knossos was a large city with between 10,000 and 100,000 inhabitants. At the center was the palace complex, with its 1,300 rooms covering about 2.4 hectares. In addition to vast residential and ceremonial halls, elegantly decorated, there were many rooms used as storage, containing hundreds of large jars for oil, grain, and other foods. Grain mills were also part of the complex.