In the Shadow of Mycenae (original) (raw)
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They were called the Early Tumulus People in Archaeology because shortly after their departure another "tumulus people" arrived, a large population originating in areas north of the Alps, which then settled in the whole area of Central Europe, including the territories in the east, such as present-day Romania. Both these two populations, the earlier one and the later one, used to bury a part of their dead in a barrow or tumulus, which was not a custom at the funeral rites of the original populations. The Early Tumulus People appeared to have favoured, pursued, the preservation of their own identity, which ultimately led to the preservation of their characteristic culture in this period. Their cultural development, their way of live, as far as known, will be traced in one of the following chapters. Abstracts of the most relevant characteristics of the existing populations that were living in the Carpathian Basin will be given form in a separate chapter, while some cultures north of the Carpathian Mountain Range will also be given attention to. The last chapter will be dedicated to a discussion, in which will be tried to arrive at a satisfying analysis. However, this study will start with a brief description of the Mycenaean-Greek culture in Greece, more precise in their Mycenaean world on the Peloponnese, mainly Pylos and Mycenae, some time around 1400-1200 BCE, and will be followed by a chapter containing investigations on the anticipated Homeland in the Ural steppe regions. This will give form to the dramatic end of the Mycenaean culture in Greece and the supposed original living quarters of this population in the Trans-Ural area. These three major areas as referred to above constitute the only available sources of possible information for an approach to a thorough analysis of this complex problem. Chapter I-The Mycenaean Greeks The following text is meant to provide a limited view on the culture of the Mycenaean-Greeks in their final Aegean homeland from the archaeological period LH I onwards. It will mainly focus on identifying the most characteristic features in their culture, in order to compare these with those of this population in the other geographical territories in the preceding periods. The cultural circumstances in those areas, the Trans-Ural area and Middle Europe, will be paid attention to in the next chapters. This chapter will relate to specific elements of their cultural heritage in Greece in general terms. The intention is to try to clarify to what extent and in what way the Mycenaean Greeks in Greece can be related to the other cultures in the foregoing periods, under totally different circumstances. The Mycenaeans Mycenae The Greek population has been considered to have invaded the large southern peninsula in the Mediterranean area around 1600 BCE, at the end of the Middle Bronze Age in Middle Europe. They probably first arrived in Thessaly, whereupon groups of people travelled further south towards the Peloponnese, to gradually settle in the northern and western territories of that large peninsula. One of their large settlements was built in Mycene, where remnants have been found of an impressive and complex citadel, a palace, miscellaneous buildings and a number of large and important tholos graves, all built on a hill and surrounded by strong and massive defensive walls, all together an extremely powerful stronghold. This particular town was set up as the centre of a large community living in settlements around it in the area. The layout of this fortified complex, also interpreted as a forerunner of the later Acropolis constructions in Greece, is clearly visible on the next picture. The access to the palace on the hill was built within a very narrow entry, visible at the bottom of the picture at the right.. The fortifications are assumed to have been built around the middle of the 14th century BCE. Mycene is interpreted as having been the centre of the Mycenaean-Greek power in Greece in this period of the Middle Bronze Age. This culture is considered to have developed into a very mighty power in the Mediterranean world between 1600 and 1150 BCE. After Wikipedia The Lion statues After Wikipedia. Early imagery of a deity in Knossos, where she is flanked by two lionesses This worship to a Goddess, as shown on the earlier Minoan image, has on the gate been represented by a worship to the representative of the Goddess in the citadel's palace, for which a Minoan column has been choosen. The imagery in the gate marks the intense association between the Mycaneans and the Minoans in the preceding centuries. This monumental sculpture in relief is the earliest example or the kind in Europe. 1
The Collapse of the Mycenaean Economy
The Collapse of the Mycenaean Economy, 2017
In this book, Sarah Murray provides a comprehensive treatment of textual and archaeological evidence for the long-distance trade economy of Greece across 600 years during the transition from the Late Bronze to the Early Iron Age. Analyzing the finished objects that sustained this kind of trade, she also situates these artifacts within the broader context of the ancient Mediterranean economy, including evidence for the import and export of commodities as well as demographic change. Murray argues that our current model of exchange during the Late Bronze Age is in need of a thoroughgoing reformulation. She demonstrates that the association of imported objects with elite self-fashioning is not supported by the evidence from any period in early Greek history. Moreover, the notional 'decline' in trade during Greece's purported Dark Age appears to be the result of severe, economic contraction, rather than a severance of access to trade routes.
Homes for heroes: Mycenaean citadels in Bronze Age Greece
Homer’s Iliad seemed to be entirely mythical, until the German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann discovered Troy. Having found the Trojans, the next logical step was to seek their Greek adversaries. Now, decades of archaeological work at Tiryns, Pylos and Mycenae have opened the door into the Mycenaean world of Homer’s Achaeans.
A Thousand Black Ships: Maritime Trade, Diplomatic Relations, and the Rise of Mycenae
R. Strootman, F. van den Eijnde, R. van Wijk (eds.) 2019: Empires of the Sea. Maritime Power Networks in World History. Leiden, Brill, 2019
In this chapter I discuss the role of the sea, and maritime trade in particular, in the rise of the city of Mycenae and the formation of what could be called a Mycenaean ‘Great Kingdom’ in the late 17th to 14th century bc. By focusing on Mycenaean activity in three ‘maritime worlds’ (one within the Aegean world itself, namely the Saronic Gulf – a so- called small world- , and two within the wider eastern Mediterranean, namely the eastern trade routes to Hittite Anatolia, and the route south to Egypt), I will argue that it was Mycenae’s ability to dominate the small world of the Saronic Gulf that enabled it to extend its territorial claims beyond the Argolid, which in turn led to a Mycenaean presence in Anatolia and the formation of what one could call a Mycenaean Great Kingdom.
Being Mycenaean: A View from the Periphery. American Journal of Archaeology 115:1-30, 2011.
Ethnic or cultural designations of past societies have often been employed uncritically and even casually. This general situation applies specifically to Mycenaean civilization. This article therefore considers a set of interrelated questions: What or who was a Mycenaean? How did the people termed "Mycenaeans" come into existence? What did it mean to be Mycenaean? Could one choose to be, or not to be, Mycenaean? Was there a difference between being Mycenaean and becoming Mycenaean? And finally, how is Mycenaean identity related to culture, class, and social organization? After providing theoretical, methodological, anthropological, and archaeological contexts for these questions, this paper offers some suggestions about how or whether they can be answered, examining issues of ethnicity, cultural identity, and spatial organization. It concludes by considering these areas as they apply to the Aegean Bronze Age.
CDL Press, 2010
A monograph on the political structures of Mycenaean Greece, and the connections between Mycenaean Greece and the Near East (esp. Hittite Anatolia and New Kingdom Egypt). Reviewed in Bibliotheca Orientalis 68, no.1-2, 2011 (by F. Woudhuizen): http://poj.peeters-leuven.be/content.php?url=article&id=2122336
Martin P. Nilsson, The Mycenaean Origin of Greek Mythology [1932]
University of California Press, 1972 [1932]
SECTION III. THE DOMINION OF PYLOS 79 Messenia etc. in the Mycenaan age 79. Nestor's Pylos 82. The Seven Cities 84. The Minyans 86. The Pylian epos 87. SECTION IV. THE REST OF THE PELOPONNESE.. 90 Mycenaean remains; myths 90. Myths of Olympia 91. SECTION V. THE IONIAN ISLANDS 9$ Ithaca 95. Odysseus and the Cephallenians 96. Cycle of Odysseus 99. SECTION VI. SOUTHERN BOEOTIA 100 Mycenaean remains 100. Thebes 101. Oedipus 102. The War of the Seven 106. Adrastus 113. Amphiaraus 115. Tydeus 116. Capaneus 117. The cycle of the Seven 118. The Epigonoi 120. Cadmus 120. Founda-rion myths 122. Amphion and Zethus 124. Cadmus the Phoenician 126. SECTION VII. NORTHERN BOEOTIA AND Orchomenus 127. Gla 128. The Minyans and Orchomenus 129. Athamas 133. The Argonauts 136. Mycenaean remains around Iolcus 137. The Minyans in Thessaly 139. Tyro 141. The Minyans and Pylos 142. The league of Calaureia 144. AuÚs 14S. The Minyans as traders 146. Delphi 148. Trade 148. Other tribes ISO. Decline of Minyan power 151. Colonization of Ionia 153. Achilles 156. The Centaurs 158.
The Northern Frontier of the Mycenaean World
The search for the northern frontier of the Mycenaean world has a long history in Mycenaean studies 1 . The starting point for my present investigation was offered by my study of Mycenaean seals and sealings 2 . Seals made of various materials come from all over of Mycenaean Greece (see for a distribution of seals of the "Mainland Popular Group" in the Aegean). Apart from the core areas of the Argolid, Messenia and Boeotia they have been found also in the area of western, central and northern Greece up to the mountain Olympos. These include golden signet rings with figural illustrations and hard stone seals which were made of semi-precious stones; glass was either engraved or pressed in moulds to produce seals, and finally seals were made of less valuable materials such as soft stones like steatite (see for distribution of various seal types in Thessaly). Material, style and shapes link all those different categories of seals from all parts of the Greek mainland 3 .
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