Prehistoric Crete Midterm (Fall 2025)

Lessons 1-5

What aspect of Crete allows it to be economically autonomous?

geographic variety

What is the most common (important) mineral on Crete?

calcite

Why does Crete often face drought?

fractured bedrock (from seismic activity) absorbs water

What three foods make up the Mediterranean triad?

olives, grains, grapes

Why are the particular crops of the Mediterranean triad so valuable?

high caloric content; long-lasting products

The history of archeology on Crete started with the search for what mythical location?

minotaur’s labyrinth

The stages of development of Minoan civilization was influenced by ___ theory.

evolutionary

Why are the fortifications found at Gournia archeologically important?

disproves Evans’ picture of Crete as an entirely peaceful civilization

True or false: There were no weapons caches or war-centered art found in Knossos.

False

True or false: Linear B is a Minoan language

False

Two features of Processual (“New”) Archeology

intensive survey; focus on economy and social structure (subsistence, toolmaking, trade, etc)

The end of the Pleistocene epoch marked what important geological milestone?

last glacial maximum (ice age)

Which three hominin species were found in Greece?

homo sapiens sapiens, homo heidelbergensis, homo neanderthalensis

Why does Greek chronology differ from global chronology? (e.g., Greek Neolithic period begins 2.5 thousand years after global Neolithic period)

Greek habitation occurred much later (500,000 BP)

True or false: Domestication appears fully fledged in the Aegean with no transitional period.

True

The Neolithic period was divided into three phases based on the presence of what commodity?

ceramics

The aceramic period is also called the __ Neolithic

initial

What period of Crete is characterized by more sophisticated storage systems and rituals as well as a completely different social system?

Neolithic period

Knossos dates back to what period?

aceramic/initial Neolithic (7000-6500 BCE)

True or false: Large game reached Crete by walking over a land bridge or swimming.

true

True or false: Neolithic agropastoralists caused the extinction of Crete’s unique Pleistocene fauna.

False
(almost none of the fauna were present in the earliest Neolithic layers, meaning they went extinct before then)

What are the two major reasons for the extinction of large animals on Crete?

1. Rapid climate change at the end of the ice age (warmer and wetter) caused forests to bloom, crowding out large mammals

2. Overhunting by paleolithic hunters

True or false: Neolithic peoples had the necessary seafaring technology needed to reach Crete

true

(evidenced by Melian obsidian in Franchthi cave)

What is the significance of the Plakias survey?
(Identification of 28 Pleistocene and early Holocene sites along the south coast of Crete)

• proves pre-Neolithic activity on Crete

• pushes back first human appearance in Crete by several millennia (to the lower-Middle Paleolithic)

significance of Asphendou Cave

Confirmed existence of figural/geometric rock art in Crete during the Upper Paleolithic

(Earliest figural art in Greece)

When were the upland areas of Crete colonized?

Middle Neolithic

What development in the Final Neolithic enabled more upland areas of Crete to be colonized, along with some of the smaller islands?

secondary products revolution

Describe the general appearance of most Cretan pottery in the Neolithic period

undecorated (burnished or slipped; bowls, jars, and cooking vessels

How was fine pottery decorated in the Cretan Neolithic?

plastic, incised and dotted motifs

The plethora of stone tools at Magasas suggest that the site may have served what purpose?

production center

Why is Knossos a useful site in the study of the development of Crete?

10 strata spanning 4000 years of continuous occupation before the Bronze Age

Why is the evidence for life in Neolithic Knossos so fragmentary?

Neolithic remains lie underneath the Bronze Age remains

During what period does the following description characterize Knossos?

• Pits, channels, post holes, fire pits

• Material finds: domesticated animal bones, charred plant remains, lithics

• NO pottery

• Intramural child burials, no grave offerings, flexed position

Neolithic

When do permanent structures appear in Knossos?

early Neolithic

During what period was construction in Knossos characterized by baked bricks resting in stone socles?

Early Neolithic

During what period was the pise/cob technique used in Knossos?

Middle Neolithic

During what period did buildings in Knossos utilize mudbricks over a stone foundation?

Middle Neolithic

In what period did buildings in Knossos typically consist of two rooms?

Middle Neolithic

In what period did buildings in Knossos typically consist of multiple rooms, each with the same orientation and several entrances?

Late Neolithic

In what period were buildings in Knossos repaired, floors renewed, and new walls added?

Late Neolithic

During what period were But-and-Ben type structures popularized in Knossos?

Final Neolithic

During what period were buildings in Knossos characterized by complex floorplans and thickened walls?

Final Neolithic

The social disruption between the end of the Final Neolithic and the beginning of the Early Bronze age may have been caused by ___

climate change

What are the two proposed models of social change in Crete at the turn of the Early Bronze Age?

• Potential colonizing groups from Anatolia and the Dodecanese

• OR socioeconomic transformation with some external influence but no incoming populations

What FN–EM I development marks the beginning of the Prepalatial period?

metallurgy

What are the interpretive problems concerning the prepalatial period?

Defining an entire millennium based on the absence of a single characteristic (palaces) 

Two models of the emergence of the palatial system

• Gradual model (accumulative social complexity during the prepalatial)

• Quantum leap model

What are the two most important developments of the Early Minoan I?

• Demographic/population growth

• Coastal sites for maritime trade

Describe EM I architecture.

• stone foundation, mudbrick superstructure

• curvilinear walls to withstand earthquakes

90% of the tholos tombs of EM I are located where?

South-Central Crete

True or false: The majority of burials in EM I were secondary

true

Describe the three “genres'“ of grave good in the Early Minoan I.

Identity, consumption, symbolism (e.g. pottery)

Early Minoan I pottery can be described as:

Dark-on-light

During what period were cooking vessels first put over fire?

Early Minoan I

Pithoi (large jars) were first constructed in what period?

Early Minoan I

What does the variety of wares and shapes imply about pottery at the start of the Bronze Age?

• Better control of firing conditions

• Higher level of technical specialization

• Effort to produce vases of high aesthetic and symbolic value

What role did the north coast of Crete play in trade?

import Cycladic raw materials and artifacts → turn them into products → send them south

True or false: Tholos tombs and rock shelters fall out of use in EM II in favor of house tombs.

False

(house tombs do become popular during this period, but tholos tombs and rock shelters remain in use)

Early Minoan IIA saw the construction of which major palace?

Malia

What funerary architecture is popularized in EM II?

house tombs

What two ritual/artistic motifs become popular in the EM IIA?

Bull & snake goddess

What is the significance of the gold, obsidian, and bronze objects in Early Bronze Age Mochlos tombs?

competition through grave goods

Fine grey ware, seals, and stone vessels were all new crafts belonging to which period?

Early Minoan IIA

Are the marble figurines on Crete in EM IIA imported directly from the Cyclades, or are they Cycladic-style imitations?

both

The “goddess and the skull” found in Myrtos is representative of the EM IIB emphasis on what concept?

lineage & ancestors

How was the mottled appearance of Vasiliki ware achieved?

only allowing air to hit some parts of the vessel

During what period did trade contacts decline and luxury imports cease entirely?

Early Minoan IIB

What island was colonized by the Minoans in EM IIB?

Kythera

When did the first monumental buildings appear on Crete?

Early Minoan IIB

What important geographical change occurs in EM III?

marsh of south-central Crete dries out and becomes fertile land

What marks the rise of an elite class at Phaistos?

conspicuous consumption

During EM III and MM I, Knossos adds rooms by expanding outward from what point?

central court

The altar outside the tholos tomb at Apesokari is an example of what ritual aspect during EM III and MM I?

veneration of the dead

During what period were the first palaces constructed on Crete?

Middle Minoan I

List some general functions of the Minoan palaces

• Social hubs

• Storage

• Administration

• Ceremonial activity

• Display of craft goods

• Imports

Describe the top-down model of the emergence of the Minoan palaces

• Gradual evolution of elite class

• Accelerated evolution resulting from destructions → sudden appearance of court buildings

• Management of agropastoral surplus

• Manipulation of exotic imports and foreign relations

What are the problems with the top-down model of the emergence of Minoan palaces?

• storage magazines are not large enough to hold all surplus

• crafts are not exclusive to the palace

Describe the bottom-up model of the emergence of the Minoan palaces.

Ceremonial facilitators gradually become hosts; political power is a side effect

What is the major problem with the bottom-up model of the emergence of Minoan palaces?

palace construction must have been coordinated by someone at the outset

What is the defining feature of all Minoan palaces?

central court

Which Minoan palace didn’t have a “proper” town, but rather a collection of neighborhoods along the surrounding hillsides?

Phaistos

True or false: Lustral basins are present in all exceptional buildings of Crete.

True

True or false: The primary function of lustral basins was for bathing.

False (plaster walls would deteriorate)

The pillars of pillar crypts are:

purely decorative

Economic regulation occurring outside the palace at Malia suggests what kind of town administration?

corporate groups

True pr false: Monastiraki is considered a palace.

false

List some aspects of palatial towns which disprove the theory of Minoans as an entirely peaceful society.

• guarded road network (far east Crete)

• fortifications (Myrtos-Pyrgos)

What is the only way to access “blind rooms” on the ground floor?

via the upper floor

What kind of cookware was used in protopalatial Crete?

pans (coal underneath)

tripod pots (fire underneath)

What caused the end of the old palatial period?

earthquakes

True or false: The earthquakes which destroyed the old palaces in the Middle Minoan also disrupted the existing social hierarchy.

False

During which period did access to palaces become more restricted, elites stop interacting with other social classes, and existing storage facilities were filled with earth and covered?

Neopalatial

In what period were initiatory areas with lustral basins added before entrance to the forehall?

neopalatial

During what period did large towns like Gournia thrive?

neopalatial

The south entrance of Knossos was decorated with what important fresco?

priest-king

True or false: Visitors to Knossos were taken through different entrances to the palace, each decorated to convey a particular message.

true

In the neopalatial period, Phaistos magazines are redesigned to prioritize what two aspects at the expense of quantity?

uniformity & display

Zakros palace is unique in what way?

lies lower than the rest of the town

What prevailing idea during the neopalatial period is reflected by the insertion of a palace at the pre-existing town of Zakros, one which is noticeably not integrated into the established topographical layout?

every major town needed a palace

The town of Gournia imitated palace architecture during the Neopalatial period and appropriated which existing structure to act as the central court?

town square