“They worshiped the bull!” The most developed Mediterranean civilization of the Bronze Age (part one)

70
Some time ago, several articles on the cultures of the copper-stone and bronze age were published here at IN, but then the informational “nourishment” for the topic came to an end, and the publication of articles on this topic was suspended. We told about the copper-stone and bronze age on the island of Cyprus and the grave consequences for its environment due to the copper deposits discovered there. About how to search for copper people, and they were people from Western Asia, as they had the skills of processing metals, reached the Cyclades, mainland Greece and moved further to the West. There they settled many islands, settled in Italy and Spain, began to install "menhirs' lanes" in many places, and in England they built Stonehenge. But before they got to all these places, they settled on the island of Crete and created a highly organized civilization there. Naturally, everything written about the ancient Cretan civilization abound. But here are the photos ... I do not like to use photos from the Network, and if I use them, then basically these are photos of "Public Domine", that is, they are in free public use. And the reason for this is simple: no other photographs can be used today in your books, as this is a violation of copyright. I had to send a “photo expedition” to Crete, that is, my daughter and son-in-law, and now, when they returned, the theme of ancient bronze and ancient Cretan civilization would continue.


Let's start with geography. Like any island in the middle of the sea, Crete is surrounded by salty sea water. This picture was seen by its inhabitants both a thousand and five thousand years ago. There will be no us, and this picture will not change at all ...




Today, Crete looks mostly like this. That is, that's how people live there today.


This is a pleasant place where there is a place where you can swim and sunbathe, and where even now in October the water temperature is equal to 24 degrees Celsius. District of Matala. The photo clearly shows the ancient Neolithic grottoes.

Well, in my opinion, one should start with why, for example, no one doubts that in antiquity all the men of his tribe were warriors. So after all the funerals speak about it. For example, the burials of the culture of “battle axes” differ from all other themes, that a drilled stone ax was found in each of the graves of this culture. This culture, like many others, belongs to the civilizations of the Bronze Age, however, that besides axes and ceramics it remains? The culture of “log-burials” is well-known, there is a catacomb, there are those named after them at their locations - Andronovskaya and Fatyanovskaya, the culture of Seymin residents and Turbins, which gave the world many wonderful bronze items. In short, the cultures of the Bronze Age, well, just a great many, so that even a simple enumeration of them could take a whole page here. You can, of course, call the “river valleys” civilizations that arose on the banks of the Nile, the Tigris and the Euphrates, the Indus, the Ganges, the Yangtze and the Huang He, and then for many millennia existed due to specific river irrigation (i.e. through the regular flood of these great rivers).


However, the main thing is that there in the capital of the island Irikleone there is a most interesting archaeological museum, which presents the most valuable finds of archaeologists, starting with Arthur Evans. Knowing the interest of our readers to the military stories and the artifacts associated with it, we begin our acquaintance with its exposition from this photo, in which you see the golden handle of the Minoan dagger, which vividly confirms the skill of the ancient Cretans.


And here is this dagger itself, dubbed the “dagger from Malia” (1800 –1700 BC).

However, there was a civilization in Europe, which had no relation to rivers at all, and nevertheless it reached a very high level of development. And if on land known culture of the Bronze Age, whose representatives moved the steppes in chariots, in the Mediterranean basin there was a people of navigators, this civilization and created. However, these people were not only navigators. They also knew how to build palaces!


And here is the mock-up of the palace of Knossos, made of wood. (Heraklion Archaeological Museum).


... and the ruins of this palace, which became perhaps the most popular tourist attraction on the island.

We are talking about the so-called Aegean civilization, which in fact became the foundation of all subsequent European culture and its first empire. And we note that this is the general name of a number of civilizations of the Bronze Age of the 3000 period - 1000. BC e., which existed both on the islands in the Aegean Sea, on the island of Crete, and in mainland Greece and in the western regions of Asia Minor. It used to be very often called the Crete-Mycenaean civilization or culture, but this term does not quite accurately reflect the historical realities, since the Crete-Mycenaean culture itself is only a part of this large common culture or civilization.

The first centers of the Aegean culture were found by Heinrich Schliemann in Troy (1871 – 1873) and Mycenae (1876), and Arthur Evans in Crete (with 1899). Since the 19th century, many ancient monuments were found and studied, among which there are cemeteries, settlements and even large cities, for example, the town of Poliochni on the island of Lemnos, surrounded by a five-meter-high stone wall, Filakopi on the island of Milos; the royal palaces in Troy, in Crete (in Knossos, Mallia, and Fest) and the acropolis in Mycenae. And although there are several local cultures of this region, for example, Cycladic, that is, located on the Cyclades, perhaps the main culture of the island of Crete and the closely related culture of the city of Mycenae will be the main one for us. Even here they are called together - the Crete-Mycenaean culture. However, the Cretan civilization is still much older than mainland cultures.

“They worshiped the bull!” The most developed Mediterranean civilization of the Bronze Age (part one)

Marble idols from Cyclades islands of Louros type. The height of their 17.4, 19.3, 22, 21.5, and 18, see (National Archaeological Museum, Athens)

Recall the legend of the abduction of the gods Zeus by the daughter of Agenor, the king of the city of Tire in Phenicia, and the beautiful daughter named Europe. Turning around a huge white bull, he kidnapped the princess and went with her to the island of Crete, where she had three sons: Minos, Sarpedon and Radamant. Minos, as a senior, became the first Cretan king, and his name eventually became the title of the ruler, who became known as Minos and means the Cretans the same thing as the Pharaoh of the Egyptians and the Basileus of the Greeks.


Having such an amazing legend at hand, many artists embodied it on their canvases. It was noted here and the great Rembrandt, and Francesco Albani, and Guido Renee, but simply do not list all. But for some reason I like the “Abduction” of our V. Serov most of all. Somehow it is closest to the picturesque style of the ancient Cretans.

Interestingly, the excavations on the island of Crete to a certain extent confirmed the authenticity of this myth. For example, the fact that the island was really inhabited by immigrants from Western Asia. It was the Phoenicians who sailed here about six thousand years BC and brought with them cattle - big bulls with lyre-like horns. Excavations have allowed us to find here the most ancient traces of agriculture in Europe, although, perhaps, the same ancient traces of it were found on the island of Cyprus in the area of ​​the settlement of Hirokitiya. Well, the British archaeologist Arthur Evans began digging in Crete in 1900, and he made his most important discoveries here, and he also came up with the name of an open civilization - which he gave after his first king Minos.


By the way, the Minoans painted masterfully, as evidenced by the extant murals. Dolphins are good, aren't they? But the “three beauties” on the right is even better, isn't it?


"Three beauties" - and this is no exaggeration! Yes, they were such - these Minoan beauties, who considered it quite natural to wear clothes that expose the chest, but for some reason cover the stomach and back. (Heraklion Archaeological Museum)

The value of Evans' discoveries is difficult to overestimate. Thanks to them, we learned that over four millennia, it was representatives of the Aegean civilization who created the first flourishing empire in Europe on their island. Of particular interest are its centers, which were several large palace complexes, which later grew into cities. The palaces in Knossos, Gurnia, Kato Zakro, Agia Triade, Festa, Amnissa and Malliah were excavated. It is interesting that it was the Knossos palace that was built as the residence of the ruler from the very beginning and it was isolated from the rest of the city. Other palaces, discovered on Crete later, were built in such a way that they essentially fit into the city buildings. This was, for example, a palace in the city of Mallia.


Well, this fresco is known to everyone from the textbook for the 5 class - Parisian. That's what Arthur Evans himself called it, who discovered this mural during the excavations. At first this fresco was located in one of the rooms on the second floor of the Palace of Knossos. It depicted a scene of a ritual feast, the participants of which sat opposite each other with cups in their hands. Unfortunately, only a small fragment of the head of a girl with some large knot on her clothes behind has been preserved.

The Cretans considered themselves sea people, so their settlements were built mainly on the coast, by the sea, so that it was easy to get to it. On the frescoes in the rooms of the palace there are very frequent images of ships, fishermen and fish, dolphins and octopuses playing in the water. Thucydides - Greek historian V c. BC er wrote about the ancient Cretans that king Minos built a powerful fleet that dominated the entire Mediterranean. Archaeologists also drew attention to the fact that none of the palaces does not have fortress walls. Cities do not have them either! It could only mean that the inhabitants of the island were not at all afraid of their neighbors and considered their fleet the most reliable guarantee of security. Naturally, the skills of navigation allowed to provide the population of the island with fish, mollusks and sponges. That is, sea fishing played a very important role in the economy of ancient Crete.


However, the Minoans drew not only dolphins and their magnificent breasts. Surprisingly, they also painted monkeys ... Why is it amazing? Africa is near. Yes, of course, but why is it blue ?! Fresco from the island of Santorini.

The construction of the first palaces in Crete dates back to the 2nd millennium BC. Oe., but from them today, except perhaps fragments of their foundations. Crete is located in a seismic zone, earthquakes there are not uncommon, so studying them scientists have shown that the earliest buildings of the island stood on it only 300 years, and then collapsed. On the basis of these excavations, it is also customary to single out two “construction periods” - the period of the Old Palaces (II millennium - XVII century BC) and the period of New Palaces (XVII – XV centuries BC). And it is significant that as soon as the old buildings collapsed, as on their ruins, the inhabitants of the island immediately began to build new ones - and even more monumental and luxurious. Although the “very first” palaces were not built from scratch. Under the Palace of Knossos, for example, a cultural layer of ten meters thick was discovered, where objects were found for several thousand years.


The Minoan Cretans created a completely unusual type of column - for some reason it was expanding up and not down!

As for the palace in Knossos, it is considered to be the largest. According to scientists, it was precisely in it that King Minos, who is known to us according to legend, could live. And from here the legend of the Labyrinth was born, because this palace really is a labyrinth of rooms and courtyards, built over four and a half centuries - from 1900 to 1450 BC. er The total area of ​​the palace is about 16 thousand square meters. m, and it consists of almost 300 different rooms. Up to 30 thousand people could live in this building itself and in the territories around it. So it is not surprising that the foreigners who saw this structure were simply shocked by it, because today even its ruins make an indelible impression.

So the myth of the Minotaur could be completely inspired by some real events. The huge palace, with many rooms where it was possible to get lost so easily, turned into a gloomy labyrinth in it. Well, the cult of the bull that existed in Crete became the basis of the story about the monster to which the aborigines offered human sacrifices. On one of the seals found, you can clearly see the image of the dancing Minotaur, from under the horns of which you can see human hair. That is, it is none other than the character of a ritual dance. It is possible that he symbolized the bull, which was then killed, so it is possible that the fate of the rulers of Crete at that time could be very tragic. That is, they received the throne for a while, enjoyed absolute power, and then were killed for the common good.

As for the general chronology of the history of ancient Crete, there are three periods in it:
Early Minnesday period (XXX – XXIII centuries BC): when tribal relations were still dominant, the development of metallurgy took place and the beginnings of handicraft appeared, navigation developed, and the level of agricultural development was already relatively high;
Middle Minor period (XXII – XVIII centuries BC.) - the time of the “old” or “early” palaces): the emergence of the first states in different parts of the island, monumental palace complexes, the appearance of the earliest forms of local writing;
Late Caribbean period (XVII – XII centuries. BC), at this time the flowering of the ancient Minoan civilization occurs, and Cretan maritime power is created, headed by King Minos, and there is extensive trade throughout the Aegean Sea basin. Monumental architecture flourishes (“new” palaces are being built in Knossos, Mallia, Fest), and active contacts are established with other ancient Eastern states.

A powerful natural disaster in the middle of the XVI century. BC er (it is also called the “Minoan eruption”) causes the decline of the Minoan civilization, due to which the island is conquered by the Achaeans. That is, this legendary Achaeans of Homer not only destroyed the equally legendary Troy, but also destroyed the entire Minoan civilization. What passed from her Mycenaean culture of mainland Greece, and this is undoubtedly. But in the XII century. BC er foreigners once again invade its lands - this time it is the Dorian tribes, which leads the Mycenaean state to death, the beginning of the dark ages in Greece and the whole subsequent historical period.


A leather helmet, trimmed with boarlike fangs, described in the Iliad, was found by archaeologists here in Crete in the tomb of Katzambas. (Heraklion Archaeological Museum)

When we talk about the development of the Aegean civilization, it should be noted that it occurred unevenly, and its centers knew both the epochs of the falls and the heyday. First of all, we note that civilizations in the regions of western Anatolia and Central Greece were based on the local Neolithic; but on the island cultures in the eastern Aegean Sea, the civilization of Troy had a very big impact. Here already in 3000 – 2000. BC er cities were built, fortified with walls and towers, with temples and public buildings. And in mainland Greece - at the end of 2300 – 2000. BC er But in Crete, no fortresses archaeologists have found.

Approximately about 2300 BC. er the region of the Peloponnese and the lands of northwestern Anatolia are experiencing a military invasion, evidenced by traces of fires and destruction in the respective cultural strata. It is believed that these invaders were of Indo-European origin. Moreover, the consequences of their invasion were such that in the period 2000 – 1800. BC er under their influence, the material culture of mainland Greece, Troy and some islands has changed markedly.


Bronze daggers found in Crete, approx. 2600 - 1900 BC. (Heraklion Archaeological Museum) As you can see, the metal at that time was in the price. Therefore, people came up with the idea of ​​making the blade separately, and the handle - separately, and only then connecting them on rivets.

But the aliens did not make it to Crete, and at that time the ancient Minoan civilization continued to develop. In 2000 – 1800 BC er there appears hieroglyphic writing, and since 1600 BC er - linear letter A.


Sample linear letter A, XV century. BC. (Heraklion Archaeological Museum)

The Middle Bronze Age (2000 – 1500 BC) in this region is considered the period of the greatest cultural consolidation of the entire civilization of the Aegean region, as evidenced by a certain unity of its material culture - these are ceramic samples and, of course, metal products found by archaeologists.

Around 1600 BC er Greece is once again undergoing a military invasion. Perhaps it was the Achaeans - the people who used the war chariots. As a result, small states arise here with centers in the cities of Mycenae, Tiryns, and Orchomen. However, the Aegean civilization did not die. On the contrary, the indigenous Cretans continued to play an important role in Mycenaean Greece, where they acted as something like modern culture traders.


Part of the gold objects from finds in Mycenae. (National Archaeological Museum, Athens)

Around 1470 BC er Crete suffered greatly from a volcanic eruption on the island of Santorini, after which the Achaean (Mycenaean) population appeared on the island, bringing with it a new culture and using the linear letter B.


Sample linear letter B describing the administration of the palace at Knossos. (Heraklion Archaeological Museum)

From 1220 BC er the whole Aegean civilization is experiencing a serious internal crisis, aggravated by the invasion of Dorian tribes and the “sea peoples”, after which the Aegean civilization completely disappeared, the indigenous people of Crete were assimilated by the Greeks as early as the 4th – 3rd centuries. BC er


Crete evening ...

To be continued ...
Our news channels

Subscribe and stay up to date with the latest news and the most important events of the day.

70 comments
Information
Dear reader, to leave comments on the publication, you must sign in.
  1. +24
    23 October 2017 07: 20
    Super article
    History and Archeology
    Quality text and beautiful illustrations
    I have always been interested - was there really a Minotaur? After all, there is no smoke without fire ...
    Good luck to the author with a new series of articles good
    1. +4
      23 October 2017 09: 19
      Quote: XII Legion
      I have always been interested - was there really a Minotaur? After all, there is no smoke without fire ...

      Try to take a closer look at the Merovingian coat of arms depicting bull horns. These are essentially northern Pomors, the founders of the state of Franks, whose descendants later ruled England as the royal family of the Stuart dynasty. Princess Diana was also a distant offspring of the same Stuart house, by the way having more rights to the English throne than today's ruling dynasty - which is one of the deepest reasons for today's ruling dynasty to hate Princess Diana.
    2. +2
      23 October 2017 09: 44
      I support the wish
      1. +18
        23 October 2017 11: 34
        I meant - in the literal sense.
        Not on the arms, etc. With dynasties and emblems it is clear.
        Was there really a man-minotaur, a kind of mutant? Here is what is interesting.
        Nature is often playful
        1. +10
          23 October 2017 11: 51
          Nature is often playful

          It is such a nature, but not to the same extent. lol
          Do you know the legend of the origin of the Minotaur? Do you know whose son he was, according to legend?
          1. +17
            23 October 2017 12: 09
            Here I am about the same
            1. +13
              23 October 2017 12: 23
              It is quite possible that the wife of Minos Pasifai and had a son with disabilities, kept in the lower chambers, which was not shown to anyone especially. And given the cult of the bull, similar legends were born.
              1. +18
                23 October 2017 12: 52
                It is quite possible that the wife of Minos Pasifai and had a son with disabilities, kept in the lower chambers, which was not shown to anyone especially.

                Read my thoughts)
                They did not begin to kill the child of the royal family. Perhaps it began to grow up and cause problems - especially if the appearance is non-standard. For him, the Labyrinth was built. With feeding and hunting.
                By the way - to the question of sources. So myths are also sometimes worth believing.
                1. +12
                  23 October 2017 14: 41
                  So myths are also sometimes worth believing.

                  I think myths do not arise from scratch. There is always initial information, and then everything is built on the fantasy of storytellers. The richer it is, the more interesting the result. wink
                  1. +18
                    23 October 2017 16: 47
                    Totally agree with you
    3. +12
      23 October 2017 12: 01
      "Was there really a Minotaur?" ///

      I don’t know about the Minotaur, but they found the skeleton of a unicorn
      not so long ago in Kazakhstan. There were such extinct animals with one horn on their foreheads.
      True, they looked more like bulls, not horses.
      1. +1
        24 October 2017 12: 01
        This is an ancient rhino.
        It was thought that the “Siberian unicorn” died out about 350 thousands of years ago.
        However, radiocarbon analysis (laboratory of the University of Belfast) showed only 26 thousand years.
        So a person could meet with him.
        Therefore, the unicorns depicted on the cave paintings should not be considered the fantasy of our ancestors. Most likely, the prototype of the mythical unicorn was precisely the rhinoceros elasmotherium.
  2. +12
    23 October 2017 08: 19
    An interesting, mysterious civilization .. Thanks to the author for a reminder of it. Interesting scenes from her life in the book of Efremov "On the edge of the Oikumeny."
    1. +1
      23 October 2017 08: 55
      Quote: Olgovich
      .. mysterious civilization ..

      But why is it mysterious? After all, quite a lot is known about it, the truth is that the cat really “cried”, which is not at all surprising, because it is very ancient in itself and therefore involuntarily competes with other, already invented civilizations, therefore it is not included in the priority priorities for its coverage.
      1. +14
        23 October 2017 09: 57
        If "cats cried like that" in all ages, the libraries would have to be expanded. One British bibliography of what is worth ... but there is still an extensive German, and ours too.
        1. +2
          23 October 2017 10: 33
          And why, then, is there so little information about an earlier culture, about the culture of the predecessor of the Cretan civilization, about the civilization of the more ancient "Tripoli culture". But in her the level of development was no less. Here I recall their three-story residential buildings, a culture which has still remained, for example, at the Veneti of Switzerland, and I have seen such houses in other ancient cities of the West.
          1. +13
            23 October 2017 10: 53
            Local culture - and what is great in it? There were many!
            1. +2
              23 October 2017 12: 50
              Quote: kalibr
              Local culture - and what is great in it? There were many!

              But this is already sheer super impudence! All modern cultures of Asia, Asia, or, as Eurasia is foolishly illiterate now, have a foundation from there. Her age can theoretically reach 9 thousand years or more, in any case, according to the calendar, the 7526th summer. This culture is older than the Sumerian (6-8 thousand years), Anatolian culture of the Hets (4 thousand years), India (3200 years), even more so of modern China, and the highly developed Aryan (agricultural) empire of the Persians (2700 years). All older cultures have long been practically degraded, possibly and probably due to the degradation of the brain of the carriers of their cultures. For example, the recently discovered degradation of humans to the level of a monkey, in the period 5-7 million years ago. What to do - simple laws of biology, a "Bounty" on a branch does not require large expenditures of brain work, hence many problems of southern cultures, that is, degradation. But and since the media (and academies) of the whole World today belong precisely to representatives of southern cultures, here is such an indescribable super impudence that is here, which is everywhere manifesting itself.
  3. +15
    23 October 2017 08: 44
    Thank. Interesting. These photographs seem to complement the chapters of Marie Renault's Theseus. more precisely the part describing the stay of Theseus and the crane team in Crete. And the interpretation of the myth of Theseus, as presented by Marie Renault is quite interesting. But in general, you have touched on such a layer of the history of mankind, for the description of which one life is not enough. I mean the history of Mediterranean civilizations.
    1. +14
      23 October 2017 09: 58
      It may be possible to push through a monograph on this topic. Very superficial, but nonetheless. Cross your fingers.
      1. +14
        23 October 2017 10: 48
        Quote: kalibr
        It may be possible to push through a monograph on this topic. Very superficial, but nonetheless. Cross your fingers.

        With god and good luck.
  4. +1
    23 October 2017 08: 50
    However, Cretan civilization is still much older than mainland cultures.

    Fantasy! Is the entire Cretan Minoan culture older than the Tripoli culture, because it is more than 7 thousand years old, as even our recently canceled (in 1700th year) calendar says. I consider the author’s statement too bold, all the more so since there is a fairly well-founded version that all this “Cretan Minoan civilization” is just the offspring of just the “Tripoli civilization”.
  5. +19
    23 October 2017 09: 30
    The Cretans consider themselves special Greeks - I realized this after visiting the island. And after reading this interesting article, I realized why. Glory to the Minoan beauties and good luck to the author.
    1. +2
      23 October 2017 09: 45
      Quote: Ostrovsky
      Cretans consider themselves special Greeks .. Glory to the Minoan beauties ..

      Remember, the "Greeks" themselves, or rather the inhabitants of Hellas, by themselves appeared there much later than the heyday and decline of the civilization of Crete, the present Greeks almost completely replaced the previous ethnic group. So what ethnic group may belong to how you say "Minoan beauties" - the question is not unique.
  6. +3
    23 October 2017 09: 36
    "However, Cretan civilization is still much older than mainland cultures."
    Yes, Vyacheslav Olegovich! This phrase is ambiguous. If you mean the Aegean continental civilizations (Greece, Anatolia), then there are no questions. If the mainland culture in general - venaya has every right to criticize you.
    1. +14
      23 October 2017 10: 01
      Civilization and culture are different concepts. There is a Papuan culture of New Guinea, but there is no New Guinean civilization of the Papuans.
      1. The comment was deleted.
  7. +15
    23 October 2017 10: 02
    "three beauties" they are really good. And dolphins are drawn in a quality manner and you won’t say that they are THOUSAND years old. I look at such drawings and think: at that time what artists, and now .... I don’t know how others, but it turns me off from various modernizations, cubisms. I like the picture: Shishkin, Serov or Levitan, and Chagall or Tseriteli is violet to me
    1. +14
      23 October 2017 10: 22
      I like, for example, Gauguin, his Tahitian series, classic impressionists. But women in the form of orange cubes do not like ...
      1. +1
        23 October 2017 22: 44
        Undoubtedly, the Tahitian cycle of Gauguin and Serov’s “Abduction of Europe” have the same roots. In general, Serov is a very ambiguous and multifaceted personality. A very strong and firm person in his convictions. I respect
  8. +14
    23 October 2017 11: 56
    Yes, Minoan civilization was powerful.
    "Three Beauties" - the level of painting luxury.
    I live nearby, but I didn’t get to Crete, I postpone everything "for later", retired
    1. +2
      23 October 2017 21: 16
      Well, that's fine. In January I fly to Eilat, but I have never been to Novgorod.
      1. The comment was deleted.
        1. +1
          24 October 2017 05: 00
          Thank you for the warning, I overlooked this moment.
      2. +12
        24 October 2017 07: 46
        You will be in Eilat, go to their city museum: located at the intersection of Dereh Ha Arava and Dereh Yotam Streets. There are no antiquities, but it is interesting, very. Nearby is the kibbutz Almog and there is a unique Museum of the book, where the famous Qumran scrolls are exhibited. There must be a visit. Explain that you are a Russian journalist, but have forgotten the card at home, ask them to photograph these scrolls) without a flash!). ask to photograph not only the exposition, but also the storeroom - how many of them are there. And then all this ... send me !!! And we will co-author an article! My text - your photos !!!
        1. The comment was deleted.
          1. +10
            24 October 2017 10: 25
            Thanks I know. But the "number" is one thing, and the "live" photo of artifacts is another. Even copies ...
        2. 0
          24 October 2017 20: 16
          Vyacheslav Olegovich! If it turns out, I'll give you these pictures. It's just that I am a principled opponent of teambuilding, I have negative experience. And thanks for the advice!
          1. +2
            25 October 2017 19: 54
            I will be very grateful to you, but the work will be released on our two signatures - this is mandatory. Or at the end it will be indicated: the author thanks for .... such and such ...
  9. +2
    23 October 2017 12: 41
    About 15-20 years I didn’t read anything on this topic and it seems that they didn’t dig up anything breakthrough during this time and did not move forward with decoding the written language.
  10. +17
    23 October 2017 14: 11
    From 1220 BC e. the whole Aegean civilization is undergoing a serious internal crisis, aggravated by the invasion of the Dorian tribes and the "peoples of the sea", after which the Aegean civilization completely disappeared

    The whole story:
    A) Internal crises
    И
    B) Invasions
    Interestingly written
    And shown too
    Significant civilization
    And significant
    hi
  11. +1
    23 October 2017 17: 40
    Crete is a small island, its culture is a dead end branch of European civilization, it is not of special interest. Contribution to history was made by mainland Greece, not Crete.

    The population of Crete at its core (40%) are immigrants from Africa, Hamites (haplogroup E), who sailed to the island at the end of the last ice age 10-12 thousand years ago. Subsequently, Illyrians (haplogroup I) invaded the island from the west and northern Semites (J2) from the east. The genetic composition of the population of Crete is similar to mainland Greece, with the exception of the absence on the island in significant volumes of immigrants from the north - Aryans (R1a) and Celts (R1b), represented in mainland Greece.

    In general - a trifle pot-bellied, "elusive Joe", so to speak.
    1. Cat
      +4
      23 October 2017 19: 25
      Let me disagree with you!
      Crito-Mycenaean culture is one of the first marine civilizations. Historians not in vain note the absence of walls, with rare exceptions. Fleet, the basis of the power of this state. It is Crete who is credited with the first division of ships into military and merchant ships, the first ram, the first two-row ships (diremes), the first two-row steering wheel and even a slanting sail (although this is debatable). From where the source came, the Cretan Mykene really painted beautifully. The Darians and Achaeans won, the design thought took a step back. But the Greeks of Hellas, starting with the uni (single-row) ships covered in leather, begin to use the forgotten technology of crit. First, on the Greek courts, a smooth lining appears (in Europe it will find its application after two millennia), then a ram. In the war with Persia, triremes are already participating, later two-wheel steering appears. In the battle of Salomin, the Greeks proved themselves to be more than worthy disciples and themselves themselves disputed the status of sea power among the Phoenicians.
      1. +2
        23 October 2017 19: 44
        I will not let it laughing

        For a simple reason - the Indo-European language, the Greeks speak one of the dialects, basically has the Aryan language, and we, the Slavs, are the direct descendants of the Aryans from among Europeans. In other words, the contribution of our ancestors to modern civilization is basic. Greeks / Romans / Germans are secondary.

        The native language of the Hamites is Berber, the native language of the Celts is Bas, the native language of Indians is Dravidian, the native language of Anatolians and the inhabitants of the Iranian Highlands is Nakh. The fact that these peoples now speak a foreign language is the "merit" of the Aryan conquerors.

        The same goes for the basis of European culture: Greek mythology and religion are based on Aryan mythology and religion, in other words, Hercules and Prometheus are the distorted names of the heroes of Aryan legends.

        It was our ancestors who laid the foundations of modern civilization, and not any coastal trifle from the islands of the Aegean.
        1. Cat
          +3
          23 October 2017 21: 03
          Crito-Mycenaean culture arose and developed as a marine civilization of the Mediterranean. By the arrival of the Greeks of the Dariys, the Cretan civilization fell. In fact, the third wave of "Aryan" invaders came to ruins. Moreover, the indigenous inhabitants of Crete, by then assimilated by representatives of the second wave of "Aryans" Achaeans. Neither one nor the other were direct receivers of the marine traditions of Crete. Perhaps they were the Phoenicians, or maybe not. The question is debatable. But first, the Achaeans, and then the Dariys took a number of advanced at that time marine high-tech ideas. If the heroes of Homer "dissected" in pseudo-kayaks, then his grandchildren were already swimming in the fun-loving unirems, in the image and likeness of Cretan ships. With the fall of Crete, a surge in the sea voyages of Egypt begins, the sea glory of the Phoenicians, Etruscans and later Greeks. I am a supporter of the continental theory of the development of civilization. In all the battles of antiquity, the phalanx first won, then the chess order of the legion.
          But to deny a drop of romance sung by Homer in Odessa and the Illiad is foolish. Moreover, the Greeks themselves did not attribute themselves to sea power, knowledge of shipbuilding and navigation, they honestly called their teachers the inhabitants of Crete and the Phoenicians.
          1. +2
            23 October 2017 21: 53
            We are talking about the Aryan basis of modern civilization - a single Indo-European language and culture.

            In this case, it is not necessary to simplify - the basis is not Slavic, but namely Aryan. But, on the other hand, the Aryans in Europe (the center of modern civilization) have the only direct descendants - us.

            Credit of confidence, however.
    2. +1
      24 October 2017 04: 46
      Maybe you just weren’t there? When the Greeks sat in the trees, the Cretans built palaces, they had a sewer, and they went on ships throughout the Mediterranean.
      1. 0
        24 October 2017 08: 51
        Have you seen what a “palace” is in Crete (a cluster of small-sized rooms arranged in a chaotic order)? Aryan Arkaim, built at the same time, will give him a hundred points handicap.

        While the extremely small Cretans frolic in the Mediterranean puddle, the Aryans on war chariots conquered Central Asia, Anatolia, the Iranian Highlands and India, assimilating the local population linguistically and culturally.
        1. +3
          24 October 2017 13: 06
          What are you talking about. Only one Knossos palace is a grand multi-story building. I was there. Even Evans could not completely ruin him. Arkaim is a squalid corral for livestock, in which cows lived with the Aryans in the same barn.

          My favorite dolphins. And where in Arkaim something like that.
          1. 0
            24 October 2017 15: 16
            Two doorways in the background - the case is not a public toilet, no?

            The "palace" room in the photo is exactly the same size as the room in my rustic house made of timber. I still hang copies of French Impressionist paintings on the walls - decorative dolphins from Knossos are resting.

            Arkaim, unlike Knossos, does not claim the status of a palace - it is characteristic for Arkaim that the arias even made purely utilitarian temporary structures on a grand scale and with a clear architectural and planning decision. To the Berber decorators from Crete to them as to the Moon.
  12. +1
    23 October 2017 19: 05
    Thank you for the article. I want to add for the author that the mainland Greeks were not Minoans, not Trojans, they were no relatives.
  13. Cat
    +3
    23 October 2017 21: 01
    Crito-Mycenaean culture arose and developed as a marine civilization of the Mediterranean. By the arrival of the Greeks of the Dariys, the Cretan civilization fell. In fact, the third wave of "Aryan" invaders came to ruins. Moreover, the indigenous inhabitants of Crete, by then assimilated by representatives of the second wave of "Aryans" Achaeans. Neither one nor the other were direct receivers of the marine traditions of Crete. Perhaps they were the Phoenicians, or maybe not. The question is debatable. But first, the Achaeans, and then the Dariys took a number of advanced at that time marine high-tech ideas. If the heroes of Homer "dissected" in pseudo-kayaks, then his grandchildren were already swimming in the fun-loving unirems, in the image and likeness of Cretan ships. With the fall of Crete, a surge in the sea voyages of Egypt begins, the sea glory of the Phoenicians, Etruscans and later Greeks. I am a supporter of the continental theory of the development of civilization. In all the battles of antiquity, the phalanx first won, then the chess order of the legion.
    But to deny a drop of romance sung by Homer in Odessa and the Illiad is foolish. Moreover, the Greeks themselves did not attribute themselves to sea power, knowledge of shipbuilding and navigation, they honestly called their teachers the inhabitants of Crete and the Phoenicians.
    1. +1
      24 October 2017 05: 11
      The hobby unireme? Is the ship too big?
      1. Cat
        +3
        24 October 2017 05: 56
        "Linocor" - the era before the start of the Greco-Persian wars. First mentioned in the fleet of the dictator Samos. Last at the battle of the island of Libos. Later, unirems were used in the merchant and auxiliary fleet, but the Greeks did not build fifty row ships, 25 and 30 row ships were enough.
        In length, 100 oars, 50 rows. 75 cm. On one row. The approximate length of the ship is 40-45 meters. By the way, triremes and even pentarems had similar sizes, but a higher freeboard. The length of the oars is slightly more than 4 m, as in modern sports boats.
        1. +2
          24 October 2017 19: 49
          You probably understand the subject, but I did not take into account the average height of a person in the described period and put in calculation a meter per row, + bow and stern ..., 65-70 meters came out, roll structure, especially with an onboard wave.
          1. Cat
            +1
            28 October 2017 20: 38
            It must be remembered that Greek warships had a large length to width ratio of about 1/8. The ships were flat-bottomed and fairly light. Even with damage to the hull, they often did not sink. There was little equipment, the ballasts were amphorae with water and grain. In this connection, the idea itself is interesting not to plant the second rower one oar nearby, but staggered higher. Moreover, if there was a third row (for example, a trireme), then the emphasis of the oar was made on the outboard side (lattice) as in modern sports rowing boats.
  14. +5
    23 October 2017 22: 58
    "Under the Knossos Palace, for example, a ten-meter-thick cultural layer was discovered where objects were found over several thousand years."
    And who was there before them?
  15. +5
    23 October 2017 23: 22
    Quote: Operator
    I will not let it laughing

    For a simple reason - the Indo-European language, the Greeks speak one of the dialects, basically has the Aryan language, and we, the Slavs, are the direct descendants of the Aryans from among Europeans. In other words, the contribution of our ancestors to modern civilization is basic. Greeks / Romans / Germans are secondary.

    The native language of the Hamites is Berber, the native language of the Celts is Bas, the native language of Indians is Dravidian, the native language of Anatolians and the inhabitants of the Iranian Highlands is Nakh. The fact that these peoples now speak a foreign language is the "merit" of the Aryan conquerors.

    The same goes for the basis of European culture: Greek mythology and religion are based on Aryan mythology and religion, in other words, Hercules and Prometheus are the distorted names of the heroes of Aryan legends.

    It was our ancestors who laid the foundations of modern civilization, and not any coastal trifle from the islands of the Aegean.

    And what, interestingly, did the Germans not please?
    1. 0
      24 October 2017 09: 02
      The current German-speaking peoples, as well as the Roman-speaking ones, are former Basque-speaking Celts, assimilated linguistically and culturally by the Cimmerian Aryans at the beginning of the 1st millennium BC.

      The Cimmerians did not reach the Apennines, but instead of them, the Indo-European way, the local tribes reformatted the Etruscans - the Northern Semites, immigrants from near Troy, who had previously walked the Mitannian arias.
      1. +5
        24 October 2017 11: 01
        Well yes. For example, Danish - where are the traces of the Cimmerians? Or Swedish? belay
        1. 0
          24 October 2017 11: 18
          To Scandinavia (a sparsely populated country with a harsh climate), the Cimmerians (immigrants from the Black Sea region in chariots) did not reach.

          But all the people from the Scandinavian Peninsula (Goths, Angles, Saxons, Normans) were reformatted into the Indo-European way by the local Celts, with whom the Cimmerians had “worked” before.
  16. +11
    24 October 2017 10: 22
    Quote: Operator
    Aryan Arkaim, built at the same time, will give him a hundred points handicap.

    Compared to the Palace of Knossos (by area) - the whole Arkaim does not even reach the total area of ​​Knossos sort.
    1. +6
      24 October 2017 11: 09
      But Sintashta culture is 22 only known "arkaim" in a huge area, probably equal to 20 Crete. This is power! laughing
      1. +2
        25 October 2017 20: 01
        And what is left of her? By the way, no one argues that in the open spaces of Eurasia there existed highly developed cultures whose role in the development of mankind was very great. But to argue that some kind of culture - sucks, a dead end - is not a serious statement of a neophyte who discovered the same Arkaim. There were many such Arkaim in different places. But Minoan culture is unique in many ways. This is the opinion of world-class historians, shaking it ... is difficult.
        1. 0
          25 October 2017 20: 07
          India, however.
    2. 0
      24 October 2017 11: 24
      Quote: kalibr
      Compared to Knossos Palace (by area)

      The Knossos "palace" (a permanent building that the Cretan highlanders have been sculpting for several thousand years) in terms of architecture and planning sucks compared to Arkaim (a temporary construction of nomadic Aryans on the way from the Black Sea to India and the Iranian Highlands).

      There were dozens, if not hundreds, of such arkaims on the transit route of the Aryans from Europe to Asia.
    3. +1
      24 October 2017 15: 22
      Quote: kalibr
      to the total area of ​​Knossos sort

      You have a chance to get acquainted with the sizes of the sort in Knossos - see the photo of Moskovit. But one thing you can agree with: Knossos is a large public closet decorated with aljap village paintings.

      Reconstruction of Arkaim from the Country of Cities

      1. +2
        25 October 2017 20: 00
        Unscientific fiction - this is what kind of reconstruction it is. There is still not enough reconstruction of Hyperborea and a direct bridge between them.
  17. 0
    25 October 2017 18: 09
    Who built Arkaim is unknown and probably never will be.
  18. +3
    25 October 2017 19: 58
    Quote: Moskovit
    Arkaim is a squalid corral for livestock, in which cows lived with the Aryans in the same barn.

    You have noticed it well. Let on a clear plan, but still -zagon. Knossos - without a plan, but still - a palace. That is the whole difference!
  19. The comment was deleted.
    1. +2
      25 October 2017 20: 19
      Sorry - 550 years, Knossos was destroyed by fire during the next conquest.

      The funny thing is that Arkaim stood for a comparable period of time - about 250 years and was also destroyed by fire, but in a planned manner - the Aryans again went into migration (towards Iran and India), so they removed all the valuables from the city and then set it on fire. The wooden floors between the floors and the roof were burnt down, and the atmospheric precipitation destroyed the adobe walls for several decades to the base.
      Therefore, almost all artifacts in Arkaim were found in the suburban burial places of its inhabitants, with the exception of shards of broken ceramic dishes, which were found around the perimeter of city walls.
  20. +1
    25 October 2017 21: 33
    The fact that Arkaim built the arias is a hypothesis that has no evidence.
  21. +1
    24 November 2017 08: 26
    Thanks to the author for the photo report, but you need to learn the materiel. The invasion of the Dorian tribes caused, according to modern data, the movement of the peoples of the sea, and in particular the Pelasgians.

"Right Sector" (banned in Russia), "Ukrainian Insurgent Army" (UPA) (banned in Russia), ISIS (banned in Russia), "Jabhat Fatah al-Sham" formerly "Jabhat al-Nusra" (banned in Russia) , Taliban (banned in Russia), Al-Qaeda (banned in Russia), Anti-Corruption Foundation (banned in Russia), Navalny Headquarters (banned in Russia), Facebook (banned in Russia), Instagram (banned in Russia), Meta (banned in Russia), Misanthropic Division (banned in Russia), Azov (banned in Russia), Muslim Brotherhood (banned in Russia), Aum Shinrikyo (banned in Russia), AUE (banned in Russia), UNA-UNSO (banned in Russia), Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People (banned in Russia), Legion “Freedom of Russia” (armed formation, recognized as terrorist in the Russian Federation and banned)

“Non-profit organizations, unregistered public associations or individuals performing the functions of a foreign agent,” as well as media outlets performing the functions of a foreign agent: “Medusa”; "Voice of America"; "Realities"; "Present time"; "Radio Freedom"; Ponomarev; Savitskaya; Markelov; Kamalyagin; Apakhonchich; Makarevich; Dud; Gordon; Zhdanov; Medvedev; Fedorov; "Owl"; "Alliance of Doctors"; "RKK" "Levada Center"; "Memorial"; "Voice"; "Person and law"; "Rain"; "Mediazone"; "Deutsche Welle"; QMS "Caucasian Knot"; "Insider"; "New Newspaper"