Greek History 1st test

Numismatics

the study and collection of coins, tokens, paper money, and other related objects, such as medals and other forms of currency

Barbaroi

Greek term for "barbarians" or "foreigners," referring to those who did not speak Greek or follow Greek customs

Tholos Graves

1. (aka beehive tomb)- only 1 person or family would be buried in here; huge; unnecessary display of wealth 

2. Shows a ruling class (king) 

Sir Arthur James Evans

Found linear b tablets in crete

Micheal Ventris

deciphered linear B

Linear A

can’t read it; looks similar to hieroglyphics which emphasizes that the Minoans were not Greek

Bronze Age Developments

learned how to make bronze which introduces the idea of war; first real sword is made; introduces wealth & rulers

Minoan

Minoan art depicts things like animals & peace; mainly bulls

Lefkandi

It was a safe haven from invaders and showed signs of cultural revival through pottery and burial practices.

Heroon Grave

grave for a deceased hero; sign of wealth, peace, & ruling class emerging

Agamemnon & Achilles quarrel

1. Tells Agamemnon to give her back; he says NO

2. He eventually concedes, but he wants something in return (Achilles' slave girl)

3. Achilles is fond of her and doesn’t wanna give her away 

4. Eventually agrees to give her back, but says he will go home 

5. Mom is a goddess and he asks her to ask Zeus to make sure they feel his absence

6. They realize they need achilles back

   1. Offer to give him stuff in return, but he has to publicly apologize

   2. He says no

7. Agamemnon basically says to forget their fight and gives his slave back

8. Achilles says he doesn’t care bc he is doing this for Patroclus

Minoan Organization and Culture

said to founded by a woman who rode a bull; minoans had labyrs

Proto Geometric Pottery

(early geometric) pottery (1050-900 BCE); marks return of art in dark ages; implies peace

Geometric Pottery

900-700 BCE

Colonization movement

Being of lower class (not an aristocrat) means you might want to migrate out of necessity or opportunity; spreads Greekness; frogs on a pond idea

Briseis

Achilles’ slave girl that Agamemnon & Achilles fight over

Phaistos Disk

a mysterious circular clay disk from the Minoan civilization found in Crete city of Phaistos; (linear A)

Pan-Hellenism

describes the shared culture, characteristics, and political ideology of ancient Greeks, fostering a sense of unity among the diverse city-states and distinguishing them from non-Greeks ("barbarians").

Oikos

house (as in like great house of westeros, not a physical house)

Theseus vs Minotaur

Theseus kills the minotaur

Heinrich Schliemann

Turkish diplomat who found evidence of the trojan war; not well liked

Linear B

1. Tablets found in Crete and Mycenae (means they interacted)

2. Micheal Ventris translates it

3. Early version of ancient Greek (evidence that Mycenaeans are the blueprint for Greeks)

4. Tablets are pretty much just record keeping (no creativity, very close-minded, only focused on displays of power)

Dark Ages  (Iron Age) 1150-750 BCE

1. Reset of greek culture (regresses)

2. No significant 

   1. written evidence

   2. coinage/monetary evidence

      1. Bad economy

   3. archaeological evidence

   4. art, sculpture, etc

   5. evidence of anything going on anywhere

Palace at Knossos

where the idea of the labyrinth of the Minotaur comes from as it was large and complicated

Acropolis

(upper part of city)- located in the center and had temple of a god at the top

Patroclus

1. Patroclus says to give him his armour so he can pretend to be him to scare the enemy & encourage the troops (won’t fight)

2. Patroclus gets mixed up in the heat of the moment and enters the battle and is slain by hector

3. he and achilles are a duo

Dorian Invasion

1100 BCE - external invaders

Oath of Tyndareus

Tell suitors that they need to swear an oath not to kill whoever he chooses or harm Helen; if Helen is in danger they have to fight for her

Thera

volcano that erupted and devastated the Minoans

Mycenaean Civilization

1. Strongest town of region

2. Built on a hill (psychologically designed to instill fear and for strategic purposes) 

3. Mascot= lion

4. Evidence of great wealth and power

5. Warrior people

Epigraphy

the study and interpretation of ancient inscriptions

Aryans

ruler; superior

Synoecism

- joining of 2 houses together

1. Rule / power is held by a committee, an oligarchy; basileis→ an aristocracy (These people were probably buried in the Heroon)

Indo-European

All Indo-European languages are believed to descend from a hypothetical language called Proto-Indo-European, which has no written records. 

The family includes languages spoken in Europe, the Americas, and parts of Western and Southern Asia. 

Linguists analyzed similarities in words like "father" and "mother" across different Indo-European languages. 

Europa

Zeus, king of the gods, transformed into a white bull to abduct Europa, a beautiful Phoenician princess, and carried her to the island of Crete. There, Zeus revealed himself, and Europa became his consort and the first queen of Crete. The continent of Europe is named after her,

Mom of King Minos

Mask of Agamemnon

probably fabricated or not even Agamemnon; found in Mycenae by Schliemann

Labyrs

double- headed ax that was used to kill 14 Athenian kids as an offering to gods

Iron Age

Dark Age (1150-750 BCE)

Megaron

a large, rectangular hall, central to Mycenaean palaces and private dwellings, featuring a central hearth, four supporting columns, and a smoke oculus in the roof

place where king & queen reside (palace like)

imposing display of power

in Nestor’s Pylos

Agora

a central, open public space used for a wide range of activities, functioning as the heart of political, commercial, social, and religious life; near acropolis

Minos

King Minos of Crete was gifted a bull by Poseidon as a a sign of the favor he gave him of making him King

Minos refused to sacrifice it so Poseidon made his wife fall in love with bull

Trojan Horse

Greeks build a big horse and send it to Troy with a congratulatory note to the Trojans for winning the war

Greeks are actually in the horse and wait till night to come out and take over the city

Thalassocracy

state whose territory is primarily maritime, meaning its power, influence, and economy are based on control of the seas rather than land-based territory

Chryseis

daughter of priest Chryses that is capture by greeks

priest tries to get her back but Agamemnon refuses

Priest is of Apollo, so Apollo sends down a plague on the Greek Army

Hesiod

Poet that writes Works and Days about how to be a farmer (lives precarious life; constantly on edge of disaster)

Prince Hector

Trojan Achilles (best warrior)

Pasiphae

Falls in love with the bull and hides in a wooden bull to trick the bull into having sex with her

gives birth to the Minotaur

Minotaur

Minos locks him away in labyrinth under palace at Knossos so complicated that no one could ever see this abomination

Mycenaen art

depicts warriors and battles