Ancient Aegean Art & Civilizations

The Art Of The Ancient Aegean
The
Cycladic
&
Minoan
Civilizations

Art
Appreciation

Professor
Will
Adams

The Ancient Aegean
v 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.

1
2
3

The Cycladic Culture
v  The
Cyclades
are
islands
in

the
south
Aegean
circling
the

island
of
Delos.

v  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.

v  Among
these
are
the
marble

female
ﬁgurines
that

inspired
20th
century
artists.

v  Later
in
the
Bronze
Age,
the

Cyclades
showed
inﬂuence

from
Minoan
and
Mycenaean

cultures.

Cycladic Art
STANDING
FEMALE
FIGURE

C.
2700
BCE

MARBLE

v  Figurines
of
this
type
have
been

found
almost
exclusively
in
tombs.

v  Although
it
was
ﬁrst
believed
that

these
so-‐called
"idols"
represent

deities,
they
probably
should
be

interpreted
more
broadly
as

representations
of
"femaleness."

v  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.

Cycladic Art
MALE
LYRE
PLAYER

C.
2700
BCE

MARBLE

v  The
islands
of
Naxos,
Paros
&
Keros

were
renowned
for
their
figurines.

v  Their
sizes
range
from
a
few
inches
to

almost
life-‐size.

v  In
style,
they
are
strikingly
abstract,

utilizing
geometric
shapes
&
flat

planes
to
render
the
human
body
in
a

schematized
manner

v  Although
austere
today,
figurines

were
originally
painted
in
bright

colors,
probably
in
order
to
give
the

figurines
individual
identities.

The Minoan Culture
v  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).

v  Around
1700
BCE,
a
highly

sophisticated
culture
grew
up

around
palace
centers
on
Crete:

the
Minoans.

v  The
Minoans
produced
a

civilization
oriented
around
trade

and
bureaucracy
with
little
or
no

evidence
of
a
military
state.

The Minoan Culture
v They
built
perhaps
the

single
most
eﬃcient

bureaucracy
in
antiquity.

v 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.

Minoan Homeland: Crete
v  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.

v  Being
an
island,
resources
were
limited.

v  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.

v  Some
migrated,
populating
other

islands
in
the
Aegean
Sea
like
Thera

(modern
day
Santorini,
Greece).

Minoan Migration & Trade
v  In
doing
so,
they
took
their

growing
civilization
with
them

and
spread
Minoan
culture,

religion,
and
government
all

over
the
Aegean
Sea.

v  For
this
reason,
the
Minoan

culture
is
also
called
the

"Aegean
Palace
civilization."

v  But
the
Cretans
who
remained

turned
to
other
economic

pursuits
to
support
the

growing
population;
in

particular,
they
turned
to

trade.

Minoan Timeline: First Palace Period: 2200 - 1700 BCE
v  In
this
period,
political
power

began
to
be
centered
around

kings.

v  As
a
result,
the
first
large

palace
centers
came
into

being.

v  So
far,
excavation
has

revealed
four
large
palaces

on
Crete
at
Knossos,

Phaistos,
Malia,
and
Zakros.

v 
The
buildings
are
arranged

around
a
central
court
and

have
fine
facades
of
closely

fitted
stone
blocks
with

monumental
entrances.

The First Palace Period: The Palace At Phaistos: C. 1700 Bce
v  Phaistos
is
Minoan
palace
site

situated
on
a
hill
with
a

commanding
view
of
the

Mesara
Plain
to
the
south
and

west.

v  It
is
in
the
fertile
Mesara
valley

that
is
surrounded
by
mountain

ranges
and
the
plain
extends

south.

v  During
Minoan
times,
Phaistos

was
a
very
important
city-‐state,

being
the
second
largest
city

after
Knossos.

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

Phaistos In Mythology
v  According
to
mythology,

Phaistos
was
the
seat
of
King

Radamanthis,
brother
of
King

Minos.

v  The
city
also
participated
in
the

Trojan
War
and
was
an
important

city-‐state
in
the
Dorian
period.

v  Phaistos
continued
to
ﬂourish

during
Archaic,
Classical
and

Hellenistic
times,
but
was

destroyed
by
the
Gortians
during

the
3rd
century
BCE.

The First Palace Period: The Palace At Phaistos: C. 1700 BCE
v The
Old
Palace
was
built
on
the
site
at
the
beginning
of

the
second
millennium,
c.
1900
-‐
1700
BCE.

v Twice
it
was
severely
damaged
by
earthquakes
and

rebuilt
so
three
distinct
phases
are
visible
to

archaeologists.

v It
is
believed
that
the
first
two
phases
of
the
Old
Palace
of

Phaistos
constitute
the
oldest
Palatial
buildings
in
Crete.

v Other
finds
at
the
site
include
thousands
of
seal

impressions
and
some
tablets
containing
the
oldest
form

of
written
European
language:
Linear
A
script.

v Linear
A
has
so
far
defied
all
attempts
at
decipherment.

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

destroyed,
almost
certainly
by
an

earthquake,
a
new
palace
was

built
on
the
site.

v  Fortunately
for
us,
the
builders
of

the
new
palace
did
not
destroy
all

traces
of
the
old.

v  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.

The Palace At Phaistos: The Central Courtyard

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

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

The Palace At Phaistos: The Theater Space
v  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.

v  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.

v  The
court
is
traversed
diagonally
by
a

raised
causeway.

v  On
the
east
side
of
the
causeway
are
six

circular
pits.

v  These
are
thought
to
have
been
for

grain
storage.

First Palace Period: Pottery & Workshops
v  The
gorgeous
Kamaresware

pottery
dates
to
this
period

and
the
style
is
named
after

the
cave
of
Kamares
where
it

was
ﬁrst
discovered.

v  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.

First Palace Period: Pottery & Workshops
v 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.

Minoan Timeline: Second Palace Period: 1700 - 1500 BCE
v  Magniﬁcent
new
palaces

were
built
upon
the
ruins
of

the
old
ones.

v  The
cities
around
them

expanded.

v  Many
lords
in
rural
villas

controlled
areas
in
the
same

way
as
the
feudal
lords
of
the

Middle
Ages.

v  Their
ships
carried
both
the

products
of
Minoan
and

other
societies
throughout

the
Aegean
and
Eastern

Mediterranean
to
trade.

v  The
new
palaces
were
multistoried

and
more
complex.

v  They
had
great
courtyards
with

grand
porticoes,
broad
staircases,

processional
paths
and

monumental
entrances.

v  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.

v  Benches
and
thrones
were
found

in
royal
rooms.


v  There
were
many
interior
light
wells
to
allow
light
in
through
all
levels
of

the
palace
via
the
roof.

v  Bathrooms
and
water
supply
and
drainage
systems
allowed
for
a
easier

style
of
life.

v  Sections
of
the
palaces
were
royal
quarters,
sacred
areas
(pillar
crypts,

tripartite
shrines),
audience
and
banquet
halls.

v  Large
areas
of
these
palaces
were
set
aside
as
storage
areas

(magazines),
and
workshops
also
existed
within
the
palaces.

v  Wonderful
fresco
paintings
decorated
the
walls
with
fresh,
lively
scenes

in
an
array
of
colors.

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

v  The
Marine
Style
of
pottery
developed
with
ﬂowing
elements

including
stylized
octopuses
and
seaweed.


v  When
Sir
Arthur
Evans
began
his
excavation
of
Knossos,
he

uncovered
one
of
the
richest
finds
in
all
of
modern
archaeology.

v  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.

v  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.

v  The
palace’s
first
occupation
lasted
1900
-‐
1700
BCE

v  Following
an
earthquake
in
1700
BCE,
then
repaired
and

reoccupied
until
around
1500
BCE.

The Palace at Knossos: The Grand Staircase
Horns
of
consecration

atop
the
palace
walls.

The Palace at Knossos: The Central Court

The Palace at Knossos: The Dolphin Sanctuary
v  Near
the
Hall
of
the
Double

Axes
is
the
Dolphin
Sanctuary,

which
Evans
assigned
as
the

Queen's
Apartment
(Megaron).

v  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.

v  A
replica
of
the
fresco
now

adorns
the
north
wall.

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

one
of
the
most
famous
of
rooms

unearthed
by
Evans:
The
Throne

Room.

v  With
its
low
ceiling
and
lack
of

windows
it
was
separated
from
the

Central
Court
by
an
anteroom.

v  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.

v  Its
walls
are
decorated
with

pastoral
frescoes
of
the
Cretan

countryside.

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

walls
of
Knossos
is
referred
to
as
fresco

(meaning
“fresh”
in
Italian).

v  When
the
walls
were
constructed,
they

were
covered
with
a
smooth
layer
of

plaster.

v  To
create
the
frescoes,
pigments
were

mixed
with
water
(the
vehicle),
and
lime
(a

drying
or
curing
agent).

v  Next,
the
pigment
mixture
would
be

applied
to
the
still-‐damp
plaster
wall.

v  As
a
result,
the
pigment
was
absorbed
into

the
wall
as
it
dried,
creating
an
incredibly

durable
image.

v  This
is
now
referred
to
as
buon
fresco

(“true
fresco”)
technique,
as
opposed
to

applying
pigment
to
an
already-‐dry
wall

(fresco
secco).

Minoan Religion
v  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.

v  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.

v  The
Goddesses:

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

forms
such
as
the
Snake
Goddess.

v  The
Bull
was
also
worshipped
as
a
powerful
symbol
of
male
fertility
beside
her.

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

peak
sanctuaries,
and
in
sacred
caves.

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

a
ceremonial
leader
in
Minoan
religion

may
indicate
that
Minoan
culture
was

matriarchal.

v  The
Goddess
was
created
using
the

faience
technique,
in
which
beach
sand

is
low-‐fired
to
create
am
opaque
glass-‐
like
silicate.

v  Additionally,
she
may
be
a
fertility

figure,
as
the
emphasis
on
her
bare

chest
indicates.

v  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

v  The
snakes
she
grasps
are
associated

with
both
female
and
earthly
fertility,

not
evil.

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

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

v  This
controversial
fresco
of
bull-‐leapers

comes
from
Knossos.

v  It
is
generally
thought
that,
imported

from
the
Egyptian
tradition,
the
pale

figures
are
women
and
the
dark
figure
is

male.

v  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.

v  This
would
have
been
a
very
dangerous

undertaking
and,
if
the
full
were
indeed

a
sacred
animal
in
Crete,
would
have

had
religious
significance.

v  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.

v  It
is
thought
that
both
men
and
women

participated
in
the
contests,
perhaps
to

show
their
worthiness
as
aristocrats.

v  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.

v  Additionally,
the
bull
was
probably
offered

as
a
sacrifice
after
the
bull-‐leaping
contest.

Minoan Writing
v  Three
types
of
picture
writing
have

been
discovered
in
ancient
Crete.

v  Unfortunately,
the
writings
have

told
us
very
little
about
the
Minoan

way
of
life.

v  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.

v  In
order
to
be
able
to
translate

Linear
A
we
will
probably
have
to

ﬁnd
a
bilingual
text.

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

of
moveable
type
for
printing.

v  Europeans
did
not
use
this

technique
again
until
the
1400’s
CE.

v  Previously
it
had
been
thought
that

the
Chinese
had
invented
moveable

type.

v  The
Phaistos
Disc
is
remarkable

because
its
45
diﬀerent
ﬁgures
are

not
scratched
on,
but
pressed
in.

v  An
individual

block
was
made
for

each
pictograph.

v  The
same
block
was
pressed
into

clay
whenever
that
particular
sign

was
needed.

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

Palace
Period
were
destroyed
around

1450
BCE.

v  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.

v  The
eruption
of
Thera
may
have

destroyed
some
coastal
towns
and

shipping,
and
would
have
depressed

the
economies
of
the
eastern

Mediterranean
though.

v  Terrible
palace
destructions
did

happen
though
(probably
through

earthquake).

Minoan Timeline: Volcanic Eruption: 1450 BCE

v  Life
resumed
only
at
the
palace
at

Knossos,
which
was
reconstructed

and
served
as
the
residence
of
a

new
Mycenaean
rulers
from
the

mainland.

v  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.

v  Changes
were
made
in
the

arrangement
of
the
palaces,
and

the
Knossos
Throne
Room
and

many
surviving
frescoes
date
from

this
period.

The End Of The Minoan Civilization
v At
around
1400
BCE,
the
Mycenaean

civilization
from
mainland
Greece
began
to

gain
control
of
the
weakened
Minoan
Crete.

v As
a
result,
the
Minoans
were
engaged
in

increased
warfare.

v They
subsequently
abandoned
their

indefensible
palaces
in
favor
of
settlements

higher
in
the
mountains.

v These
provided
the
Minoans
with
greater

natural
protection
from
invasion.

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