Ancient Greece: Minoans of Crete {2000-1100 BC}
from Theseus and the Minotaur, November 2009 |
notebook page from History Portfolio, February 2014 |
Most of what we know about the Minoans is from their frescoes which depict many aspects of their lives.
They also learned that there were several factors that led to the demise of the Minoans.
First the nearby island of Thera had a massive volcanic eruption and the tidal waves and earth tremors destroyed the palaces on Crete. Some were rebuilt, but then a fire destroyed most of the palaces and villas. It seems that some of the Minoans fled to what was left of nearby Thera. This volcanic eruption and the departure of the Minoans might have been the source of the legend of Atlantis, which the Greek philosopher mentions. It also seems that the Mycenaeans took this opportunity to take over what Minoans were left, but we will be learning more about them next time.
portion of a student's map, February 2014 |
First the nearby island of Thera had a massive volcanic eruption and the tidal waves and earth tremors destroyed the palaces on Crete. Some were rebuilt, but then a fire destroyed most of the palaces and villas. It seems that some of the Minoans fled to what was left of nearby Thera. This volcanic eruption and the departure of the Minoans might have been the source of the legend of Atlantis, which the Greek philosopher mentions. It also seems that the Mycenaeans took this opportunity to take over what Minoans were left, but we will be learning more about them next time.
Next post: Mycenaeans