Minoan Civilization Research Paper

Improved Essays
In prehistoric times there was a three-age system and the Bronze Age was the second period of the system, before the Iron Age and after the Stone Age. It began in 4000 BCE and lasted until 1500 BCE. It was distinguished by the use of bronze. The Bronze Age was a period of time after the Neolithic Age when ancient humans upgraded from making tools out of stone and hunting and gathering their food to mining and smelting copper and tin in order to make bronze tools, weapons, and farm equipment and learning about agriculture. This gave them the opportunity to have extra food to store and enabled them with the possibility of settling down and starting a family instead of having to move every time they ran out of food. There were three phases of …show more content…
The Minoan civilization, the second phase of the Bronze Age, occupied the island of Crete and lasted from 3000-1100 BC. It was named after King Minos of Knossos who was legendary. They were considered as the advanced civilization of Europe. They were compiled of non-Indo-European people who resided on the island of Crete with the sea as the essence of their economy and power. They were of a great influence on the Mycenaean culture ("Minoan | People"). This show that the Minoans may have either been feared, respected, or both by the Mycenaean people, which caused them to be influenced by the Minoans. The Mycenaean Greece, the third and final phase of the Bronze Age, lasted from 1600-1100 BCE. They were compiled of a group of Indo-European people who resided in Greece and depended on the culture of the Minoans when they were dominated by them. By the end of the second century AD they were in ruins and it is believed that their language is the most ancient form of Greek (“Mycenaean | Ancient People”). This show that the Mycenaeans were a politically dependent civilization although they had a lot of influence with their Greek language and

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Iliad Dbq Essay

    • 1230 Words
    • 5 Pages

    WHAP EQs #3 This is when innovation occurred and new experiences allowed the empires to grow and flourish. New faiths appeared and new social lives developed as technology advanced. Monuments and temples were built to the gods as a place of worship and rituals.…

    • 1230 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Greek Culture Dbq

    • 768 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Ancient Greece can be traced back to the Stone Age hunters (6000-2900 B.C.); however, Greek culture was much more notable from 1100-146 B.C., and likely had a more profound impact on Western civilization than any other culture. From 1100-750 B.C., a period known as the Dark Ages, Ancient Greece was immersed with wars and invasions and, over time, was divided into small, city states. During the Archaic Period (750-500 B.C.), art, the beginnings of democracy, and the knowledge and understanding of the written language started to re-emerge. The Greeks fought the Persians during the Classical Period (500-336 B.C.) and Athens reached its greatest political and cultural heights, including full development of a democratic plan of government (Document…

    • 768 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The first part of the book deals with Ebla and the Early Dynastic (ED) period in Mesopotamia. At this time period they saw the first empires in the ancient Near East, and Ebla was usefully founded between coastal Syria and northern Mesopotamian cities. Exploiting on this location, rulers of Ebla created pacts with neighboring towns and placed tariffs on goods arriving to the city. Many of the extravagant goods were meant for the royal household; Podany describes the contents and effects of a discreet letter written to the king of Ebla by the king of Hamazi, discussing the exchange of royal gifts. Podany displays a profound familiarity with military skirmishes and the difference between a promise kept by a defeated enemy and a treaty signed…

    • 761 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Its artists and traders had an influence throughout the Cyclades. It influenced Egypt’s old kingdom, Cyprus, Canaan, Levantine and Anatolia. Disappearance of Minoan society is accounted to an invasion from mainland and eruption of a volcano from the island of Thera. 2) Describe Mycenaean society? Where were they located?…

    • 699 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The development of the “seeds” of modern society can be first found in Ancient Greece but Grecian civilization was greatly impacted by the societies that came before it. First the Mesopotamians, and then the Egyptians, moved from an agricultural and herding based culture to a new form of culture called civilization. This new culture was “marked by the appearance of urban centers, the mastery of smelting and with it the techniques for making metal tools and weapons, and the invention of writing”(“The Western Heritage”, xxxvii). Their influence spread to the Grecian island of Crete, where the Minoan civilization was created.…

    • 1588 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Greek myths like Theseus and the Minotaur are a huge influence on both Ancient Greek society and the modern world. Greek deities like Zeus, Apollo, and Athena are widely recognized thanks to the long lasting effect of the Greek culture. The Ancient Greeks valued attributes such as loyalty, courage, wits, justice, and morality. Theseus, the eponymous protagonist of Edith Hamilton’s The Cruel Tribute, exemplifies the cultural values of the bygone society of Greece.…

    • 590 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    As they discovered these highly valuable by-products and transitioned into the agricultural-herding phase, society developed into a sedentary lifestyle. During the Bronze Age just after 4000 B.C.E., metallurgy was practices to make better tools and weapons made of bronze and metal composed of copper and tin. The advances in tools would allow for easier plowing during farming and irrigation; as well as better tools to go to battle with as the years progressed.…

    • 503 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Minoan Society Rises

    • 959 Words
    • 4 Pages

    2200 BCE China’s Xia Dynasty rises Minoan society rise 2000 BCE Indo Europeans began to build settlements in the Italian peninsula A sophisticated society of Minoans arose from the island of Crete 1800 BCE Bronze metallurgy brought by the Etruscans in Rome 1766 BCE Xia Dynasty decline China’s Shang Dynasty rises 1628 BCE Volcanic eruption on the island of Thera destroyed almost everything 1600 BCE Mycenaean society rises Mycenaeans began trade with Minoans and learned about writing and large scale construction Cretans established colonies on Cyprus and islands in the Aegean Sea to mine copper 1500 BCE Aryans migrate into India and establish subcontinents throughout the areas Gandhara Civilization rises Start of Vedic…

    • 959 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Neolithic Time Essay

    • 642 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Before you can fully understand the changes that occurred in the Neolithic period, you must first know the history of the Paleolithic period. During the Paleolithic period, there was a more equal division of labor. Women worked outside the home gathering plant and animal products. Men also worked outside of the home to hunt for food, locate water, and find shelter. During this period, wealth was not a factor in deciding who had more power because importance was not placed on material goods in a foraging society.…

    • 642 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Dark Age Greeks stumbled upon the ruins of Mycenaean cities and palaces, and claimed them as ancestors. The walls of the ancient cities were called “Cyclopean” (Pomeroy et al. 2004, 25) because the stones were so huge, and the Greeks reasoned…

    • 775 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Mediterranean Imperialism

    • 1131 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Colonization Colonial expansion is often times credited to a countries economic gain, in regards to the development of trade routes, tributes, taxation, and a surplus of raw goods (Belcastro et al., 2007; Galaty, 2002; Hammond, 1992; Harding, 1992; Klaus et al., 2009; Larsen, 1994; Larsen et al., 2001; Schrader, 2012; Stipčević, 1977; Wilkes, 1992; Wright, 2014). Often times the lives of both the colonizers and local inhabitants were transformed during these forays into new regions (Klaus et al., 2009; Larsen, 1987; Larsen, 1994; Larsen et al., 2001; Wright, 2014). Through settlement of an area the lives of indigenous populations will have new economic, social and political pressures placed upon them (Schrader, 2012:60; Wright, 2014:139). These changes often happen in the quest to fulfill demands wrought by colonial expansion (Schrader, 2012:60; Stein 2005:3-4). There are very few advantages of colonization in regards to native populations.…

    • 1131 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The spirit world was an important aspect of the Minoan Civilization, as these people believed that the gods present in the numerous events of everyday life, from their own actions to natural events. Each of these gods was related to the different parts of everyday life, controlling these different aspects. One of the most interesting facts about the gods worshipped on the island of Crete is that they were all female, and the “Mother Goddess” was the goddess of the highest authority. Archeologists have found on the island of Crete evidence of what appears to have been human sacrifice. In one excavation, Yannis Sakellarakis, a Greek archaeologist who specialized in Minoan Prehistory, found the remains of a young adult male, who was…

    • 210 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Throughout this course we have discussed many different civilizations, such as the Greeks, Romans, and Sumerians to name a few. They have each contributed to civilization greatly. Some of these civilizations have values in common, whether it be that they physically share characteristics or their beliefs are the same. There are also many commonalities throughout their societies. First of all, one of the most popular commonalities between the different civilizations were their societies.…

    • 255 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Paleolithic is the beginning part of what is known as the Stone Age, enduring for only about 2.6 million years, when the first stone tools were used. The Paleolithic Age, Greek meaning for “Old Stone”, is the period in the development of the modern man. During this time…

    • 1049 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    The location also had to do with the food supply for hunting and gathering, and food to be hunted for eating. Some animals became scarce to the Neanderthals. In the north cows were very scarce because the cows would die of frost bite or being famished, due to the lack of grass and other resources. The Neanderthals ate mostly nuts, berries, and other things they could scrounge up to eat.…

    • 1413 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays