6th+hour+Minoans

=Features of Minoan Society=

Intro(Olivia Fuller):The Minoan civilzation began in around 1750 B.C.. These people were located in the city of Crete, and their success was based on their great trading abilities. Their palace was located in Knossos, where the ruler of this empire lived. The civilization ended in around 1400 B.C., due to reasons that are not known for sure by scientists today. However, scientists believe that either a tragic volcanic eruption or invaders may have contributed to/caused the fall of this empire.

Minoan Government (Andrew Malik): Not much is known about the Minoan government, but it is believed to be a Bureaucratic Monarchy with a touch of Theocracy. It was lead by one king with a large administration of bureaucrats and scribes who closely regulated the production and shipping out of products. The king acted much like a C.E.O by him and his nobles governing a lot of everyday life including religion, trade and art. __ [] __



 The multi-story, 5 acre Palace of Knossos that housed the king and his advisors, trade goods and craftspeople.  __ [] __

Minoan Social Classes (Andrew Malik): The difference between the social classes in the Minoan society appears to be relatively small. The wealth seems to have been spread out among the nobles, citizens and slaves. The slaves are believed to have been treated pretty fair by their masters and the “poor” areas of the town still had like 5-6 rooms in a house, so overall they seem to have been doing pretty well. The also seems to have been little or no difference between the genders. It’s thought that the women could have even worked along side the men.  __ [] __  __ [] __  This is a picture of Minoan children boxing.  __ [] __

Arts and Artifacts (Mark Denstaedt): The Minoan culture had been best represented by the amazing palaces and artistry. However to our disliking many of these beautiful palaces were ruined by some sort of a catastrophe. Nevertheless some Minoan palaces were rebuilt. The most impressive of the ones rebuilt were Knossos and Phaistos. The walls of these excellent Palaces were designed with the finest materials they could get there hands on and decorated with Frescoes ( a Minoan trademark). "Minoans." //World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras//. ABC-CLIO,

(Knossos)

Specialized Jobs (Artavious): Ceramics, ivory carving, and metalworking reached their peak, and Minoan maritime power extended across the Mediterranean. Toward the end of the period an earthquake, and possibly an invasion, destroyed Knossos.

The ancient Minoans did have a written language. Far more than the records they left behind, the paintings on the walls of the palace at Knossos share the daily life of these ancient people. Some walls were painted with pictures of starfish and water scenes, much as you would expect from a civilization that lived on an island.



Minoan culture had become firmly established. Its skill and artistry best illustrated by the magnificent palace complexes that were built. One discovery was bronze weapons and tools. "Minoans." //World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras//. ABC-CLIO Writing and Record Keeping (Mark Denstaedt): In the Minoan culture there was three main forms of writing. Hieroglyphics, Linear A, and Linear B. Hieroglyphics was the main writing for about 300-400 years and consisted of 100 symbols. In 1850 BC the script that went by Linear A began. It had about 85 symbols but people have not been able to decipher the script. Linear B had about 89 symbols and apparently borrowed and or used many symbols from Linear A. 

Religion (Olivia Fuller): Not much evidence of the Minoans religion has been discovered, but based on certain things people found, we could assume things about the way that the civilization practiced their religion. According to art found and other documents, palaces were the focal point of their religious life. Also, their religious life was centered on the bull that they believed was everywhere around them, but their main absolute being was a goddess, the mistress of the animals, which reflects the natural based religion of the Minoans. "Minoans." //World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras//. ABC-CLIO