Speech on Minoan Legends

Essay by nickriceHigh School, 12th grade April 2004

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Good morning today I'm going to talk about Minoan Crete. The Minoans were a Bronze Age society who lived on the island of Crete. Crete is located in the Greek islands and is the biggest of all the Greek isles measuring approximately 260km x 60km. The Minoans ruled Crete from 3500 BC to around 1220 BC. There were four distinct periods in the Minoan rule.pre-palace period 3500 to 2300 BC, 1st palace period 2300 to 1700 BC, 2nd palace period 1700 to 1500BD, 3rd palace period 1500 to 1220 BC and post palace period 1220 to 1050BC. In the first palace period Power began to be centered around kings. The first large palace centers came into being. Excavation has revealed four large palaces at Knossos, Phaestos, Malia, and Zakros so far. The first palace centers and the settlements of Crete were reduced to ruins possibly by earthquakes this shuned in the dawn of the 2nd palace period.

Minoan Civilization reached its zenith in the Second Palace Period. Magnificent new palaces were built upon the ruins of the old ones. The cities around them expanded. Many lords in rural villas controlled areas in the same way as the feudal lords of the Middle Ages. Their ships carried both the products of Minoan and other societies throughout the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean to trade. The new palaces were multi-storeyed and complex. They had great courtyards with grand porticoes, broad staircases, processional paths and monumental entrances. again the palaces were destroyed in 1380.this started the 3rd palace period. After the final destruction of about 1380, none of the Minoan palaces were rebuilt. Even the palace at Knossos was not rebuilt, although the city around it stayed alive. The Mycenaeans built their megara on other sites, some of which survived on the ruins of...