"civilization has been described as the earliest of its kind in Europe, with historian Will Durant calling the Minoans ""the first link in the European chain"". The Minoan civilization is particularly notable for its large and elaborate palaces, some of which were up to four stories high, featured elaborate plumbing systems and were decorated with frescoes. The most notable Minoan palace is that of Knossos, followed by that of Phaistos. The Minoan period saw extensive trade between Crete, Aegean and Mediterranean settlements, particularly the Near East. Through their traders and artists, the Minoans' cultural influence reached beyond Crete to the"
"Knossos Knossos (also Cnossos, both pronounced ; , ""Knōsós"" ) is the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete and has been called Europe's oldest city. Settled as early as the Neolithic period, the name Knossos survives from ancient Greek references to the major city of Crete. The palace of Knossos eventually became the ceremonial and political centre of the Minoan civilization and culture. The palace was abandoned at some unknown time at the end of the Late Bronze Age, c. 1380–1100 BC. The reason why is unknown, but one of the many disasters that befell the palace is generally"
"of being a military site; for example, it had neither fortifications nor stores of weapons. Knossos Knossos (also Cnossos, both pronounced ; , ""Knōsós"" ) is the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete and has been called Europe's oldest city. Settled as early as the Neolithic period, the name Knossos survives from ancient Greek references to the major city of Crete. The palace of Knossos eventually became the ceremonial and political centre of the Minoan civilization and culture. The palace was abandoned at some unknown time at the end of the Late Bronze Age, c. 1380–1100 BC. The reason"
"traits (such as its own poetry and music). It was once the centre of the Minoan civilisation (), which is the earliest known civilisation in Europe. The palace of Knossos lies in Crete. The island is first referred to as ""Kaptara"" in texts from the Syrian city of Mari dating from the 18th century BC, repeated later in Neo-Assyrian records and the Bible (""Caphtor""). It was also known in ancient Egyptian as ""Keftiu"", strongly suggesting a similar Minoan name for the island. The current name of Crete is thought to be first attested in Mycenaean Greek texts written in Linear"
"Greek mythology, King Minos dwelt in a palace at Knossos. He had Daedalus construct a labyrinth, a very large maze (by some connected with the double-bladed axe, or ""labrys"") in which to retain his son, the Minotaur. Daedalus also built a dancing floor for Queen Ariadne. The name ""Knossos"" was subsequently adopted by Arthur Evans. As far as is currently known, it was William Stillman, the American consul who published Kalokairinos' discoveries, who, seeing the sign of the double axe on the massive walls partly uncovered by Kalokairinos, first associated the complex with the labyrinth of legend, calling the ruins"
"Cyclades, the Old Kingdom of Egypt, copper-bearing Cyprus, Canaan and the Levantine coast and Anatolia. Some of the best Minoan art is preserved in the city of Akrotiri on the island of Santorini, which was destroyed by the Minoan eruption. The Minoans primarily wrote in the undeciphered Linear A, encoding a language hypothetically labelled Minoan. The reasons for the slow decline of the Minoan civilization, beginning around 1550 BCE, are unclear; theories include Mycenaean invasions from mainland Greece and the major volcanic eruption of Santorini. The term ""Minoan"" refers to the mythical King Minos of Knossos. Its origin is debated,"
"Arthur Evans have identified and uncovered the palace-complex at Knossos, the most famous Minoan site. Other palace sites in Crete such as Phaistos have uncovered magnificent stone-built, multi-story palaces containing drainage systems, and the queen had a bath and a flushing toilet. The expertise displayed in the hydraulic engineering was of a very high level. There were no defensive walls to the complexes. By the 16th century BC pottery and other remains on the Greek mainland show that the Minoans had far-reaching contacts on the mainland. In the 16th century a major earthquake caused destruction on Crete and on Thera"
"Alexandre Farnoux Alexandre Farnoux is a French historian, a specialist on the Minoan civilisation and Delos. Alexandre Farnoux studied at the French School at Athens, he became director of this institute in September 2011. He is professor of Greek archaeology at Paris-Sorbonne University and also teaches Greek history at the University of Strasbourg. He conducts research in Crete on the Minoan civilisation and is director of the excavation of a residential quarter in the Minoan city of Mallia. An overview of the archaeological discoveries made in Knossos, Crete, from the beginning of the 20th century, especially by the British archaeologist"
"yet be found. In 1908, Pernier found the Phaistos disc at the basements of the northern group of the palace. This artifact is a clay disk, dated to between 1950 BC and 1400 BC and impressed with a unique sophisticated hieroglyphic script. The tombs of the rulers of Phaistos were found in the cemetery that was discovered 20 minutes away from the palace remains. Phaistos was inhabited from about 4000 BC. A palace, dating from the Middle Bronze Age, was destroyed by an earthquake during the Late Bronze Age. Knossos along with other Minoan sites was destroyed at that time."
"Knossos with the Bronze Age site is supported the Roman coins that were scattered over the fields surrounding the pre-excavation site, then a large mound named Kephala Hill, elevation from current sea level. Many of them were inscribed with Knosion or Knos on the obverse and an image of a Minotaur or Labyrinth on the reverse. The coins came from the Roman settlement of ""Colonia Julia Nobilis Cnossus"", a Roman colony placed just to the north of, and politically including, Kephala. The Romans believed they were the first to colonize Knossos. In Christian times Knossos became a titular see, but"
"and partially restored Knossos in the early 20th century. A more comprehensive exploration was done by French and Greek archaeologists in the 1960s. They found a considerable number of bronze and ceramic votive offerings, the oldest of them dating from the earliest Minoan periods, suggesting the cave was an important sacred shrine dedicated to a female fertility deity, presumably Britomartis. The cave was still used in Classical Greek and Roman eras, when the fertility goddess Artemis or her Roman equivalent Diana replaced the Minoan deity. Gouves, Greece Gouves () is a town and former municipality in the Heraklion regional unit,"
"Throne Room, Knossos The Throne Room was a chamber built for ceremonial purposes during the 15th century BC inside the palatial complex of Knossos, Crete, in Greece. It is found at the heart of the Bronze Age palace of Knossos, one of the main centers of the Minoan civilization and is considered the oldest throne room in Europe. The throne room was unearthed in 1900 by British archaeologist Arthur Evans, during the first phase of his excavations in Knossos. It was found in the center of the palatial complex and west of the central court. This throne room is considered"
"but it is commonly attributed to archeologist Arthur Evans (1851–1941). Minos was associated in Greek mythology with the labyrinth, which Evans identified with the site at Knossos. However, Karl Hoeck had already used the title ""Das Minoische Kreta"" in 1825 for volume two of his ""Kreta""; this appears to be the first known use of the word ""Minoan"" to mean ""ancient Cretan"". Evans probably read Hoeck's book, and continued using the term in his writings and findings: ""To this early civilization of Crete as a whole I have proposed—and the suggestion has been generally adopted by the archaeologists of this"
"resumed the curatorship of Knossos, but only for a relatively short period. Piet de Jong became Curator, 1947-1952. The property was transferred to the Greek Archaeological Service in 1951, again for primarily financial and caretaker reasons. By now Heraklion was visible in the countryside. Large numbers of visitors were touring Knossos. In 1966 Sinclair Hood built a new Stratigraphical Museum. <br> Knossos (modern history) Knossos (, ""Knōsós"", ), also romanized Cnossus, Gnossus, and Knossus, is the main Bronze Age archaeological site at Heraklion, a modern port city on the north central coast of Crete. The site was excavated and the"
"of the largest and most extensive settlements being at Karfi, high in the Dikti Mountains. At this high, remote, ancient, and sacred site a fragment of Minoan civilization survived intact for about 400 years after the occupation of Knossos. Archaeological remains include house complexes, some of which resemble the megaron-type building with central hearth, and a ""Temple"" or sanctuary, where votive figures were found. These clay religious figurines include the cylindrical skirted goddesses in cylindrical skirts with their hands raised in the epiphany gesture. At Karfi the last of the Eteocretan Minoan settlements retreated to the slopes of this barren"
"is, before Alexander the Great connected the island to mainland Egypt by building a causeway. The Minoan civilization on Crete was the dominant sea power of the eastern Mediterranean, with large cities and temples, but after 1400 BC only small villages existed. Archaeologists believe that some abrupt event changed society, but an invasion is unlikely because of the Minoan fleet. After the discovery of the Minoans at Knossos on the island by Sir Arthur Evans in 1900, theories linking the disappearance of the empire with the destruction of Atlantis were proposed by K. T. Frost in 1913 and E. S."
"above onto the body, and that there is no evidence at all for the platform that he lies on being an altar. Anemospilia Anemospilia()is the archaeological site of an ancient Minoan temple on Crete. The temple is located on the northern end of Mount Juktas. Modern Heraklion can be seen from the site. The site is in the country side near Arkhanes, about 7 kilometers from Knossos on the Island of Crete. It was on a hillside facing north towards the palace complexes of Knossos. Various factors made archaeologists conclude that it was a temple. The site is in the"
"of Minos"" and other documentation for the previous excavations, as well as to formulate future plans. During the war Crete was not on the front lines. It was used as a rear area by the Greeks. The archaeologists were to stay away, however, until 1922. The archaeologists did not return to Knossos until 1922, when the question of Ottoman influence had been settled once and for all (more or less) by the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, the defeat of Greek and British forces occupying Turkey after the first world war, and treaties that established the borders of the Republic"
"Minoa Minoa is the name of several Bronze-Age cities on the coasts of the Aegean islands and Corfu in Greece, as well as Sicily. The original meaning of the word remains unknown, but it seems that there is a strong connection with the mythic king of Crete, Minos, during the bronze-age Minoan civilization which flourished in Crete and in the Aegean islands in Greece between 2000-1470 BC. The inhabitants of Crete were named Minoans by Arthur Evans, after the legendary king. The root ""min-"" corresponds to a group of Aegean languages, and appears also in some toponyms like Minya, ""Minassos"""
"the island. There are appear to be four major palaces on the island: Knossos, Phaistos, Malia, and Kato Zakros. The north is thought to have been governed from Knossos, the south from Phaistos, the central-eastern region from Malia, the eastern tip from Kato Zakros. Smaller palaces have been found elsewhere on the island. The Minoans were traders, and their cultural contacts reached Egypt's Old Kingdom, copper-containing Cyprus, Canaan and the Levantine coast and Anatolia. In late 2009 Minoan-style frescoes and other artifacts were discovered during excavations of the Canaanite palace at Tel Kabri, Israel, leading archaeologists to conclude that the"
"Anemospilia Anemospilia()is the archaeological site of an ancient Minoan temple on Crete. The temple is located on the northern end of Mount Juktas. Modern Heraklion can be seen from the site. The site is in the country side near Arkhanes, about 7 kilometers from Knossos on the Island of Crete. It was on a hillside facing north towards the palace complexes of Knossos. Various factors made archaeologists conclude that it was a temple. The site is in the countryside, Anemospilia means 'caves of the wind'. It is in the foothills of Mount Juktas, the legendary burial place of Zeus. Anemospilia"
"The town is a tourist attraction, primarily for its significant archaeological site and nightlife. The Minoan town ruins lie three km east of the site and cover an area of approximately . The original name for the town is not known. The palace of Malia, dating from the Middle Bronze Age, was destroyed by an earthquake during the Late Bronze Age; Knossos and other sites were also destroyed at that time. The palace was later rebuilt toward the end of the Late Bronze Age. Most of the ruins visible today date from this second period of construction. The palace features"
"Roussolakkos Roussolakkos is the site of an important Minoan city, located near to Palekastro, Crete. It is the only Minoan city to have survived intact. Its harbor, outlying settlements, sanctuaries and quarries are preserved under sediments accumulating over more than 2,000 years. It was here, the ancient authors tell us, that Diktaian Zeus (the youthful Cretan equivalent of the classical Greek god Dionysos and Egyptian Osiris) was born and where this young god founded his holy city. A temple to Zeus was built at the nearby Elaea promontory. It was also here that Jason and the Argonauts confronted Talos, the"
"of Knossos as early as Homer's ""Iliad"" and ""Odyssey"". Thucydides tells us Minos was the most ancient man known to build a navy. He reigned over Crete and the islands of the Aegean Sea three generations before the Trojan War. He lived at Knossos for periods of nine years, where he received instruction from Zeus in the legislation which he gave to the island. He was the author of the Cretan constitution and the founder of its naval supremacy. On the Athenian stage Minos is a cruel tyrant, the heartless exactor of the tribute of Athenian youths to feed to"
"Age, roughly the first half of the 2nd millennium BC, the eastern Mediterranean was dominated by a civilization named Minoan by its discoverer, Sir Arthur Evans, excavating the Palace of Knossos, which he termed the Palace of Minos. The civilization was maritime, its fleets were legendary, its settlements were mainly coastal, and its operations were mainly peaceful. There are legends, such as that of Theseus and the Minotaur, which indicate that tribute of some sort was collected by Crete from overseas locations, but its legendary history is far different from the wars and warriors of the mainland. The evolution of"
"Duncan Mackenzie Duncan Mackenzie (1861–1934) was a Scottish archaeologist, whose work focused on one of the more spectacular 20th century archaeological finds, Crete's palace of Knossos, the supposed centre of Minoan civilisation. He was born to a poor Highland family in Ross and Cromarty, Scotland; studied philosophy at Edinburgh University; and received his PhD from Vienna in classical archaeology. After earning a great reputation as a field archaeologist at Phylakopi, he was recommended to Sir Arthur Evans to help him run his dig at Knossos. The two would work together for the next thirty years. Mackenzie was Evans' second in"
"Amnisos Amnisos, also Amnissos and Amnisus (Greek: or ; Linear B: 𐀀𐀖𐀛𐀰 - ""A-mi-ni-so""), is a bronze-aged settlement on the north shore of Crete and was used as a port to the palace city of Knossos. It appears in Greek literature and mythology from the earliest times, but its origin is far earlier, in prehistory. The historic settlement belonged to a civilization now called Minoan. Excavation at Amnisos in 1932 uncovered a villa that included the ""House of the Lilies"", which was named for the lily theme that was depicted in a wall fresco. Amnisos is 7 km east of"
"identified in Linear B (Mycenean Greek) tablets in Knossos. Though the notorious bull-headed Minotaur is a purely Greek depiction, seals and seal-impressions reveal bird-headed or masked deities. Retrieval of metal and clay votive figures, double axes, miniature vessels, models of artifacts, animals, and human figures has identified sites of cult, such as numerous small shrines in Minoan Crete, and mountain peaks and very numerous sacred caves over 300 have been explored were the centers for some cult, but temples, as the Greeks developed them, were unknown. Within the palace complex, no central rooms devoted to a cult have been recognized"
"fluid and used as a mirror. There was much influence from Minoan pottery. Some very early ""kernoi"" and Frying pans had been made of stone. Minoan civilization is defined by a lack of continuity, growth and development cannot be thought of as the civilization disappears and reappears very abruptly of which not much is known about. Minoan art is very playful, and displays rhythm and motion. Minoan civilization is known for constructing several large and great palaces, most commonly Knossos, Phaistos, and Malia which were destroyed around 1700 BC and rebuilt and then suffered some destruction again around 1500 BC."
"Hill, where the Minoans quarried their gypsum. The limestone was quarried from the ridge on the east. The archaeological site, Knossos, refers either to the palace complex itself or to that complex and several houses of similar antiquity nearby, which were inadvertently excavated along with the palace. To the south across the Vlychia is the Caravanserai. Further to the south are Minoan houses. The Minoan Road crossed the Vlychia on a Minoan Bridge, immediately entering the Stepped Portico, or covered stairway, to the palace complex. Near the northwest corner of the complex are the ruins of the House of the"
"by earlier excavations. Whilst archaeologists had previously believed that the city had declined in the wake of a socio-political collapse around 1200 BC, the work found that the city had prospered instead, with its final abandonment coming later. After the fall of the Minoans, Knossus was repopulated around 1000 BC and it remained one of the most important centers of Crete. The city had two ports: Amnisos and Heraklion. According to the geographer Strabo the Knossians colonized the city of Brundisium in Italy. In 343 BC Knossos was allied with Philip II of Macedon. The city employed a Phocian mercenary"
"Most of the structures, however, were designed to serve a civic, religious and economic center. The term palace complex is more accurate. In ancient times, Knossos was a town surrounding and including the Kephala. This hill was never an acropolis in the Greek sense. It had no steep heights, remained unfortified, and was not very high off the surrounding ground. These circumstances cannot necessarily be imputed to other Minoan palaces. Phaistos, contemporaneous with Knossos, was placed on a steep ridge, controlling access to the Messara Plain from the sea, and was walled. To what degree Minoan civilization might be considered"
"the present; 4, Archaeology and imagination; 5, The Minoan world today; 6, The Minoans in the headlines; 7, Forgers in the realm of Minos; 8, Cretan writing. The book closes with a list of further reading, chronology, list of illustrations, an index and a full-page photograph of Arthur Evans at Knossos. It has been translated into American and British English, Italian and Korean. Alexandre Farnoux Alexandre Farnoux is a French historian, a specialist on the Minoan civilisation and Delos. Alexandre Farnoux studied at the French School at Athens, he became director of this institute in September 2011. He is professor"