CITIES AND CULTURE

The Minoans grew wealthy through trade across the Mediterranean. One of the Minoans’ strengths was that they were expert sailors. Their well-built ships carried olive oil, wine, cloth, pottery, and metalwork to Greece, Egypt, Cyprus, and Spain. The Minoans returned from trading voyages with important raw materials , or substances from which other products are made, such as tin, gold, pearls, and ivory. Minoans spread their culture throughout Greece and along the coasts of the Aegean (ee-JEE-uhn) Sea. Their strong navy controlled the seas, making the Minoans feel so safe they did not build city walls.

The great palace at Knossos (NAWsuhss) dominated Crete. The size and complexity of the palace may have encouraged some people to believe it was Minos’s labyrinth. Home to almost 20,000 people, Knossos was more like a city than a palace. It was the center of Minoan culture, religion, and economy. The palace included a central courtyard for ceremonies, hundreds of rooms,and even advanced plumbing. It also provided workshops for Minoan artisans and storerooms for surplus crops, such as grains. Minoans worked to support the palace and enjoyed a relatively prosperous life.

Minoan religion was polytheistic, which means that people believed in many gods and goddesses. Lifelike Minoan wall paintings suggest forms of worship involving bull-leaping, boxing, wrestling, and dancing as well as sacrifices to pacify the gods. Mysteries surround the end of the Minoans. Around 1500 B.C., Minoan civilization declined sharply and its palaces fell into ruins. Possible causes for their collapse include natural disasters such as earthquakes, tidal waves, or volcanic eruptions. Some historians think all three factors—as well as an invasion by people from mainland Greece—contributed to the Minoans’ decline. By 1450 B.C., a new civilization would overtake the Minoans.

RICH KINGS

The city of Mycenae was the center of Mycenaean civilization. Built high on a hill, the city was surrounded by thick walls that protected houses, storerooms, and a grand palace. The Mycenaeans protected Mycenae and other cities with great stone walls—so huge that later Greeks believed they were built by mythical giants called Cyclopes (SYklohps). A network of good roads connected Mycenae to other important cities.

While most Mycenaean farmers lived in simple mud-brick houses in the countryside, important officials, artisans, and traders lived in three-story stone houses in cities. Warriors had it even better. Mycenaean kings gave elite warriors fine houses and lands to rule. Everyone else worked to support the warriors.

Extensive trade and wars made Mycenaean kings rich. The fierce Mycenaean military, wearing metal armor and driving fastmoving chariots, raided and conquered surrounding people. Yet at the height of its power, around 1200 B.C., the Mycenaean civilization came to a violent end. Suddenly most Mycenaean cities and towns were mysteriously destroyed.

Historians have several theories about why Mycenaean civilization declined. One theory suggests that natural disasters caused shortages that turned cities against one another or led to peasant uprisings. Another theory suggests that Mycenaean cities were invaded by the mysterious Sea Peoples. The Sea Peoples were seaborne and land raiders who had also attacked the ancient Egyptians and fought the Hittites of Mesopotamia.

Whatever the cause of the collapse, the end of Mycenaean civilization meant that ancient Greece entered a period of decline that lasted until about 950 B.C. The people abandoned cities, trade halted, and the economy floundered. During this time, the ancient Greeks also stopped keeping written records. Without written records, historians know little about this 400-year period of Greek history. Luckily, though, the Greeks would learn to write again and record some of the greatest stories ever told.

 HOMER’S EPIC POEMS

The ancient Greeks believed in many gods, goddesses, monsters, and heroes. Stories about these characters were told and retold. About 750 B.C., a man named Homer emerged. Historians do not know much about Homer, but tradition says he was a blind bard who lived in ancient Greece. A bard is a poet who tells stories as a rhythmic chant accompanied by music.

Homer composed two of the world’s greatest stories, the Iliad and the Odyssey. Both are epic poems , or long poetic stories. Every epic poem has a hero , or a character who faces a challenge that demands courage, strength, and intelligence. Homer’s epic poems dramatized how gods and goddesses influenced the lives of humans. They also helped establish the characteristics of Greek gods and goddesses. The Iliad and the Odyssey followed a strong Greek storytelling tradition that mixed history, religion, and fantasy. These epic poems also united the Greeks through pride in their shared past and set the stage for future Western literature.

The Odyssey also tells the story of Odysseus’s journey home after the war. He has many adventures involving creatures such as a one-eyed Cyclops and the Sirens—women whose singing lures sailors to crash their ships onto rocks.

The new colonies were self-governing, but they maintained close political and economic links with their parent city-states. Although colonists adopted some local ways, they remained proudly Greek in their culture and outlook. They shared a common language, worshipped the same gods, and took part in Greek festivals such as the Olympic Games.

WATER HIGHWAYS

Colonies served many purposes for the ancient Greeks. Overall, they allowed access to land and resources not available in Greece. Some colonies were specifically set up to secure and control trade routes.

The Mediterranean and Black seas were relatively easy to navigate. Because most colonies were positioned near good harbors, sea trade flourished throughout the region. Expert sailors on well-built merchant ships carried raw materials such as silver and tin from present-day Spain and France back to Greece.

The flow of new resources to and from these colonies stimulated the production of goods. These goods were then traded at home and abroad. Trade boosted Greece’s growing economy, as did the introduction of coins after 600 B.C.

Wide-ranging sea trade also encouraged cultural diffusion, or the spread of ideas from one culture to another. This dual exchange of goods and ideas was important in shaping civilizations in the ancient world. For example, the ancient Egyptians welcomed learning about Greek military skills. Ancient Greece had a strong cultural influence on early Rome and carried Mediterranean culture as far away as present-day France. The ancient Greeks also incorporated ideas from other cultures. Elements of Egyptian culture influenced Greek art and architecture. Some historians think that ancient Greeks may have gotten their ideas of city-states, colonization, and sea trade from the Phoenicians.

One of the major effects of cultural diffusion in the ancient Mediterranean was the Greek adoption of the Phoenician alphabet. The Greeks made changes to the Phoenician alphabet, which then became the foundation of the modern alphabet we use today.