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Mycenaeans
Early Mainland Greek Civilization
Mainland Greece (2000 B.C.)
Human development seen at around same time as on Crete with Minoans
• Mainlanders lived in small farming communities
Invasions of Indo-Europeans from north as early as 2500 B.C.
Many spoke Achaean
• Basis for modern Greek
Early Mycenaeans
Most of what we know comes from grave sites
• Show vast increase in wealth
Early shaft grave:
• Many bronze weapons (swords, daggers, spears, knives, and pottery, little
gold/jewelry
Later shaft grave:
• Contained 3 men and 2 women
• 43 swords and hundreds of expensive objects
 Items of gold, silver, bronze, ivory, amber and alabaster
 All exquisitely crafted
Shows control of local economy and contact with other civilizations
Change to Tombs
Shows growth in power and resources
Tholos tombs
• Large stone chambers (beehive shape)
 Cut into hillside
• Approached through long stone lined passage and huge bronze doors
• Covered by mound of earth
Height of Mycenaean engineering
Most tombs robbed
• Unplundered tombs show grave good even more impressive than richest shaft
graves
• Also show maintenance of warrior culture (weapons)
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Establishing Power
Within 500 years invaders established themselves in southern Greece
Mycenae was political centre
• Hence the name: Mycenaean
Dominated Mediterranean from ca. 1600 -1100 B.C.
• Took control of Crete (inhabited by the Minoans)
Wealthy chiefdoms became well-defined city states
• Ruled by a King from a fortified palace
Culture influenced heavily by Minoans
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Palace Relations
Not a united kingdom
Kings ruled regions
Possible that other palaces were semi-independent and recognized Mycenae as
superior and so pledged loyalty
From 1600-1200 B.C. relations seem to have been peaceful
• Conflict between palaces for regional control occurred
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• Conflict between palaces for regional control occurred
 Little evidence of all out war
Palaces
Architecture and decorations follow Minoan example
Differences:
• Much smaller
• Located on hills
• thick fortified walls (often about 20 ft. thick)
Later Greeks referred to walls as Cyclopean (blocks so large only Cyclops could move
them)
• City walls were less immense, but still impregnable (first siege machinery
developed in 4th c. B.C.)
Focus of palace was on Megaron (rectangular hall, with anterooms, leading to a
courtyard)
• Circular hearth in centre, flanked by 4 columns
• Oculus (opening) above to let out smoke
• ceremonial centre (feasts, receiving guests, holding meetings)
Very luxurious
• Walls covered with decorations and frescos (Minoan in style), but usually depict
martial content (combat)
Discovery of Mycenae
Excavations undertaken by Heinrich Schliemann in 1874
• Under pretext of an alleged survey, but with real intention of excavation
The entrance to Mycenae is known as the “Lion Gate”
• Lead up is a 12ft. wide graded road and a ramp supported by a 5 terrace wall
The Citadel Complex:
• Palace shrine was located on the upper terrace (ivory figures of 2 goddesses and
an infant god, as well as tripod fragments were found)
• Approx. 40 steps lead to the great court
 Megaron had a painted stucco floor, the walls were painted in frescoes (one seems
to be of a battle)
 the central hearth has 10 layers of plaster, and the floor has 4; suggesting a long
period of use
• Citadel also contained many houses of retainers (one of them 3 stories high)
• A granary was located b/w Cyclopean wall and grave circles
City was destroyed by fire in 1100 B.C.
Mycenae Finds
Uncovered a grave circle in 1878
• His methods were so bad (again destroying layers that got in his way) that the
Greek gov’t assigned an overseer to watch him
Uncovered magnificently crafted items in bronze, gold, and silver
• Silver bulls head plated in gold
• Gold lion heads and masks
• Rings and precious objects
• “Death Mask of Agamemnon”
 Much more intricate than other masks
 Believed the mask is about 300 years to old to be Agamemnon’s
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Trade
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Trade
By 1300 B.C.
• Evidence of active trading around Mediterranean (Sardinia Southern Italy and Sicily,
Troy down to Egypt, and Macedonia)
Settlements and trade post across Asian coastline and islands
• Ie. Rhodes and Cyprus
Peaceful trade but also piracy
• Remember warriors buried with huge store of weapons
• Could easily mount expeditions in search of booty
International Relations
Despite smaller population and division into smaller states
• Were the third power in Mediterranean area (behind Hittite Empire and Egypt)
Significance of presence shown in Hittite records
• Exchange of gifts b/w king of Hatti and king of Ahhiyawa (Achaea)
 Ahhiyawoi = Achaeans (inclusive term for Greeks)
• In a letter, king of the Hitties addressed his “brother, the king of Ahhiyawa.”
Not always peaceful
• 13th c. record tells of a “man from Ahhiyawa” invading Hittite territory in western
Anatolia
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Discovery of Nestor’s Palace, Pylos, 1939
Nestor, important leader of Trojan War, was said to be king of Pylos
• Discovery of Nestor’s Palace (built ca. 1300 B.C.; destroyed ca. 1200 B.C.) revealed
rich city only even mentioned in legend
• Showed powerful centre could exist away from powerful eastern and central
centres
• best preserved Mycenaean palace, with 105 floor rooms and 4 main buildings.
Surveys of area show population increased quickly (became most heavily populated
area in Mycenaean Greece)
• About 4000 from 2800-1900 B.C. (Early Helladic Period)
• 10,000 from 1900-1580 B.C. (Mid. Helladic Period)
• 50,000 from 1580-1150 B.C. (Late Helladic Period)
 Some estimates as high as 100,000
Linear B Tablets
Huge # of Linear B tablets found in archive rooms of Pylos
• With tablets from Mycenae and Knossos they give clearest picture of organization
and workings of Mycenaean kingdoms
• Day-to-day administrative details
Clay tablets (temporary records)
Social Rankings
Wanax (‘lord’ or ‘master’) at top
Next was lawagetas (combo of words for ‘people’ and ‘leader’)
• Probably commander of army
Telestai were on same level as lawagetas
• Same allotment of land
• Function unknown; some believe them to be priests
Hequetas (could mean ‘follower’), possibly high rank military officers
Korete and prokorete – governor of district and his deputy
Pasireu - in charge of towns/villages
Highest officials received land from wanax in return for service
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Highest officials received land from wanax in return for service
• Probably same situation b/w higher officials and lower ones
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Hierarchy in Village
Higher officials and some lower ones lives in substantial houses on citadels or in
country towns
Only highest ranking buried in tholoi tombs
 based on cost or perhaps permission
Lesser elites buries in simple rectangular tombs
Majority lived in small moderately furnished houses (buried in small graves, with few
goods)
• Made living as farmers, artisans and herders
• Living standards same as ancestors; no better, no worst (stayed same through
much of Greek antiquity)
• Farmed on land belonging to nobles as tenants
• Other non-elites had their own land in their name
 Craftsmen and herders were ‘owners’ of their own land
50-70 families in typical Mycenaean village
• Had share in villages land or rented land allocated by officials
Palace
Manufacturing
Tablets show huge array of jobs
• Men: carpenters, masons, smiths (bronze &gold), bow-makers, armourers, leather
workers
• Physician is mentioned on one tablet
• Women: textiles (spinners, weavers, embroiderers)
Records kept on raw materials used, goods produced, and rations of food for workers
• Ie: “one ebony footstool inlaid with figures of men and lion in ivory.”
• Chariot wheels recorded and “unserviceable” or “fit for use”
1/3rd of tablets refer to sheep and wool
• Pylos had one of largest textile industries
Trade
Leading exports were textiles and metalwork
Export of olive oil, hides, leather, wine, furniture all over Mediterranean
Ceramics are items that are most numerous in other locations
Imported other items needed
• Gold, copper, tin, ivory, dyes, spices
• Also manufactured items (jewelry, ceramics)
Religion
Processions, music, dances
gifts and sacrifices
• Land, animals, precious objects
Ceremonies presided over by kings
maintain harmonious relationship with immortals
Borrowed from Minoan
• Features nature (snakes, bulls, birds), bullhorns, axes (double-head)
Mycenaean palaces were main centre of religion
• Minoans worshiped in caves and at shrines on mountains
Gods/
Goddesses
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Goddesses
Mainly worshipped goddess figure
• Thought to represent different goddesses
• Fertility and other aspects of life
As many male gods as female
• Rarely depicted in art
Names of gods and goddesses from Greek antiquity also appear
• Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Athena, Artemis, Ares, Apollo, Hermes
Elements are combo of Indo-European, Aegean, Cretan and Near Eastern
End of Mycenaean Civilization
Late Bronze Age
Every centre, major and minor, was attacked, plundered and burned by invaders
• Around 1200 B.C., spanned over a few decades
• Some centres re-occupied, until 1150 B.C.
 New wave of invasions
Centres either abandoned completely or shrank considerably
• Lapsed into collection of small villages
Attackers were migrating warrior bands from many areas (Lybians, Phillisitnes,
Anatolians, Sicilians, Dorians from north)
• Also attacked and destroyed the Hittites
Secondary cause of collapse
Social Breakdown
Mycenaean breakdown more or less due to “system collapse” (social and economic)
• Prolonged drought, over population, soil exhaustion
• Ruling structure broke down
 Kings unable to cope with situation
International trade interrupted
• Foreign trade ceased all over Mediterranean
Invasions could be seen more as groups filling political vacuum.
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