Minoan remains indicate that Minoan clothing fit the contours of the body and required knowledge of sewing techniques. Men wore a variety of loin coverings and rarely covered their upper bodies. Women wore tiered, bell- shaped skirts and fitted short- sleeved tops that exposed the breasts. Minoans seemed to idealize tiny waists, and both men and women wore tightly fitted belts, or girdles, that cinched their waists down to a fashionably small size. The remains of Minoan culture influenced the Mycenaeans who adopted many of their clothing styles. Women wore the same long skirts and short- sleeved tops; however, paintings indicate that Mycenaean women did occasionally cover their breasts with a bib or blouse. Mycenaean armor indicates that Mycenaeans were warlike peoples. For battle Mycenaean soldiers wore protective clothing that wrapped the body from neck to thigh in bronze plates, bronze leg guards, and helmets constructed of boar's tusks.
Greek Clothing The Dorians Greeks became dominant and conquered the struggling Mycenaeans. By the seventh century B.C.E. Greek society was dominated by a wealthy class who wore luxurious woven clothes and decorative jewelry. In general, Greeks did not cut and sew their clothes until the fourth century B.C.E. Instead they draped finely woven cloth over and around their bodies to create distinct styles of dress and protective wraps. Because much of our knowledge of Greek fashions comes from the marble sculptures they left behind, many people once thought that most Greeks wore only white clothes. However, experts have proven using ultraviolet light technology that even the pale marble of the statues was once covered with bright paint that wore off over the centuries. Greeks, in fact, loved color and many dyed their clothes. Wealthy aristocrats wore purple clothes dyed from a species of shellfish or pure white linen robes. Yellow clothes were worn mostly by women. Black clothes were worn by those mourning the death of a loved one. Peasants dyed their clothing a variety of greens, browns, and grays. Soldiers wore dark red garments to minimize the appearance of blood on the battlefield.
Bull Jumping Bull jumping is thought to have been a key ritual in the religion of the Minoan civilization in Bronze Age Crete, where the bull was worshipped and honored, as seen in the frescoes of the Palace of Knossos and in other art. Scholars argue that these depictions represent a ritual sport or performance in which human athletes literally vaulted over bulls as part of a ceremonial rite.
Aegean Alphabets Writing System Cretan Hieroglyphics Linear A Linear B Greek Alphabet Location Crete Greek Islands/Mainland Greece & Crete Greece & Crete Time Period c. 1625 1500 BC c. 1800 1450 BC c. 1450 1200 BC c. 800 BCE Present Phaistos Disk Linear B Tablet Language Minoan? Minoan? Mycenaean Greek Greek
Minoan Collapse The island of Santorini, 70 miles north of Crete, was home to the wealthy Minoan seaport of Akrotiri, a place where the wall paintings discovered portray their landscape with happy animals and farmers harvesting saffron. But the Minoans had built their prosperous city on one of the most dangerous islands on earth, next to the volcano Thera. Around 1600, B.C., Akrotiri was shaken by a violent earthquake. Some time later, an eruption occurred. The Theran eruption was one of largest in human history blasting more than 10 million tons of ash, gas, and rock 25 miles into the atmosphere. Incredibly, despite Crete s close proximity to the volcano, the debris from Thera largely missed the major Minoan towns. On Crete, strange and chaotic layers of soil, broken pottery, building materials, and even cattle bones can be found along the eroding coastline near the ancient town of Palaikastro. With the help of soil scientist Hendrik Bruins, archaeologist Sandy McGillivray discovers that the soil also contains micro- organisms that are normally found only on the ocean floor. The only way they could have been deposited on land is by a powerful tsunami. The presence of Theran pumice that could only have been washed ashore on Crete by powerful waves seems to indicate that the volcano caused the tsunami, and carbon dating of a cow bone found in the chaotic layer of sediment confirms that it was deposited there around 1600 B.C., the same time that Thera erupted.
Dorian Invasion