While digging in Pylos, an ancient city in southwest Greece, a team of archaeologists led by Sharon Stocker and Jack Davis made a stunning discovery: the tomb of a wealthy warrior that’s remained hidden and untouched for more than 3,500 years!
More than 1,400 objects —many of which are gold, silver, bronze or ivory —were found buried in the tomb, which could shed light on how the Minoan culture lead to the Mycenaean civilization. The Minoan culture of the island of Crete is considered to be the “the first link in the European chain,” regarding the history of civilization.
The term “Minoan” refers to the mythic King Minos, and was originally given as a description to the pottery of this period. Minos was associated in Greek myth with the labyrinth and the Minotaur.
The Minoan civilization was an Aegean Bronze Age civilization that arose on the island of Crete and other Aegean islands and flourished from approximately 3650 to 1400 BC. The Minoan period saw significant contacts between Crete, the Aegean and the Mediterranean, particularly the Near East.
The Minoans were primarily a mercantile people engaged in overseas trade. As traders and artists, their cultural influence reached far beyond the island of Crete. Objects of Minoan manufacture suggest there was a network of trade with mainland Greece, Cyprus, Syria, Anatolia, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and westward as far as the coast of Spain.
The Minoans raised cattle, sheep, pigs, and goats, and grew wheat, barley, vetch, and chickpeas; they also cultivated grapes, figs, and olives, and grew poppies. The Minoans also domesticated bees.
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