7/31/2019 Civilization of Ancient Greece I

1/2

Ancient Greece I.Key terms and names:

Greek peninsula, Aegean sea, Asia Minor, Cycladic Culture, Crete, Knossos, Minos, palace,Linear A, Mycenae, Linear B, Achaeans, Agamemnon,

The Role of Environment

Explain how geography shaped the life and history of Ancient Greece- The landscape nowadays is similar to the landscape in the ancient times- About 20% of land can be used for agriculture, the rest are hills( Greek peninsula is

surrounded by hills and mountains)- People breaded goat and sheep- Lots of minerals, especially marble, and iron, copper- 3 major cultures exist : Cycladic(islands on Aegean sea), Minoan( on Crete), and

Mycenaean ( on land)

The Cycladic Culture (3000-2000 B.C.)

Point to the importance of the Cycladic culture and locate it.- Cyclades are the islands located between the Greek Mainland and Asia Minor

,First settled islands in the 6th millennium B.C., T- Known for their art & architecture, which were copied by the Minoan culture :

schematic flat female idols- The Islands also form a circle around the holy island Delos, on which, as the

myth says, Artemis and Apollo were born- Culture loses importance when Minoans influence the art

The Minoan Civilization (2000 1400 B.C.)

Describe where and when the Minoan civilization developed and its most importantcentres.

- It is named after the great king, Minos the Righteous

- The centre is Crete, Melos and Thera- Knossos, and the surrounding cities with their palaces

Describe achievements of the civilization focusing on its settlements, socialorganization, script, and culture and trade connections.

- Palaces are the main buildings, which were surrounded by cities- It was more a complex of buildings, with lots of stairways connecting each other

labyrinths, because it was so huge that you could get lost- King ruled from there, and it were also political and religious centres- Only the nobility lived there, and the craftsmen producing military and

agricultural devices- The palaces were beautifully decorated with wall paintings- Even the poorest people had multiroom houses- Minoan also invented script using pictographs, but later changed it to Linear

A- Their wealth is based on trade they were a mercantile nation- Involved in tin trade : copper and tin are the elements needed to produce

bronze- Also traded frankincense and pepper- Remains of culture were found in Asia minor, Greece peninsula, and even in

Canaan(nowadays Israel)- Homer, the poet writes that the cities did not have any walls, as the cretes had

such a huge navy, that the walls were not needed

The Mycenaean Civilization (1600 1100 B.C.)

7/31/2019 Civilization of Ancient Greece I

2/2

Where did the Mycenaean Civilization develop and what was its connection to theMinoans?

- It developed on the Greek peninsula- Mycenaean came to Greece around 2000 B.C.- Homer called them Achaeans- Learned a lot from Minoans invented Linear B, which was the easier form of

the Linear A. It consists of mainly syllabic signs combination of vowel andconsonant

- The sript was used for inventories of resources and gold- Also adopted art, and religion.

Describe the civilization in terms of settlements, social organization, script, religionand their trade and cultural connections.

- they were warlike people cities looked more like forts, not cities, and only theKing or Ruler lived there with his soldiers farmers lived in front of the

- Cult of Strength and power was dominant- Founded cities like Mycenae, Athens, Corinth, Argos and Tiryns- Minoan culture weakens, when the Dorian overtake their cities- The Mycenaeans are mentioned in the epics of Homer: the Iliad and Odyssey as

the Greeks (Achaeans) that launched a military campaign against the city ofTroy. They are led by the king Agamemnon.