Mycenae and the Heroic Age
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The fall of Knosos
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Until 1400 BC Minoan Crete was the dominant power in the Greek sphere with a prosperous economy based on agriculture and trade. In the East Crete traded with Egypt and Syria. In the West Crete also traded with Ischai on the Bay of Naples and with the Lipari islands. Crete may also have traded with Britain. However, the main trade was with the Greek mainland where Mycenae acted as the entrepot. Homer tells of a great king Minos of Knosós who was highly respected and was said to converse directly with Zeus. Homer places him two generations before Troy - around 1250 BC; but if the figure is historic it is more likely to be associated with the heyday of Minoan Crete, c. 1400 BC. There are also numerous place names around the Aegean called "Minos" indicative that Crete at that time was also a naval power. In the opinion of Evans, Minos was a pre-Hellenic Cretan, that is, non-Greek. Evans also proposed the theory that Crete exercised suzerainty over mainland Greece. According to Greek legend Minos of Crete destroyed Nisa (situated near where Megara was later founded) and forced the Athenians to pay a tribute of youths and maidens to be fed to the Minotaur (meaning , "Bull of Minos"). Greek scholars later rationalised the myth of Theseus into a war of independence of Athens from Crete. According to Herodotus Minos was killed leading an expedition against Sicily.
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Contents of
Mycenae and the Heroic Age
1 The fall of Knosos
2 Crete circa 1400 BC
3 Mycenae
4 Mycenaean palace architecture
5 Mycenaean burial practices
6 Mycenaean influence
7 Cyprus
8 Decline of Mycenae
9 The sea raiders
10 The wars with Thebes and Troy
11 The seven against Thebes
12 Troy
13 The Dorian Invasion and the end of Mycenaean civilisation
14 The Heraclids
15 Disputing the theory of the Dorian invasion
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