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The Art Of The Ancient Aegean The Cycladic & Minoan Civilizations Professor Will Adams Valencia College

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The Art Of The Ancient AegeanThe Cycladic & Minoan Civilizations

Professor Will Adams

Valencia College

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The Ancient Aegean

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The Ancient Aegean The ancient Aegean world

was comprised of three distinct geographic cultures:

1. The Cycladics: Based on the Cyclades Islands at the mouth of the Aegean Sea.

2. The Minoans: Based on the large island of Crete.

3. The Mycenaeans: Based on mainland Greece’s Peloponnesian peninsula.

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2

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The Cycladic Culture

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The Cycladic Culture The Cyclades are islands in

the south Aegean circling the island of Delos.

During the Early Bronze Age(c. 3200-2100 B.C.E.) pottery, marble, and metal goods were produced there that wound up in grave sites.

Among these are the marble female figurines that inspired 20th century artists.

Later in the Bronze Age, the Cyclades showed influence from Minoan and Mycenaean cultures.

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Cycladic ArtSTANDING FEMALE FIGURE

C. 2700 BCE

MARBLE

Figurines of this type have been found almost exclusively in tombs.

Although it was first believed that these so-called "idols" represent deities, they probably should be interpreted more broadly as representations of "femaleness."

The geometric shapes, the position of the arms across the abdomen, and the close-set legs with dangling feet are distinctive and may appear strikingly modern to the viewer today.

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Cycladic ArtMALE LYRE PLAYERC. 2700 BCE

MARBLE

The islands of Naxos, Paros & Keros were renowned for their figurines.

Their sizes range from a few inches to almost life-size.

In style, they are strikingly abstract, utilizing geometric shapes & flat planes to render the human body in a schematized manner

Although austere today, figurines were originally painted in bright colors, probably in order to give the figurines individual identities.

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The Minoan Culture

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The Minoan Culture The story of European civilization

really begins on the island of Crete

with a civilization that probably

thought of itself as Asian (in fact,

Crete is closer to Asia than it is to

Europe).

Around 1700 BCE, a highly

sophisticated culture grew up

around palace centers on Crete:

the Minoans.

The Minoans produced a

civilization oriented around trade

and bureaucracy with little or no

evidence of a military state.

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The Minoan Culture They built perhaps the

single most efficient bureaucracy in antiquity.

This unique culture, of course, lasted only a few centuries, and European civilization shifts to Europe itself with the foundation of the military city-states on the mainland of Greece.

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Minoan Homeland: Crete On the island, the climate is

comfortable and the soil fertile; as an

island, it was isolated from the

mainland of Asia Minor, the Middle

East, and Egypt.

Being an island, resources were limited.

As the population began to thrive, it

also began to increase, and it is evident

that the resources of the island became

increasingly insufficient to handle the

increased population, so the Cretans

improvised.

Some migrated, populating other

islands in the Aegean Sea like Thera

(modern day Santorini, Greece).

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Minoan Migration & Trade In doing so, they took their

growing civilization with them and spread Minoan culture, religion, and government all over the Aegean Sea.

For this reason, the Minoan culture is also called the "Aegean Palace civilization."

But the Cretans who remained turned to other economic pursuits to support the growing population; in particular, they turned to trade.

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Minoan Timeline: First Palace Period: 2200 - 1700 BCE

In this period, political power began to be centered around kings.

As a result, the first large palace centers came into being.

So far, excavation has revealed four large palaces on Crete at Knossos, Phaistos, Malia, and Zakros.

The buildings are arranged around a central court and have fine facades of closely fitted stone blocks with monumental entrances.

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The First Palace Period: The Palace At Phaistos: C. 1700 Bce

Phaistos is Minoan palace site

situated on a hill with a

commanding view of the

Mesara Plain to the south and

west.

It is in the fertile Mesara valley

that is surrounded by mountain

ranges and the plain extends

south.

During Minoan times, Phaistos

was a very important city-state,

being the second largest city

after Knossos.

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The First Palace Period: The Palace At Phaistos: C. 1700 Bce

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Phaistos In Mythology According to mythology,

Phaistos was the seat of King

Radamanthis, brother of King

Minos.

The city also participated in the

Trojan War and was an important

city-state in the Dorian period.

Phaistos continued to flourish

during Archaic, Classical and

Hellenistic times, but was

destroyed by the Gortians during

the 3rd century BCE.

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The First Palace Period: The Palace At Phaistos: C. 1700 BCE

The Old Palace was built on the site at the beginning of the second millennium, c. 1900 - 1700 BCE.

Twice it was severely damaged by earthquakes and rebuilt so three distinct phases are visible to archaeologists.

It is believed that the first two phases of the Old Palace of Phaistos constitute the oldest Palatial buildings in Crete.

Other finds at the site include thousands of seal impressions and some tablets containing the oldest form of written European language: Linear A script.

Linear A has so far defied all attempts at decipherment.

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The Palace At Phaistos: The Second Palace When the Old Palace was finally

destroyed, almost certainly by an

earthquake, a new palace was

built on the site.

Fortunately for us, the builders of

the new palace did not destroy all

traces of the old.

Some of the old palace can still be

seen, especially in the north-east

corner, but much of the Old

Palace remains are accessible

only to the experts.

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The Palace At Phaistos: The Central Courtyard

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The Palace At Phaistos: The King’s Megaron (Throne Room)

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The Palace At Phaistos: The Queen’s Megaron (Throne Room)

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The Palace At Phaistos: The Theater Space From the Upper West Court, a staircase

leads to the theatre area, with its eight

rows of seats, each one 22 meters long

on the Lower West Court.

On the north side of the theatre there is

a retaining wall for the Upper Court and

below this, the tiered seats overlooking

the Lower West Court.

The court is traversed diagonally by a

raised causeway.

On the east side of the causeway are six

circular pits.

These are thought to have been for

grain storage.

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First Palace Period: Pottery & Workshops The gorgeous Kamaresware

pottery dates to this period

and the style is named after

the cave of Kamares where it

was first discovered.

Kamaresware is pottery with

polychrome motifs of

rosettes, spirals and

hatching vibrantly painted

on a shiny black background,

and was produced in a

variety of vase shapes.

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First Palace Period: Pottery & Workshops The workshops also

produced fine vases and vessels of stone and faience; seal stones of precious or semi-precious stones, with hieroglyphics & dynamic natural scenes; elegant weapons and tools; vessels of bronze or silver; jewelry of marvelous technique, as well as miniature sculptures.

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Minoan Timeline: Second Palace Period: 1700 - 1500 BCE

Magnificent new palaces were built upon the ruins of the old ones.

The cities around them expanded.

Many lords in rural villas controlled areas in the same way as the feudal lords of the Middle Ages.

Their ships carried both the products of Minoan and other societies throughout the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean to trade.

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Minoan Timeline: Second Palace Period: 1700 - 1500 BCE

The new palaces were multistoried

and more complex.

They had great courtyards with

grand porticoes, broad staircases,

processional paths and

monumental entrances.

Many rooms could be opened for

air circulation and sunlight to

enter via pier and door partitions,

making the rooms quite bright and

pleasant in the summer.

Benches and thrones were found

in royal rooms.

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Minoan Timeline: Second Palace Period: 1700 - 1500 BCE

There were many interior light wells to allow light in through all levels of the palace via the roof.

Bathrooms and water supply and drainage systems allowed for a easier style of life.

Sections of the palaces were royal quarters, sacred areas (pillar crypts, tripartite shrines), audience and banquet halls.

Large areas of these palaces were set aside as storage areas (magazines), and workshops also existed within the palaces.

Wonderful fresco paintings decorated the walls with fresh, lively scenes in an array of colors.

Gypsum was a common building material used for wall siding and floors.

The Marine Style of pottery developed with flowing elements including stylized octopuses and seaweed.

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Minoan Timeline: Second Palace Period: 1700 - 1500 BCE

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Minoan Timeline: Second Palace Period: 1700 - 1500 BCE

When Sir Arthur Evans began his excavation of Knossos, he uncovered one of the richest finds in all of modern archaeology.

Although he was not the first to excavate at the site, it was to be Evans who uncovered the Knossos Palace and brought to light a hitherto unknown civilization.

The basic excavation of the site took four years and for the rest of his life Evans continued working on the site, reconstructing and building, often in an attempt to preserve the remains from the weather to which they had been exposed for the first time in 3,500 years.

The palace’s first occupation lasted 1900 - 1700 BCE

Following an earthquake in 1700 BCE, then repaired and reoccupied until around 1500 BCE.

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Minoan Timeline: Second Palace Period: 1700 - 1500 BCE

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The Palace at Knossos: The Grand Staircase

Horns of consecration atop the palace walls.

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The Palace at Knossos: The Central Court

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The Palace at Knossos: The Dolphin Sanctuary

Near the Hall of the Double

Axes is the Dolphin Sanctuary,

which Evans assigned as the

Queen's Apartment (Megaron).

The area takes its name from a

Dolphin Fresco which was

found here in pieces, although

it probably fell from the floor

above during the destruction of

the palace.

A replica of the fresco now

adorns the north wall.

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The Palace at Knossos: The Throne Room On the West Side of the Palace is

one of the most famous of rooms unearthed by Evans: The Throne Room.

With its low ceiling and lack of windows it was separated from the Central Court by an anteroom.

The throne is placed along a side wall facing across the room. On either side of the throne there are stone benches and, in front of the throne, a stone basin.

Its walls are decorated with pastoral frescoes of the Cretan countryside.

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The Palace at Knossos: The Frescoes of Crete The type of painting that decorates the

walls of Knossos is referred to as fresco (meaning “fresh” in Italian).

When the walls were constructed, they were covered with a smooth layer of plaster.

To create the frescoes, pigments were mixed with water (the vehicle), and lime (a drying or curing agent).

Next, the pigment mixture would be applied to the still-damp plaster wall.

As a result, the pigment was absorbed into the wall as it dried, creating an incredibly durable image.

This is now referred to as buon fresco (“true fresco”) technique, as opposed to applying pigment to an already-dry wall (fresco secco).

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Minoan Religion The Minoans gave thanks for their beautiful land by worshipping a small

number of gods and goddesses; their main deities represented the male and

female aspects of life.

They worshipped them on mountains, in temples on the ground and in caves.

It was believed that gods and goddesses could live in tress and columns

because these linked the earth and the heavens.

The Goddesses:

The main deity is still the Mother Goddess, who is portrayed in different

forms such as the Snake Goddess.

The Bull was also worshipped as a powerful symbol of male fertility beside

her.

Deities were worshipped in sanctuaries of the palaces, various dwellings, the

peak sanctuaries, and in sacred caves.

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Minoan Religion: The Snake Goddess: c. 1600 BCE The Snake Goddess’s representation as

a ceremonial leader in Minoan religion may indicate that Minoan culture was matriarchal.

The Goddess was created using the faience technique, in which beach sand is low-fired to create am opaque glass-like silicate.

Additionally, she may be a fertility figure, as the emphasis on her bare chest indicates.

It isn’t clear whether she represents a priestess or a goddess, as figures easily identifiable as gods or goddesses are not found in Minoan cities

The snakes she grasps are associated with both female and earthly fertility, not evil.

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Minoan Religion: The Bull-Leaping Fresco: c. 1450 BCE

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Minoan Religion: The Bull-Leaping Fresco: c. 1450 BCE

This controversial fresco of bull-leapers

comes from Knossos.

It is generally thought that, imported

from the Egyptian tradition, the pale

figures are women and the dark figure is

male.

Usually referred to as "bull jumping,"

the event appears to have involved

grasping the bull by the horns and then

flipping backwards over the animal,

landing behind it.

This would have been a very dangerous

undertaking and, if the full were indeed

a sacred animal in Crete, would have

had religious significance.

The placement of the people may show

either three stages of the bull-leaping, or

the women as attendants while the male

alone leaps over the bull.

It is thought that both men and women

participated in the contests, perhaps to

show their worthiness as aristocrats.

It has also been argued that the white

figures are boys before initiation and that

there is no gender implied in the basic form:

hourglass body, slim waist, round hips, and

broad shoulders; details like color, hair,

jewelry and costume providing the

gendering details.

Additionally, the bull was probably offered

as a sacrifice after the bull-leaping contest.

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Minoan Writing Three types of picture writing have

been discovered in ancient Crete.

Unfortunately, the writings have

told us very little about the Minoan

way of life.

Linear A: This type of writing has

been found in many places in Crete.

Most examples are scratched on

clay tablets but there are some

samples engraved on metal.

In order to be able to translate

Linear A we will probably have to

find a bilingual text.

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Minoan Writing: The Phaistos Disc: c. 1700 BCE This 15 cm disc is an early example

of moveable type for printing.

Europeans did not use this technique again until the 1400’s CE.

Previously it had been thought that the Chinese had invented moveable type.

The Phaistos Disc is remarkable because its 45 different figures are not scratched on, but pressed in.

An individual block was made for each pictograph.

The same block was pressed into clay whenever that particular sign was needed.

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Minoan Timeline: Volcanic Eruption: 1450 BCE All of the centers of the Second

Palace Period were destroyed around 1450 BCE.

The terrible volcanic eruption of Thera (Santorini) had large impacts on Crete depending on how the ash fell, but did not have enough effects to destroy the palaces or the Minoan way of life.

The eruption of Thera may have destroyed some coastal towns and shipping, and would have depressed the economies of the eastern Mediterranean though.

Terrible palace destructions did happen though (probably through earthquake).

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Minoan Timeline: Volcanic Eruption: 1450 BCE Life resumed only at the palace at

Knossos, which was reconstructed and served as the residence of a new Mycenaean rulers from the mainland.

Their presence is inferred by the appearance of the very archaic written Greek language of Linear B and by the appearance of Palace Style pottery.

Changes were made in the arrangement of the palaces, and the Knossos Throne Room and many surviving frescoes date from this period.

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The End Of The Minoan CivilizationAt around 1400 BCE, the Mycenaean

civilization from mainland Greece began to gain control of the weakened Minoan Crete.

As a result, the Minoans were engaged in increased warfare.

They subsequently abandoned their indefensible palaces in favor of settlements higher in the mountains.

These provided the Minoans with greater natural protection from invasion.