On the other hand, it should be noted that the early Minoans used the Linear A syllabic script – which is still undecipherable and conveys a language entirely different from the Greek dialects (unlike the Linear B). Rather the tangible influence of the Minoans on the ‘mainland’ Mycenaeans might have come from sea-based trading and exchange of materials between the two different cultures. To that end, the earlier Mycenaean artworks, architectural patterns, and military arms, circa 1600–1450 BC, are very much similar to the contemporary Minoan styles – so much so that many early historians presumed the southern part of ancient Greece to be a colony of Bronze Age Crete.īut that was not the case. Oddly enough, while the Mycenaeans themselves can be considered as ‘Greeks’, as judged by their decipherable Linear B script, the early phase of the civilization in itself (mostly based in mainland Greece) was markedly inspired by the distant Minoans hailing from the island of Crete. Thus a forgotten Greek civilization came to ‘life’ in the archaeological realm, and they were known as the Mycenaeans (derived from the fortified Mycenae site, in Argolid). Though initially thought to be the royal tomb of Agamemnon, it was later assessed to be the burial complex of a dynasty that existed about 250 years before the supposed Trojan War (of 13th century BC). He came upon an ancient Bronze Age tomb with a myriad of grave goods, including gold, silver, ivory and ceramic artifacts (including the famed golden ‘ Mask of Agamemnon‘). That is because, in the late 19th century, it was Heinrich Schliemann, a German businessman, who wanted to prove to the world the actual existence of the Trojan War heroes. But as historian Nicholas Grguric mentioned, alongside the oral traditions, many of the storytellers also invented their own mythical stuff that was ultimately added to the epic works.Īnd in an odd twist of fate, it was the romanticism of Homer’s literary achievements that ultimately drew archaeologists to the previously ‘unknown’ Mycenaeans. Now, of course, given such ‘ folkloric‘ credentials, it doesn’t mean that Homeric works are completely devoid of actual historical scenarios. To that end, rather than a historical exposition of how Mycenaeans fought and behaved, the Iliad should be viewed more as a compilation of folkloric traditions that were passed down through generations from around 9th-8th century BC (three centuries after the passing of the Mycenaeans). Now, of course, the greatest example of Classical Greeks being inspired by their ‘ancestors’ comes from the epic poetry of Homer in the Iliad and Odyssey.Īnd while the popular historical sentiment hints at how Homer was actually talking about the Mycenaeans, much of the Trojan War is set in a date that only tentatively corresponds to Mycenaeans. In fact, Classical authors were not even aware of any singular Mycenaean faction – and given their Greek traditions, such writers often attributed the specific geographically-limited tribes as their ancestors, like the Achaeans and the Argives. Mycenaean as a term was probably as much ‘mysterious’ to ancient authors as the civilization is puzzling to modern scholars.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |