Minoans of Crete

Minoans of Crete

  • 2000 - 1400 BC
  • earliest known European civilization
  • discovered in the 1900s by Arthur Evans
  • buried for more than 3500 years
  • seafaring trade
  • unique hieroglyphics
  • major influence on mainland Greece
  • interacted with Egypt and Mesopotamia
  • height = 1700 - 1400 BC
  • ^ palace at Knossos built
  • ^ shrines = ceremonies, living quarters, banquet halls (frescoes covered walls)
  • Polytheistic: chief deity = snake goddess
  • random events and invasion = demise of civilization

Crete

  • between the Mediterranean sea and the Aegean sea

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