Like the Minoans, the Myceneans organized themselves into small manorial states. A ruler called king exercised control over local landowners from his fortified hilltop mansion. These landowners provided the ruler with the weaponry, food, and raw materials he needed. He, in turn, didn’t steal more from them and protected them from others who might. The landowners controlled the tenants and slaves who worked on their estates and farmed their land.
The most important manor in southern Greece was
Like the Egyptians, Myceneans loaded the tombs of their rulers with valuable objects. In a tomb at Mycenae in 1869, the German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann found a death mask of hammered gold which he claimed belonged to the Mycenean conqueror of Troy named Agamemnon.
Minoans taught Myceneans two important lessons. One was how to write. The other was how to build strong fast ships and to navigate on the open sea. Myceneans grew olive trees, processed olive oil, and made great profits by trading it.
They used these profits to organize raids and steal valuables from others at sea or on land. Around 1450 BC, after learning from the Minoans, envying their wealth, and surpassing them in power, the Myceneans conquered
Across the Aegean Sea from
According to Eratosthenes, a justly famous librarian in
Within a century, however, stronger Dorians fought and defeated the Myceneans. The Dorians reduced the high thick walls of
This conquest had two enduring effects. One, it became Mycenean civilization’s turn to die. People lost the ability to write and read. Craftsmen forgot how to build strong fast ships. Artisans stopped painting frescoes and making jewelry. Two, by 1100 BC thousands of Myceneans had crossed the Aegean to start new lives on the west coast of Anatolia south of ruined
Copyright © 2012 by Steven Farsaci.
All rights reserved. Fair use encouraged.
All rights reserved. Fair use encouraged.