Some archeologists believe the Minoans may have lost their religious faith in the ability of the priests to control nature, and possibly (though unconfirmed) led to the fall of the Minoan civilization.Īround 1450 BC, the palaces were again disturbed. The massive eruption of Thera also led to the volcano's collapse, causing massive tsunamis which destroyed naval installations and settlements near the coasts. The postulated sulfur dioxide and ash clouds emitted by the volcano are thought to have destroyed some settlements and resulted in volcanic winters and poor harvests for several years. The eruption has been identified by ash fallout in eastern Crete, Egypt, and cores from the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean seas. The volcanic eruption and fallout was quite possibly larger than the Tambora eruption of 1815, the largest historical eruption on record.

After that, population increased again, and the palaces were even larger than before but with a different basic plan.Īround 1650 BC, 1628 BC, 1500 BC, or 1450 BC (still debated), the volcanic island Thera ( Santorini), at about 70 km distance, erupted. The beginning of the Bronze Age, around 3100 BC, was a period of great unrest in Crete, but it also marks the beginning of Crete as an important center of civilization.Īround 1700 BC there was a large disturbance in Crete, probably an earthquake, although an invasion from Turkey has also been suggested. The oldest signs of inhabitants on Crete are ceramic Neolithic remains that date to approximately 7000 BC.

It is remarkable that none of the Minoan cities had city walls, and few weapons were found.Ģ100 BC-1700 BC Middle Minoan period = Old Palace Ageġ700 BC-1420 BC Late Minoan period = Young Palace Age Smaller palaces have been found in other places. The island was probably divided into four political units, the north being governed from Knossos, the south from Phaistos, the central eastern part from Malia and the eastern tip from Kato Zakros. Archeologists have found palaces in Phaistos and Malia as well.

The site at Knossos was the most important one. Homer recorded a tradition that Crete had 90 cities. There are signs of earthquake damage at Minoan sites. The (undeciphered) language of the Minoans is referred to as Eteocretan, which may have been written in the also-undeciphered Linear A script.Ĭrete is a mountainous island with natural harbors. This inherited trade pre-dated Minoan civilization: a sense of its rewards may be gained by comparing its value to frankincense, or later, to pepper. The Minoan trade in saffron, which originated in the Aegean basin as a natural chromosome mutation, has left fewer material remains: a fresco of saffron-gatherers at Santorini is well-known. The decline of Minoan civilization and the decline in use of bronze tools in favor of harder iron ones seem to be correlated. Many historians and archaeologists believe that the Minoans were involved in the Bronze Age's important tin trade: tin, alloyed with copper apparently from Cyprus, was used in the manufacture of bronze. Their culture, from ca 1700 BC onwards, shows a high degree of organization, without a trace of the military aristocracies that have characterized the civilizations that followed.

The Minoans were primarily a mercantilist people engaged in overseas trade. What the Minoans called themselves is unknown. It is possible, though unsure, that the Minos was a term for a Minoan ruler. Their name was coined by the British archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans after the mythic 'king' Minos, associated with the labyrinth, which Evans identified as the site at Knossos. The Minoans were a pre-Hellenic Bronze Age civilization in Crete in the Aegean Sea, prior to Helladic or Mycenaean culture.