Mycenaean Greece: the story on HearLore

Mycenaean Greece

The discovery of a gold mask in 1876 by Heinrich Schliemann at the site of Mycenae changed the course of history, proving that the heroes of Homer's Iliad were not mere myths but real people who lived over three thousand years ago. This mask, now known as the Mask of Agamemnon, was found in a shaft grave within Grave Circle A, dating back to the 16th century BC. It represents the zenith of a warrior culture that dominated mainland Greece from approximately 1750 to 1050 BC. The Mycenaeans were the first advanced and distinctively Greek civilization, developing a complex society of palatial states, urban organization, and a unique writing system. While their culture was likely stimulated by contact with the insular Minoan Crete and other Mediterranean civilizations, they forged a sophisticated sociopolitical culture of their own. The most prominent site, Mycenae, gave its name to the entire era, but other centers of power emerged including Pylos, Tiryns, and Midea in the Peloponnese, as well as Orchomenos, Thebes, and Athens in Central Greece. Mycenaean settlements also appeared in Epirus, Macedonia, on islands in the Aegean Sea, on the south-west coast of Asia Minor, and on Cyprus, while Mycenaean-influenced settlements appeared in the Levant and Italy. The Mycenaeans introduced several innovations in engineering, architecture, and military infrastructure, while trade over vast areas of the Mediterranean was essential for their economy. Their syllabic script, Linear B, offers the first written records of the Greek language, and their religion already included several deities also to be found in the Olympic pantheon. Mycenaean Greece was dominated by a warrior elite society and consisted of a network of palace-centered states that developed rigid hierarchical, political, social, and economic systems. At the head of this society was the king, known as a wanax. Mycenaean Greece perished with the collapse of Bronze Age culture in the eastern Mediterranean, to be followed by the Greek Dark Ages, a recordless transitional period leading to Archaic Greece where significant shifts occurred from palace-centralized to decentralized forms of socio-economic organization. Various theories have been proposed for the end of this civilization, among them the Dorian invasion or activities connected to the Sea Peoples. Additional theories such as natural disasters and climatic changes have also been suggested. The Mycenaean period became the historical setting of much ancient Greek literature and mythology, including the Trojan Epic Cycle.

Origins And The Shaft Grave Era

The origins of the Mycenaeans remain a subject of intense debate, with theories ranging from the exogenous imposition of archaic Indo-Europeans from the Eurasian steppe to indigenous development dating back to the seventh millennium BC. A 2017 genetic study conducted by Lazaridis et al. found that the Minoans and Mycenaeans were genetically similar, but the Mycenaeans differed from Minoans in deriving additional ancestry from an ultimate source related to the hunter-gatherers of eastern Europe and Siberia, introduced via a proximal source related to the inhabitants of either the Eurasian steppe or Armenia. The mainstream consensus among modern Mycenologists is that Mycenaean civilization began around 1750 BC, earlier than the Shaft Graves, originating and evolving from the local socio-cultural landscape of the Early and Middle Bronze Age in mainland Greece with influences from Minoan Crete. Towards the end of the Middle Bronze Age, a significant increase in the population and the number of settlements occurred. A number of centers of power emerged in southern mainland Greece dominated by a warrior elite society. During this period, the Mycenaean centers witnessed increased contact with the outside world, especially with the Cyclades and the Minoan centers on the island of Crete. Mycenaean presence appears to be also depicted in a fresco at Akrotiri, on Thera island, which possibly displays many warriors in boar's tusk helmets, a feature typical of Mycenaean warfare. In the 16th and early 15th century BC, commerce intensified, with Mycenaean pottery having been found in the southern Italian islands of Lipari and Vivara, the western and southern coasts of Asia Minor, Agia Eirini in Cyprus, Tel Lachish and Tell el-Ajjul in Palestine, Byblos in Lebanon, and Saqqara and Gurob in Egypt. Early Mycenaean civilization from the Shaft Grave period generally showcases heavy influence from Minoan Crete in regards to art, infrastructure and symbols, while also maintaining some Helladic elements as well as some West Asian influences. A difference between Mycenaean and Minoan civilizations is complexity and monumentality; Mycenaean craftmanship and architecture are more simplified versions of Minoan ones, but are more monumental in size. Later phases of the Mycenaean civilization showcase more sophistication, eventually coming to surpass Minoan Crete after a few centuries. At the end of the Shaft Grave era, a new and more imposing type of elite burial emerged, the tholos: large circular burial chambers with high vaulted roofs and a straight entry passage lined with stone.

Common questions

When did Heinrich Schliemann discover the gold mask at Mycenae?

Heinrich Schliemann discovered the gold mask at Mycenae in 1876. This artifact is now known as the Mask of Agamemnon and was found in a shaft grave within Grave Circle A. The discovery proved that the heroes of Homer's Iliad were real people who lived over three thousand years ago.

What dates define the Mycenaean civilization period?

Mycenaean Greece dominated mainland Greece from approximately 1750 to 1050 BC. The civilization began around 1750 BC and ended with the collapse of Bronze Age culture in the eastern Mediterranean. This period is followed by the Greek Dark Ages which lasted from 1100 to 800 BC.

Who was the king of Mycenaean society and what was his title?

The king of Mycenaean society was known as the wanax. He was the main landlord, spiritual leader, and military leader who held all powers within the state. The wanax oversaw all aspects of palatial life including religious feasting, distribution of goods, and command of troops.

When did the Mycenaean palaces begin to be destroyed?

The first wave of destruction in various centers of mainland Greece occurred in 1250 BC. A second destruction struck Mycenae around 1190 BC, and the palace of Pylos was destroyed in 1180 BC. These events marked the end of Mycenae as a major power and led to the Greek Dark Ages.

What script did the Mycenaeans use to write their language?

The Mycenaeans used a syllabic script called Linear B to write the Greek language. This script offers the first written records of the Greek language and was based on the previous Linear A of the Minoans. The earliest records of Linear B were found at the palace of Knossos in 1450 BC.

How did women participate in Mycenaean society and economy?

Women in Mycenaean society could obtain positions of power such as priestess or Key-bearer which allowed them to hold land and have elite connections. While ordinary women were likely low-ranking laborers in workgroups, priestesses could legally procure land through the cult. Evidence shows that women received the same amount of food rations as men and worked alongside men in many capacities.

The Palatial Bronze Age

Starting in the 15th century BC, the Mycenaeans began to spread their influence throughout the Aegean and Western Anatolia. By 1450 BC, the palace of Knossos was ruled by a Mycenaean elite who formed a hybrid Minoan-Mycenaean culture. Mycenaeans also colonized several other Aegean islands, reaching as far as Rhodes. The Mycenaeans became the dominant power of the region, marking the beginning of the Mycenaean Koine era, a highly uniform culture that spread in mainland Greece and the Aegean. From the early 14th century BC, Mycenaean trade began to take advantage of the new commercial opportunities in the Mediterranean after the Minoan collapse. The trade routes were expanded further, reaching Cyprus, Amman in the Near East, Apulia in Italy and Spain. From that time period, the palace of Knossos has yielded the earliest records of the Greek Linear B script, based on the previous Linear A of the Minoans. The use of the new script spread in mainland Greece and offers valuable insight into the administrative network of the palatial centers. However, the unearthed records are too fragmentary for a political reconstruction of Bronze Age Greece. Excavations at Miletus, southwest Asia Minor, indicate the existence of a Mycenaean settlement there already from 1400 BC, replacing the previous Minoan installations. This site became a sizable and prosperous Mycenaean center until the 12th century BC. Apart from the archaeological evidence, this is also attested in Hittite records, which indicate that Miletos was the most important base for Mycenaean activity in Asia Minor. Mycenaean presence also reached the adjacent sites of Iasus and Ephesus. Meanwhile, imposing palaces were built in the main Mycenaean centers of the mainland. The earliest palace structures were megaron-type buildings, such as the Menelaion in Sparta, Lakonia. Palaces proper are datable from 1400 BC, when Cyclopean fortifications were erected at Mycenae and nearby Tiryns. Additional palaces were built in Midea and Pylos in Peloponnese, Athens, Eleusis, Thebes and Orchomenos in Central Greece and Iolcos, in Thessaly, the latter being the northernmost Mycenaean center. Knossos in Crete also became a Mycenaean center, where the former Minoan complex underwent a number of adjustments, including the addition of a throne room. These centers were based on a rigid network of bureaucracy where administrative competencies were classified into various sections and offices according to specialization of work and trades. At the head of this society was the king, known as wanax in Mycenaean Greek. All powers were vested in him, as the main landlord and spiritual and military leader. At the same time he was an entrepreneur and trader and was aided by a network of high officials.

War And The Sea Peoples

In 1250 BC, the first wave of destruction apparently occurred in various centres of mainland Greece for reasons that cannot be identified by archaeologists. In Boeotia, Thebes was burned to the ground, around that year or slightly later. Nearby Orchomenos was not destroyed at this time but was abandoned, while the Boeotian fortifications of Gla displays evidence for a targeted destruction as only the four gates and the monumental building, called the Melathron, were burned before the site was abandoned. In the Peloponnese, a number of buildings surrounding the citadel of Mycenae were attacked and burned. These incidents appear to have prompted the massive strengthening and expansion of the fortifications in various sites. In some cases, arrangements were also made for the creation of subterranean passages which led to underground cisterns. Tiryns, Midea and Athens expanded their defences with new cyclopean-style walls. The extension program in Mycenae almost doubled the fortified area of the citadel. To this phase of extension belongs the impressive Lion Gate, the main entrance into the Mycenaean acropolis. It appears that after this first wave of destruction a short-lived revival of Mycenaean culture followed. Mycenaean Greece continues to be mentioned in international affairs, particularly in Hittite records. In 1230 BC, the king of Ahhiyawa is again reported to have been involved in an anti-Hittite uprising in western Anatolia. Another contemporary Hittite account reports that Ahhiyawan ships should avoid Assyrian-controlled harbors, as part of a trade embargo imposed on Assyria. In general, in the second half of 13th century BC, trade was in decline in the Eastern Mediterranean, most probably due to the unstable political environment there. A second destruction struck Mycenae in c. 1190 BC or shortly thereafter. This event marked the end of Mycenae as a major power. The site was then reoccupied, but on a smaller scale. A recent study suggests that neither of the palaces at Tiryns or Midea were destroyed by an earthquake, and further studies have shown that upwards of fifty arrowheads were found scattered in the destruction debris at Midea perhaps indicating that the destruction was caused by an assault. The palace of Pylos, in the southwestern Peloponnese, was destroyed in c. 1180 BC. The Linear B archives found there, preserved by the heat of the fire that destroyed the palace, mention hasty defence preparations due to an imminent attack without giving any detail about the attacking force. As a result of this turmoil, specific regions in mainland Greece witnessed a dramatic population decrease, especially Boeotia, Argolis and Messenia. Mycenaean refugees migrated to Cyprus and the Levantine coast. Nevertheless, other regions on the edge of the Mycenaean world prospered, such as the Ionian islands, the northwestern Peloponnese, parts of Attica and a number of Aegean islands. The acropolis of Athens, oddly, appears to have avoided destruction. Athens and the eastern coast of Attica were still occupied in the 12th century BC, and were not destroyed or abandoned; this points to the existence of new decentralized coastal and maritime networks there. It is attested by the cemetery of Perati that lasted a century and showed imports from Cyclades, Dodecanese, Crete, Cyprus, Egypt and Syria, as well as by the Late Helladic IIIC cemetery of Drivlia at Porto Rafti. This indicates that Attica participated in long-distance trade, and was also incorporated in a mainland-looking network. The site of Mycenae experienced a gradual loss of political and economic status, while Tiryns, also in the Argolid region, expanded its settlement and became the largest local center during the post-palatial period, in Late Helladic IIIC, c. 1200, 1050 BC.

The Mystery Of The Collapse

The reasons for the end of the Mycenaean culture have been hotly debated among scholars. At present, there is no satisfactory explanation for the collapse of the Mycenaean palace systems. The two most common theories are population movement and internal conflict. The first attributes the destruction of Mycenaean sites to invaders. The hypothesis of a Dorian invasion, known as such in Ancient Greek tradition, that led to the end of Mycenaean Greece, is supported by sporadic archaeological evidence such as new types of burials, in particular cist graves, and the use of a new dialect of Greek, the Doric one. It appears that the Dorians moved southward gradually over a number of years and devastated the territory, until they managed to establish themselves in the Mycenaean centers. A new type of ceramic also appeared, called Barbarian Ware because it was attributed to invaders from the north. On the other hand, the collapse of Mycenaean Greece coincides with the activity of the Sea Peoples in the Eastern Mediterranean. They caused widespread destruction in Anatolia and the Levant and were finally defeated by Pharaoh Ramesses III in c. 1175 BC. One of the ethnic groups that comprised these people were the Eqwesh, a name that appears to be linked with the Ahhiyawa of the Hittite inscriptions. Alternative scenarios propose that the fall of Mycenaean Greece was a result of internal disturbances which led to internecine warfare among the Mycenaean states or civil unrest in a number of states, as a result of the strict hierarchical social system and the ideology of the wanax. In general, due to the obscure archaeological picture in 12th, 11th century BC Greece, there is a continuing controversy among scholars over whether the impoverished societies that succeeded the Mycenaean palatial states were newcomers or populations that already resided in Mycenaean Greece. Recent archaeological findings tend to favor the latter scenario. Additional theories, concerning natural factors, such as climate change, droughts, or earthquakes have also been proposed. Another theory considers the decline of the Mycenaean civilization as a manifestation of a common pattern for the decline of many ancient civilizations: the Minoan, the Harappan and the Western Roman Empire; the reason for the decline is migration due to overpopulation. The period following the end of Mycenaean Greece, c. 1100, 800 BC, is generally termed the Greek Dark Ages.

Society And The Wanax

Mycenaean palatial states, or centrally organized palace-operating polities, are recorded in ancient Greek literature and mythology and confirmed by discoveries made by modern archaeologists such as Heinrich Schliemann. Each Mycenaean kingdom was governed from the palace, which exercised control over most, if not all, industries within its realm. The palatial territory was divided into several sub-regions, each headed by its provincial center. Each province was further divided in smaller districts, the damoi. A number of palaces and fortifications appear to be part of a wider kingdom. For instance, Gla, located in the region of Boeotia, belonged to the state of nearby Orchomenos. Moreover, the palace of Mycenae appeared to have ruled over a territory two to three times the size of the other palatial states in Bronze Age Greece. Its territory would have also included adjacent centers, including Tiryns and Nauplion, which could plausibly be ruled by a member of Mycenae's ruling dynasty. The unearthed Linear B texts are too fragmentary for the reconstruction of the political landscape in Mycenaean Greece and they do not support nor deny the existence of a larger Mycenaean state. On the other hand, contemporary Hittite and Egyptian records suggest the presence of a single state under a Great King. Alternatively, based on archaeological data, some sort of confederation among a number of palatial states appears to be possible. If some kind of united political entity existed, the dominant center was probably located in Thebes or in Mycenae, with the latter state being the most probable center of power. The state was ruled by a king, the wanax, whose role was religious and perhaps also military and judicial. The wanax oversaw virtually all aspects of palatial life, from religious feasting and offerings to the distribution of goods, craftsmen and troops. Under him was the lawagetas, the leader of the people, whose role appears mainly religious. His activities possibly overlap with the wanax and is usually seen as the second-in-command. Both wanax and lawagetas were at the head of a military aristocracy known as the companions or followers. The land possessed by the wanax is usually the temenos. There is also at least one instance of a person, Enkhelyawon, at Pylos, who appears titleless in the written record but whom modern scholars regard as probably a king. A number of local officials positioned by the wanax appear to be in charge of the districts, such as ko-re-te, po-ro-ko-re-te and the da-mo-ko-ro, the latter probably being appointed to take charge of the commune. A council of elders was chaired, the ke-ro-si-ja. The damos, who in later Greek society was the name of the king, refers to communal officials. In general, Mycenaean society appears to have been divided into two groups of free men: the king's entourage, who conducted administrative duties at the palace, and the people, damo. These last were watched over by royal agents and were obliged to perform duties for and pay taxes to the palace. Among those who could be found in the palace were well-to-do high officials, who probably lived in the vast residences found in proximity to Mycenaean palaces, but also others, tied by their work to the palace and not necessarily better off than the members of the damo, such as craftsmen, farmers, and perhaps merchants. Occupying a lower rung of the social ladder were the slaves, do-e-ro. These are recorded in the texts as working either for the palace or for specific deities.

Women And The Economy

By observing Mycenaean wall paintings, scholars have deduced that women during this time often wore long dresses, their hair long, and wore jewelry, most notably beads. Mycenaean beads have long been an aspect of Mycenaean culture that is shrouded in a significant amount of mystery. It is not known for certain why they wore them, or why they appear to have been significant to the culture, but beads made of carnelian, lapis lazuli, etc., were known to have been worn by women on bracelets, necklaces, and buttons on cloaks, and were often buried with the deceased. In later periods of Greek history, seclusion of females from males was common in the household, though scholars have found no evidence of seclusion during Mycenaean times, and believe that males and females worked with and around each other on a regular basis. Not much is known about women's duties in the home or whether they differed from the duties of men. And though men were involved in warfare and hunting, there is no evidence that suggests women ever took part in either of the two, though whether women took part in hunting has been up for debate amongst some historians. There is evidence that, in this patriarchal society, men and women were, in some respects, viewed equally. Mycenae practiced a system of rationing food to citizens, and evidence shows that women received the same amount of rations as men. If women were not officials in the cult or married to high-ranking male officers, they were likely low-ranking laborers. Linear B details specialized groups of female laborers called workgroups. These women labored with other women as well as their children, and usually were located close to the palace. Women who belonged to workgroups did not belong to independent households, but were managed and fed by palace scribes. All of the women in a workgroup would serve the same occupation, such as textiles. Women in workgroups are not believed to have been able to acquire land holdings or have had economic independence of any kind, and are believed by some to have been slaves, though there are some conflicting debates among scholars concerning this. Though scholars are unsure if ordinary women could obtain land and exert economic power, there is evidence that women could obtain positions of power, such as the title of priestess, which allowed them to have land holdings, have elite connections, and high social status. Mycenaean society is believed to have been largely patriarchal, but women could exert social and economic power through titles and positions of power, like that of a priestess, though religion was not the only place that a woman could gain social authority. Women with special talents or skills, such as being a skilled midwife or craftswomen, could gain social authority in their villages, but are not believed to have been able to receive land holdings. Elite women were afforded benefits fitting their high social standing, but even the wife of elites could not own land and had no economic independence. Some scholars believe that Knossos was probably more equal in relation to gender than Pylos, though the evidence for this is little and is highly disputed. Men and women alike were involved in cult activity. Some women could be elevated to becoming legally independent by becoming priestesses, which appears to be hereditary through both the male and female line. No woman in Mycenae is believed to have been able to own land at this time, but priestesses were women who could legally procure land. Through the cult, land was leased to them, rather than given to them in ownership. Along with land holding benefits, priestesses often had ties with the upper-class elites, and were usually wealthy themselves. Only a small number of women could become priestesses in Mycenae, but there were other cultic titles that women could aspire to obtain, such as that of Key-bearer. Key-bearers appear to be women who had authority over the sacred treasury of a particular deity, and were able to dispense it in times of need. Though scholars do not have enough evidence to suggest that all Key-bearers could own land and had high status, there is a written record in Linear B of a Key-bearer with elite ties who owned land, so it is possible that they had similar benefits to priestesses. Other religious roles filled by women were the three types of sacred slaves: slave of the God, slave of the Priestess, and slave of the Key-bearer. Though not as grand a title as that of Priestess of Key-Bearer, the sacred slaves were allotted certain benefits fitting their positions in the cult. One other documented position women filled in the cult was called ki-ri-te-wi-ja. Though documented, scholars are not certain exactly what the duties of this role entailed, or what type of women would have filled it. What they do know, however, is that these religious roles afforded the women who occupied them a certain amount of economic autonomy.

Legacy And The Dark Ages

In the 8th century BC, after the end of the so-called Greek Dark Ages, Greece emerged with a network of myths and legends, the greatest of all being that of the Trojan Epic Cycle. In general, the Greeks of Classical antiquity idealized the Mycenaean period as a glorious period of heroes, closeness of the gods and material wealth. The legends of Homer's Epics were especially and generally accepted as part of the Greek past and it was not until the 19th century that scholars began to question Homer's historicity. At this time, German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann undertook the first modern archaeological excavations in Greece at the site of Mycenae in 1876. Thus, Schliemann set out to prove the historical accuracy of the Iliad by identifying the places described by Homer. As part of the Mycenaean heritage that survived, the names of the gods and goddesses of Mycenaean Greece became major figures of the Olympian Pantheon of later antiquity. Moreover, the language of the Mycenaeans offers the first written evidence of Greek, while a significant part of the vocabulary and grammar survived in the later Homeric epics. The decipherment of the Mycenaean Linear B script, a writing system adapted for the use of the Indo-European Greek language of the Late Bronze Age, demonstrated the continuity of Greek speech from the second millennium BC into the eighth century BC when a new Phoenician-derived alphabetic script emerged. Moreover, it revealed that the bearers of Mycenaean culture were ethnically connected with the populations that resided in the Greek peninsula after the end of this cultural period. Finally, the script records the advent of an Indo-European language in the Aegean region in contrast to unrelated prior languages spoken in adjoining areas. Various collective terms for the inhabitants of Mycenaean Greece were used by Homer in his 8th-century BC epic the Iliad in reference to the Trojan War. Homer interchangeably used the ethnonyms Achaeans, Danaans, and Argives to refer to the besiegers, and these names appear to have passed down from the time they were in use to the time when Homer applied them as collective terms in his Iliad. There is an isolated reference to a-ka-wi-ja-de in the Linear B records in Knossos, Crete dated to 1450 BC, which presumably refers to a Mycenaean state on the Greek mainland. Egyptian records mention a T(D)-n-j or Danaya land for the first time 1450 BC, during the reign of Pharaoh Thutmoses III. This land is geographically defined in an inscription from the reign of Amenhotep III, where a number of Danaya cities are mentioned, which cover the largest part of southern mainland Greece. Among them, cities such as Mycenae, Nauplion, and Thebes have been identified with certainty. Danaya has been equated with the ethnonym Danaoi, the name of the mythical dynasty that ruled in the region of Argos, also used as an ethnonym for the Greek people by Homer. In the official records of another Bronze Age empire, that of the Hittites in Anatolia, various references from 1400 to 1220 BC mention a country named Ahhiyawa. Recent scholarship, based on textual evidence, new interpretations of the Hittite inscriptions, and recent surveys of archaeological evidence about Mycenaean, Anatolian contacts during this period, concludes that the term Ahhiyawa must have been used in reference to the Mycenaean world, or at least to a part of it. This term may have also had broader connotations in some texts, possibly referring to all regions settled by Mycenaeans or regions under direct Mycenaean political control. Another similar ethnonym, Ekwesh, in twelfth century BC Egyptian inscriptions has been commonly identified with the Ahhiyawans. These Ekwesh were mentioned as a group of the Sea Peoples.