Minoan Art Landscapes Are Not Necessarily Indicators Of Shrines, But Do Hold A Religious Context?

The Minoans were a civilization who flourished from 3000 BCE until 1100 BCE on the island of Crete, were greatly influenced by the Phoenicians, Egyptians, Syrians and the Anatolians (Britannica Encyclopedia). This civilization made major contributions to Western European development in the areas of language, architecture and art. It was the famous archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans who made the astounding discoveries at Knossos in the early 1900’s that introduced to the world the fascinating and wonderful sophistication of these early Greeks (Britannica Encyclopedia). The history of the island has been molded by its proximity to the Aegean Sea. Its geographical location gave it control over the sea and the lucrative trade routes. The Minoans traded with Egypt, the Levant, the Aegean, and beyond to Italy, and Sicily.

She describes the significance of the figures being carved and writes as though totem poles were bringing a story to life. This is exemplified by the quote “Then he enriched the shorn things with carvings. He wanted some way of showing people the things that were on his mind, things about the creatures and about himself and their relation to each other.” (Carr, 85). By the opening line of page 86, Carr establishes their personification as she tells the readers of the “flesh and blood” in the animals depicted, whose nature “the natives themselves understood” (Carr, 86). She also notes that the crests on the totem poles will outline specific personality traits. This personification gives the totem poles, once a part of nature, a great deal of vitality, which was a very prominent part of native culture. Carr recognizes this, and then relates it to the people who have made them, establishing a symbolic connection between the totem poles, the native people, and native

One very interesting aspect of the human experience is the manner in which certain themes appear again and again over time, in literature, religion, mythology, and culture regardless of the geographic location, the economic status, and the time period. Perhaps it is the innate human need to explain and explore the known and unknown, but to have disparate cultures in time and location find ways of explaining certain principles in such similar manner leads one to believe that there is perhaps more to myth and ritual than simple repetition of archetypal themes. In a sense, then, to acculturate the future, we must re-craft the past, and the way that seems to happen is in the synergism of myth and ritual as expressed in a variety of forms (Bittarello)

The introduction to this chapter takes place in a land ruled by animalistic deities. The

The problem with the pieces of art that were under analysis was that there was a lack of textual evidence concerning the value of those ritual vessels as well as of other artworks that Bagley uses to develop his argument. Nevertheless, such approach allows him to indicate the weaknesses in the reasoning and, in this way, make his reasoning stronger. For example, Bagley puts an emphasis on the need to consider not only the potential symbolism of the painted elements but also to research the history of the elements and how they were used before. Bagley writes, “No inventory of meanings will ever be enough to explain the appearance of the Lindisfarne page or the appearance of a Shang bronze”, and he expresses reasonable claim here defending the idea of decorative value of respective elements (8). If the meaning of the ornaments was only characterized by symbolism and devoted to the beliefs' expression, there would be no place for changes in the use of ornaments in definite time or otherwise.

But Honthorst’s painting contrasts with both typical ceiling paintings and his own typically Biblical subject matter. As we gaze up toward heaven to look at the painting, we expect to see a Bible story; instead, our eyes are greeted by a merry pastoral scene depicting common people in the midst of a common activity. Unlike many of the paintings that Honthorst saw in Italy, its secular subject parodies the idea of heaven depicted in many ceiling paintings. Instead of looking up to see angels floating in the distant atmosphere, we see a host of ‘normal’ people. We are even invited to join them, and the simple balcony makes us feel that we need only climb upstairs in order to enjoy the same happiness.

As discussed in our class lectures, and often thought of as the main remembrance of Minoan culture, the courtyard of the Minoan Palace is said to have been the setting of the Bull Rituals, where a bull ring would be assembled and crowd would gather to watch the fertility festival of bull leaping, which is depicted in most of the recreations of the city itself. Contradictory to this common belief, Walter Gram challenged the most prominent idea of Minoan culture and claims in the article ‘The Central Court as the Minoan Bull Ring’ that the main courtyard was actually never used for such events.

Introduction – In modern day Turkey, a mystery lies in the hills. A site known as “Gobekli Tepe is being unearthed and studied by anthropologists; it is like no other that has been seen before. Gobekli Tepe is thought to have been erected hundreds of years before the estimated rise of agriculture. Many historians and anthropologists speculate what pre-agricultural force could have compelled these people to create this large complex; religion is one example of a powerful force, one that can even transcend millennia. Even with much evidence to suggest Gobekli Tepe’s religious relations, scholars can only speculate what may have really happened here; Gobekli Tepe, however, is not the only example. From what the evidence that has been collected, religion and religious rituals contributed to the development of more sedentary cultures around the time of the Neolithic Revolution.

There is evidence of the Minoans existence in some of history’s writings, one of the most famous being Plato’s Law 4.706 stating, “When Minos, once upon a time, reduced the people of Attica to gracious payment of tribute, he was very powerful by sea, whereas they possessed no warships at this time, such as they have nor was the country so rich in timber that they could easily supply themselves with a naval force” ( ). Not only does this lead to belief of their existence, but that the Minoan’s were a peaceful, non-violent civilization whose only concentration was in supplying goods and services to nearby lands such as Egypt, Syria and Greece. So what could possibly have happened to such civil people?

The most important historical sources for the Minoan and the Mycenaean civilizations are the archaeological sites found on the island of Crete. The pottery and ancient artifacts found in differing layers, and divide the Bronze Age into three major periods; the Early, Middle and Late Minoan. One of the most important artifacts which has been found was a tablet that was actually hardened by a great fire which destroyed the Palace at Cnossus. The tablet was written in three distinct kinds of writing.. One of the scripts, Linear B, was later deciphered as an earlier form of Greek. The contents of the tablet contained inventories and revealed the organization of the palace, which was ruled by the king, with a bureaucratic system that kept meticulous

The Minoan society was located on the island of Crete around 2200 BCE. They were the center of maritime trade during this time as well. The Minoans used an undeciphered syllabic alphabet called Linear A. A decline in their society was caused by a series of natural disasters, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions,and tidal waves. Foreign invasions started to take place because they wanted the Minoans riches. They were almost completely dominated by foreign forces by 1100 BCE. The Mycenaean people flourished around the same time as the Minoans. The Mycenaean took Linear A and mixed it with their own language to for a written language known as Linear B. There was military expansion throughout the region, and they engage in a conflict with troy, called the Trojan War around 1200 BCE. Because of this war, there was chaos throughout the region from about 1100 to 800 BCE. This causes political instability in the area, so people migrate out, and the Mycenaean civilization disappears along with Linear A and Linear B.

Myths contain the archetypes that dwell upon the deeper, much more significant human patterns of characterization, action, and circumstance; to maintain their essences despite manifold variations. Both the literal and figurative coexist with great comfort and both have meanings that transcend time, and are simultaneously embedded in a particular time-a standpoint moment- at a particular place. It truly makes one wonder whether it is truly fate or just a game of the subconscious mind, where the focus of one’s subconscious mind is within a losing battle. The language, image, and choices in any presentation are conditioned by prevailing cultural norms, along with his/her personal relations in history. As myths are meant to be told and retold,

One way that surviving objects and monuments created by and for Mycenaean kings embodied their power was the way in which they were buried. In the textbook, it is stated, “six deep shafts served as tombs for kings and their families. The excavation of the royal shaft graves yielded many gold artifacts,” for example, the gold Mycenaean mask of a bearded man that was discovered in a royal grave. The way in which they were buried embodies their power in that it shows that they were royalty. A normal Mycenaean may not have been buried the same way as a royal Mycenaean would have been. By being buried with gold and other riches, a Mycenaean was sure to be differentiated as royalty and it would also show the power they possessed as a noble by being

Magic and ritual are often associated with vengeful gods and bloody sacrifices, possibly due to their representation in book, movies, and other forms of entertainment. One might think that they have no power to bring a community together, other than through fear. However, through the lives of the Trobriand islanders, well observed by the polish anthropologist and ethnographer Bronisław Malinowski, we see that rituals and customs maintained by a powerful connection to magic is a mechanism of social order and betterment where a traditional government does not exist. Magic, therefore, is a power handed to man via tradition to control his creation and its nature is that of “a social force” (Malinowski 1922: 397).

The Minoan Civilization was a civilization that thrived in the middle Bronze Age on the small island of Crete from ca.2000 BCE until ca. 1500 BCE. Their Significant contribution dealing with their distinctive art and architecture, is what made the development of Western European civilization as it is known today. The first writing systems of Europe was the ornamental Crete Hieroglyphs, and the stylized Linear A, which was developed by the Minoans. The Minoans was a thalassocracy government, which meant that their rulership was based on the control of the seas. The Minoan religion was a religion of the Bronze Age Minoan