Rise of the Minoans

Summary

The Ancients Podcast: "Rise of the Minoans" – A Comprehensive Summary

Episode Title: Rise of the Minoans
Host: Tristan Hughes
Guest: Professor Nicoletta Momigliano (University of Bristol)
Release Date: June 8, 2025
Podcast Series: The Ancients by History Hit

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Introduction to the Minoans

In the episode "Rise of the Minoans," host Tristan Hughes delves into the complexities and mysteries of the Minoan civilization, one of the most fascinating Bronze Age societies that flourished on the island of Crete around 3,500 years ago. The Minoans, named after the legendary King Minos of Knossos, are renowned for their advanced architecture, vibrant frescoes, and the enigmatic lore surrounding the mythical Minotaur.

Tristan Hughes [00:57]:
"The great wealth and prestige of the Minoans, now, archaeology has proven that to be true. From their beautiful frescoes to the monumental palaces, the Minoans have fascinated millions ever since their rediscovery in the 19th century."

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Origins and Early Settlements

Professor Nicoletta Momigliano provides an in-depth exploration of the origins of the Minoans, tracing their ancestry to settlers from present-day southwest Turkey or northern Syria around 7,000 BC. These early settlers brought with them domesticated animals and agricultural practices, laying the foundation for what would become a sophisticated civilization.

Professor Momigliano [08:52]:
"We know that the island of Crete was not permanently inhabited by human beings until around, let's say, ballpark figure, 7,000 BC... These people arrived on the island of Crete around 7,000 BC, as I just mentioned, from somewhere in southwest Turkey or northern Syria."

Initially, Crete saw transient visitors, evidenced by tools and animal remains from earlier periods, such as pygmy hippos. It wasn't until the Neolithic period that permanent settlements began to emerge, evolving into larger communities that would later develop into the Minoan civilization.

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Transition to Minoan Civilization (c. 3000 BC)

The dawn of the Minoan civilization is marked around 3,000 BC, coinciding with the Bronze Age. This period saw the transformation of Crete into a hub of complex societal structures, including the construction of grand palaces and the adoption of metallurgy.

Professor Momigliano [11:48]:
"Yes, the beginning of what we archaeologists have called and continue to call Minoan civilization is around 3000 BC... It is very likely possible that other people also reached the island from other parts of the eastern Mediterranean."

This era parallels significant developments elsewhere, such as the construction of Newgrange in Ireland, highlighting a broader trend of architectural and societal advancements across different regions.

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Architecture and Palatial Centers

A central theme of the episode is the emergence and significance of Minoan palaces, with Knossos being the most prominent example. These palatial complexes were not merely royal residences but multifunctional centers for administration, storage, religious ceremonies, and possibly governance.

Professor Momigliano [29:55]:
"We have clear evidence of what some of the rooms in the palaces were used for, because some rooms were clearly used for storage of products... other rooms had more ceremonial function... Another thing that is clear... is that there doesn't seem to be the elevation of one person, particularly above others."

The palaces featured expansive courtyards, numerous rooms, and sophisticated infrastructure, indicating an organized and possibly hierarchical society. However, the exact nature of their governance remains elusive, with debates ongoing about whether the Minoans were ruled by monarchs like King Minos or a more collective elite.

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Economy and Agriculture

The Minoan economy was diverse and advanced, heavily reliant on agriculture and animal husbandry. They cultivated olives and vines, producing olive oil and wine—staples that were integral to their diet and trade.

Professor Momigliano [24:50]:
"Oh, God, yes. Oh, absolutely, absolutely. And already cultivated even before the palaces... the spike in the pollen from olives and vines... it's already something quite remarkable. So, yes."

Additionally, the Minoans engaged in extensive maritime trade, exchanging goods like olive oil, wine, and crafted items across the Mediterranean. The production of purple dye from Murex shells was particularly noteworthy, symbolizing wealth and prestige.

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Writing Systems: Linear A and Linear B

The Minoans developed their own writing system, Linear A, which remains undeciphered, contributing to the continued mystery surrounding their society. Later, the Mycenaeans introduced Linear B, used to record a form of Greek, offering more insight into the administrative aspects of the later Minoan period.

Professor Momigliano [05:18]:
"Although we can sort of read some of their writings, we don't understand them because the few remaining inscriptions...don't sound like any language we really know."

These scripts are pivotal in understanding the administrative and possibly religious facets of Minoan life, though much remains speculative.

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Social Hierarchy and Administration

The social structure of the Minoans is inferred from archaeological findings, such as communal tombs and the distribution of artifacts within palatial complexes. The absence of clearly defined elite burials suggests a society that may have been less hierarchical than later civilizations.

Professor Momigliano [33:35]:
"...some people have interpreted this as showing that perhaps this was a slightly more egalitarian society, or at least that it was not so hierarchical as in later periods."

However, the introduction of figures like the Wanax, mentioned in Linear B tablets, indicates a shift towards more defined leadership roles, possibly influenced by Mycenaean administrative practices.

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Connections with the Wider Mediterranean

The Minoans were not isolated; they maintained robust connections with other contemporary civilizations, including Egypt, Syria, and regions within the Aegean. These interactions facilitated not only trade but also cultural and technological exchanges.

Professor Momigliano [44:16]:
"We have finds of Egyptian things on Crete starting already in the third millennium and vice versa... we have something like... frescoes produced in Minoan style found in Egypt, in Syria, in what is modern day Israel."

Such exchanges likely contributed to the Minoans' advancements in administration, art, and technology, further solidifying their prominence in the Bronze Age Mediterranean.

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Craftsmanship and Trade: The Purple Dye Industry

One of the standout aspects of Minoan craftsmanship was the production of purple dye from Murex shells. This highly valued commodity underscores the Minoans' sophisticated production techniques and their role in long-distance trade networks.

Professor Momigliano [47:15]:
"It was certainly important because you find remains of purple dye productions at many archaeological sites on Crete... a huge pile of shells, because purple comes from this poor animal that lives inside the shell."

The purple dye industry not only exemplifies Minoan ingenuity but also their economic influence across the region.

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The Transition and Influence of the Mycenaeans

The episode touches upon the eventual influence of the Mycenaeans on Minoan society. Around the mid-second millennium BC, evidence suggests a shift in administrative control, possibly indicating Mycenaean dominance or significant cultural assimilation.

Professor Momigliano [36:33]:
"By the time we have an administration on the island of Crete that uses linear B instead of linear A... there is clear evidence then that there is a more, even more hierarchical structure and that there is a figure that is the first, I would say, not even first amongst equal."

This transition highlights the dynamic nature of ancient civilizations and the continual flux of cultural and administrative practices.

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Conclusion and Future Insights

The episode concludes by acknowledging the vastness of what remains to be discovered about the Minoans. Despite extensive excavations, much of Crete's archaeological wealth is still uncharted, promising future revelations about this enigmatic civilization.

Professor Momigliano [49:24]:
"And people always think that although people have excavated The Knossos since 1900, they found everything. It's just the tip of the iceberg. There is so much more that can be excavated anywhere on Crete."

Host Tristan Hughes reassures listeners that forthcoming episodes will continue to unravel the rich tapestry of Minoan history, exploring further the marvels and mysteries that define their legacy.

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Key Takeaways:

• The Minoan civilization emerged around 3000 BC on Crete, with origins tracing back to settlers from southwest Turkey or northern Syria around 7,000 BC.
• Minoan society was marked by advanced architecture, particularly grand palatial centers like Knossos, which served multifaceted roles in administration, storage, and religious ceremonies.
• Their economy thrived on agriculture, animal husbandry, and extensive maritime trade, including the production of valuable purple dye from Murex shells.
• The undeciphered Linear A script and the later Linear B tablets provide glimpses into their administrative practices, though much remains unknown.
• Social hierarchy in Minoan society appears to have been less rigid initially, with indications of increasing hierarchy influenced by Mycenaean administrative systems.
• The Minoans maintained robust connections with other Mediterranean civilizations, facilitating cultural and technological exchanges that bolstered their prominence.
• Despite significant archaeological work, much of Minoan Crete remains unexplored, promising future discoveries that could further illuminate their sophisticated and enigmatic civilization.

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For listeners eager to delve deeper into the Minoans and other ancient civilizations, subscribing to The Ancients podcast by History Hit is highly recommended. Stay tuned for upcoming episodes that promise to continue uncovering the rich histories of our distant past.

Transcript

[Tristan Hughes]

Hi, I'm Tristan Hughes and if you would like the Ancients ad free. Get early access and bonus episodes. Sign up to History Hit with the History Hit subscription. You can also watch hundreds of hours of original documentaries, including my recent documentary All About Petra and the Nabateans, and enjoy a new release every week. Sign up now by visiting historyhit.com subscribe.

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[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

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[Tristan Hughes]

Hello, Tristan here. I hope you're doing well. We're all good here at History Hit Towers. Now you might not know, but on and off I've been posting polls on Spotify asking listeners which topics you'd like us to cover in future episodes. Now one that was popular, overwhelmingly popular, was the Minoans and I'm delighted with that. There is so much interesting stuff about this Bronze Age civilization, so much mystery, so many million dollar question for archaeologists. In fact, we quickly realized when recording this episode that we couldn't do the Minoans justice with just one interview. We needed more time. So this is Rise of the Minoans. We're talking about the roots of these people and how they flourished. There'll be more episodes to continue the story really soon, and we'll delve into more marvels and mysteries of the Minoans, who were complete game changers. So let's get into it. 3,500 years ago, the island of Crete was home to one of the most extraordinary Bronze Age civilizations in the world. The Minoans, named after the legendary Minos, king of Knossos, who controlled the Minotaur in a great labyrinth beneath his palace. Now, the myth of the Minotaur, half man, half bull, is, of course, fictional, but the great wealth and prestige of the Minoans, now, archaeology has proven that to be true. From their beautiful frescoes to the monumental palaces, the Minoans have fascinated millions ever since their rediscovery in the 19th century. And we're covering part of their story today. It's the Ancients on History hit. I'm Tristan Hughes, your host. Today we're going to explore the emergence of the Minoans on Crete. We'll delve into the origins of this culture at the dawn of metallurgy. We'll look into the surviving sources and the Minoans mysterious writing system, Linear A. We'll explore the emergence of more complex societies on Minoan Crete, centered around great palaces and strange words like wanax that came to be associated with them. All of that and more is to come in today's chat. Our guest is Professor Nicoletta Momigliano from the University of Bristol. Nico has been on the Ancients before to talk all about the legacy of the Minoans, how they were interpreted and reinterpreted by different peoples over the 19th and 20th centuries after their rediscovery. We'll put a link to that episode in the show notes. Now Niko's back to delve into some fascinating topics of the Bronze Age Minoans. Nico. Oh, such a pleasure to have you back on the podcast. Welcome back.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Thank you for having me again. Thank you.

[Tristan Hughes]

You're more than welcome to talk more about the Minoans. I mean, are the Minoans, are they still quite a mysterious Bronze Age civilization? Nico?

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Yes, definitely, Definitely still very mysterious, if only because although we can sort of read some of their writings, we don't understand them because the few remaining inscriptions that we have that seem to express the language or Languages spoken by the Minoans are very, very few. And although, as I said, we might be able to read them, what we read doesn't sound like any language we really know. People have made all kinds of suggestions. I mean, we may know some of the names of their divinities. Also, because we know some of the names of the divinities, we can make educated guesses from later texts, texts written in linear B, which is another script that was in use in the Aegean during the Bronze Age. And we know that linear B expressed a form of Greek. And in some of the linear B inscriptions, we have names of what seem to be names of deities that are not Greek names. And these deities are recorded in linear B tablets that were found on Crete at the famous archaeological site of Knossos. And they seem to be a list of local divinities. And they have strange names like Asasara, Pituna and so on. But otherwise they are very mysterious, partly because all we have is images and archaeological evidence. You know, unlike the Greeks, unlike the Romans or even the Sumerians or Egyptians, where we have lots and lots of text for Minoans, very little. So they are still very mysterious.

[Tristan Hughes]

Nico, as this chat goes on, I will ask more about the writing and that linear a text that you highlighted just there, and also something called the Phaistos disc, which sounds very, very interesting. But if we go to the source material that archaeologists like yourself have for learning more about the Minoans, I mean, what types of sources do you have available to learn more about the mysterious Minoans?

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Well, we have all the usual sources that archaeologists have. Their finds, their architecture, frescoes, and also other kinds of evidence, such as what they ate. You know, a lot of what archaeologists dig are just garbage, literally refuse pits where you find all kinds of interesting garbage. And also we can find more about the Minoans from their own bones, because apart from settlements, ritual places, places where people perform religious rituals, we also have quite a lot of cemeteries. So we can learn something about the Minoans to. By just looking at their bones and their rubbish. And their rubbish includes animal bones, but also seeds, pollen levels we can gather from cores dug in the soil, and we can tell what they ate and what they cultivated and what they hunted.

[Tristan Hughes]

There's nothing that gets a student of archaeology more interested in the topic than. Than a very exciting prehistoric garbage pile is what I've learned over the few years, isn't it? Because it might not sound very glamorous, but actually you can learn so much, as you say, about what they eat about their lifestyle, their societies, and then also, I guess, DNA looking at actual human bones, you can start piercing more about who these Minoan figures were.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Absolutely, absolutely. And we know from different kinds of evidence, for example, that the island of Crete was not permanently inhabited by human beings until around, let's say, ballpark figure, 7,000 BC. And we also know from all kinds of archaeological evidence, like the one we have just talked about from what they ate and what they cultivated, that these people arrived on the island of Crete around 7,000 BC, as I just mentioned, from somewhere in southwest Turkey or northern Syria, you know, kind of that area of the world. And we know that because before that, on the islands, there was no trace of, say, sheep, pigs, barley, wheat. But these things had already been domesticated, cultivated in that part of the world. So we know where they. Roughly where they came from. And from 7,000 BC onwards, we find permanent settlements on the island of Crete. Before that period, we have evidence that people probably visited the island because we find instruments dating to earlier periods, because we also have evidence of fauna like pygmy hippos and other animals that. Pygmy hippos, yes, that have probably been hunted to death by the people who visited the island. But then people who actually settled permanently came later. So we have a period of explorations and using the island of Crete, the heartland of the Minoan world, well before that, but permanent settlements only a bit later in the Neolithic period, which for crete is around 7,000 BC.

[Tristan Hughes]

So these people come over, as you say, from present day Anatolia, from Turkey. They're farmers, so they're bringing their livestock with them. So can we say that they are the ancestors of the Minoans, or are they proto Minoans? Or when roughly do you go from these being like the Stone Age farmers who preceded the Minoans to actually the beginnings of the Minoans civilization in Crete?

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Yes, the beginning of what we archaeologists have called and continue to call Minoan civilization is around 3000 BC. And between 7000 BC and 3000 BC, it is very likely possible that other people also reached the island from other parts of the eastern Mediterranean. But certainly a lot of the population of the people that we call Minoan must have descended from the first colonizer of the island. That is certain, because, you know, there is no mass extinction of people. There is no clear mass migration of people from other areas. There is evidence of people moving from other parts of the Aegean and possibly the eastern Mediterranean, onto Crete at different times of the 2nd millennium BC and the movement of people. The migration of people is a constant of Mediterranean life. To think that, you know, there is no changes, that there are no new arrivals of populations ever, that the population is just the descendants of this small group. It's just not how life works in any country, in any situation.

[Tristan Hughes]

No, I think you're right, Nico. And we've done a few podcast episodes on the ancients over the years on Stone Age movements of people across oceans and seas, whether you're in the islands of Britain and Orkney and Shetland and Ireland and Brittany, or as you say, in the Mediterranean. So lots of movement in those thousands of years before we then get to the beginnings of a known civilization, as you've mentioned there. So around 3000 BC, Nico. So that's exactly the same time places like Newgrange in Ireland, the great passage Tomb in Newgrange in Ireland is being built. So that's a fascinating comparison there. And before the pyramids, Nico, is this also aligned in regards to time period? Do you see the rise of the Minoan civilization also with the rise of metallurgy with copper and then bronze?

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Yes, indeed, indeed. Although there is evidence that metallurgy was already being exploited a bit earlier than that. But it's when it starts becoming more common. So what we call the Minoan Age, the Minoan period, is another way of calling the Bronze Age of Crete. In fact, some people don't even like the term Minoan civilization. Some people have said we should ditch this name because it's after mythical figure, and we don't have any evidence that anybody called Minos or Minos ever existed. We should ditch this term. It is a term that has too much baggage, and we should simply call this the Cretan Bronze Age. I like Minos. I think it's very memorable.

[Tristan Hughes]

I think so, too. And I think the name Minoan has an instant appeal and allure to many people across the world. And I think that'll be shown by the popularity of this podcast episode, too. But you raised there an important point and almost a quick tangent by me, kind of going back to the sources that you have to study the Minoans. So naturally, archaeology and bones and DNA are important for learning more about the Minoans. Of course, you've got the figure of King Minos and the story of the Minotaur, which are closely linked. And we've done an episode on in the past now, how important a source is Greek mythology and these mythological stories of things like the Minotaur, how important are they in also learning about the Minoans, can we say that they help archaeologists at all?

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Well, I think all these stories tell us much more about the later Greeks than they actually tell us about the people who lived on Crete in the Bronze Age. These are just stories that were invented later by people who, I think, lost something in translation. People who encountered ruins of palaces that they didn't remember who were built by and were built for. So Greek mythology doesn't tell us very much about the Cretan Bronze Age. It's as if you were trying to learn about Roman history from Shakespeare's Roman plays. These sources that we have contain some memories, but they are pretty garbled memories, and they are far more like inventions, stories to explain realities that were no longer part of living memories. I said to explain ruins or rituals that perhaps had lasted for centuries and the origins of these rituals had been forgotten. We know that people in the Bronze Age, Minoan people were very fond of taking votives, having parties on top of mountains, and they brought with them votives to give to their deities. Perhaps people, even after the collapse of Minoan civilization, continued to walk up mountains and take votaries, but people couldn't remember exactly why, or they decided to change deities. Some form of sacrality attaches itself to certain localities, and people continue to use these places for their rituals. If you think, for example, the Athenian Acropolis, the Temple of Athena, was a mosque and a Christian temple for longer than it ever was. A Greek temple dedicated to Athena in Sicily, in Syracuse, one of the most important churches of Syracuse was built using an old Greek temple. There is a form of sacrality that attaches itself to certain places, and people continue to use them to venerate these places, but they change the divinities that are venerated there. But there is something about the sacrality of the place, and there is something that people remembered about Knossos, or Knossos, as I prefer to say, probably ruins of the great Minoan palace stood there for centuries, even after it was abandoned, destroyed and then abandoned. And people attached wonderful stories to these ruins, like the stories of King Minos and the Minotaur and the Labyrinth, and so on and so forth.

[Tristan Hughes]

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[Tristan Hughes]

I've got in my notes that I mean of Course, we think of the palaces when you get to the Minoans, but I don't think those appear straight away. So do we have an idea what these earliest Minoan societies looks like? Should we just be imagining small farming settlements dotted around the place?

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Yes and no. In the sense that, yes, certainly. At first, even the great site of Knossos was just like. Almost like migrant camp. It was tiny. But then population grew. And yes, we have lots of small settlements, settlements of perhaps one hectare or even less two hectares, where perhaps only five or six families live. But then we also get, at some point in the middle of the third millennium, even larger settlements, settlements where the population was probably reaching already perhaps a thousand 1500 people. But also throughout the history of Minoan Crete, and also in later periods, you have a combination of different types of settlements, smaller places, larger places. But already, even before the construction of the palaces, there seem to have been some spaces that were more larger than others, where people were already attracting larger populations. And one of them was Knossos. And people always have to remember that palaces are not isolated buildings, as indeed Buckingham palace is not an isolated building. It's bang in the center of a thriving city of London. And the same with minor palaces. They are not isolated building. They emerge within larger settlements.

[Tristan Hughes]

So the foodstuffs that they would have. So I'm guessing crops, pastures for animals. Is it like sheep and cows, maybe, Please.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Sheep, goats to bubble.

[Tristan Hughes]

Sheep and goats bubble cattle a bit less.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

But there is also cattle, because that's what the kind of environment can sustain better. You know, for cattle, you need quite a lot of water. And there are areas of Crete where there is but sheep and goat.

[Tristan Hughes]

Top sheep and goat economy. Those Bronze Age Minoans, they loved it. Are olives and wine. Are those also big parts of the farming out there?

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Oh, God, yes. Oh, absolutely, absolutely. And already cultivated even before the palaces. And we can see that also very, very well. When you take cores inside the soil of Crete, the spike in the pollen from olives and vines that you get in the third millennium, it's already something quite remarkable. So, yes. Are you wondering whether they were already having a lot of drink? Yes, I'm sure they did.

[Tristan Hughes]

So the Cretans were growing wine and olives by some 5,000 years ago. That's insane. So, Nika, let's go on to those settlements that you've already highlighted. So you mentioned different sizes of settlements in even during the third millennium B.C. and those bigger places like Knossos. How do we then get to the next level? With the emergence of palaces, do we know much about the context of the appearance of palaces?

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

It's a million dollar question in a sense. I mean, people have been debating exactly what led to this next step forever and ever. I mean, since Sir Arthur Evans. And why do we have the emergence of palaces on the island of Crete and not, for example, in mainland Greece, where we have similar developments? There is something that happens towards the end of the third millennium BC and possible there may be some evidence of some big droughts affecting part of the eastern Mediterranean, possibly even elements of warfare. And some people managed to react to adversity in different ways. And one way in which perhaps the people on Crete reacted to some form of adversity was to create more complex society, more bureaucracy. There is also the fact that already throughout the third millennium, Crete had very close contacts with very complex societies like Egyptian society. And, for example, it is very likely that the Minoans got the idea of using writing for bureaucracy, seals, seal impressions to control the movements of goods or to lock rooms that stored particular goods. They got possibly some of these ideas from Egyptians or other contemporary societies with whom they were already in contact. Because, you know, earlier we were talking about migrations in addition to migrations, and people think of mass movements of populations, but there are even smaller migrations that happen because of trade routes and trade links and sometimes for marriage purposes. And we have evidence that Minoan Crete was in contact with all kinds of other parts of the eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean and Egypt in particular, already from the final Neolithic and from the third millennium bc. So it's, I think, another reason why perhaps certain things may have happened on Crete before they happened in other places, because somebody got the idea of using bureaucracy, extracting more taxes from their neighbors, exploiting other people from nearby civilizations that had already developed this kind of social organization. More complex.

[Tristan Hughes]

Exactly. So new social organization ideas could come from those trade routes. Which is a really good point to highlight there, Nico.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

I'd like people always to think of, say, what happens, for example, in the UK when the Romans arrive here. Big changes. You know, the Romans didn't stay here very long. I think it was too cold. No, I'm joking. But even simply the contacts with other civilizations, more complex organizations sometimes can bring other changes in neighboring countries, even if they're not necessarily conquered.

[Tristan Hughes]

Well, you certainly do see that, Nico, in Britain before the Romans arrive and the elites in the south and east wanting to get access to, like, Roman wine and starting their kind of new practices based on it. And so you do see that Influence. So it's interesting to speculate whether that kind of neighboring power influence from Egypt or somewhere did influence the creation of the idea of palaces and so on. With these palaces, I'm sure they evolve over the hundreds of years, Nico, but I mean, just how monumental and complex did they become in their design? And what do we think were the functions of these massive buildings?

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

That's exactly another million dollar question. I mean, we have clear evidence of what some of the rooms in the palaces were used for, because some rooms were clearly used for storage of products. We know that other rooms had more ceremonial function. Other rooms had perhaps ritual functions, like little shrines. In terms of monumentality. Well, I can imagine that the palace of Knossos, or Knossos, is built around a central court which is about 50 meters long. Now, isn't that about like a football pitch or perhaps a bit smaller than a football pitch?

[Tristan Hughes]

I don't know. Don't test me.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Yes, no, exactly, I don't know. No, I think it's smaller than a football pitch, but, you know, 50 meters, 50 yards. It's a long rectangular square. And this is built around this. There are hundreds of rooms. There are clearly at least two floors in parts of this construction, because we find remains of stairs and so on. So they are vast structures. Okay, not as large as Buckingham palace, but for those periods there are large structures. They are obviously controlled by the elite of Minoan society. But whether this elite was a kind of monarchical system, as the myth of King Minos would imply, or more like a corporate group, a kind of theocracy, these are speculation. One thing that is clear, and it's very peculiar about the Minoans is that the iconography of the elite and the iconography of the rulers and the difference between elites and priesthood is very difficult to distinguish. And sometimes even you can't tell whether something that is being depicted is necessarily a deity or, or a priestess or a priest representative of that deity, or whether this could be a member of the elite. In other contemporary societies, it's easier to understand also because we have the help of inscriptions. But it is something peculiar about Minoan Crete that there doesn't seem to be the elevation of one person, particularly above others, who. Or if there is, it's not so clearly visible. And also for lots and lots of centuries, especially in the. Until the mid of the second millennium bc, a lot of the tombs are communal tombs, like family or clan vaults used over centuries with dozens of burials inside. And again, that doesn't seem to be specific burials that are elevated above others. And that has been interpreted by some people as showing that perhaps this was a slightly more egalitarian society, or at least that it was not so hierarchical as in later periods where you have a supreme ruler. But as I said, perhaps it was simply people simply chose not to show this in their iconography.

[Tristan Hughes]

So do we think then that there were other purposes to these palaces right from the beginning? Do we think it maybe is administration centers, you know, as the societies get more complex and centers of community. Do we get any of those sorts of ideas from palaces?

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Absolutely. As I said, there is a storage function illustrated by the storage rooms. We have an administrative function illustrated by the tablets, the seal impressions that people use. If literacy is not very widespread, how can you explain to people that they shouldn't enter a particular room or that certain goods are meant for somebody else? One way of showing this is by using seals and seal impressions, which are still used in the modern world sometimes. And as I said, there are religious functions. I mean, there are rooms that seem to be devoted to some kind of cult. Some of the frescoes that are painted on some of these rooms seem to indicate that there were some ceremonies taking place in the near inside, outside the palaces. What would these ceremonies mean? Clearly some of these ceremonies must have had some kind of religious function.

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If you work as a manufacturing facilities engineer, installing a new piece of equipment can be as complex as the machinery itself. From prep work to alignment and testing, it's your team's job to put it all together. That's why it's good to have Grainger on your side. With industrial grade products and next day delivery, Grainger helps ensure you have everything you need close at hand through every step of the installation. Call 1-800-granger. Click granger.com or just stop by Granger for the ones who get it done. So Nico, over time with the palaces, as the Minoan period progresses. Just one more question on the palaces and like the social hierarchy before we move on, do we then get a sense as time goes on that there is a more clear social hierarchy and you do get almost rulers at the top Because I've got in my notes I could name like the Wanax and figures like that. So does it become more clear that there was almost a king like figure who resided in These palaces as time went on.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Yes. At some point you mentioned the figure of the Wanax or guanaka. And we know about this figure because the name appears in the Linear B tablet. And we can read the Linear B tablets because they're written in Greek, even if sometimes they contain words that are not Greek. Like indeed. I mean, it's a word that probably comes from Minoan, but it's transferred to Greek because the word wanaka then becomes later Greek, anax, a word that we find in classical Greek. We find it in Homer, for example. In Homer, though, has already changed slightly its meaning. And so, sure, by the time we have an administration on the island of Crete that uses linear B instead of linear A, there is clear evidence then that there is a more, even more hierarchical structure and that there is a figure that is the first, I would say, not even first amongst equal. Primus inter pares. The Latin expression, first among equal. It's a bit more than first among equal. And it's a figure that has also religious function. And some people have suggested that perhaps this is the equivalent of a king, a monarch, a monarch that not only has religious function, but some people believe also was believed to be a bit divine, a bit like pharaohs in Egypt. But you know, there is no great clear agreement on this. But Linear B tablets date to, let's say, from about 1450, 1400 BC. And it's a period when, according to many scholars, there is a switch that is Greek speaking Mycenaeans have taken over the administration of Crete and are based mostly at Knosso. So we have not a change in population. We don't have necessarily a massive migration of people from mainland Greece, but some people who decided to change the administrative language from the language used by the Minoans to Greek, some people would like even to see, think that the Minoans decided to change the language of their administration. But I mean, I personally don't buy it.

[Tristan Hughes]

But that point seems to suggest, Nico, if the palaces emerged several centuries before the arrival of Linear B, and this Mycenaean outdoor influence the actual kind of local Minoan rulers beforehand, how they use the palaces, potentially very different with the arrival of these Mycenaean people.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Yes, because also we know, for example, that words change meaning, especially when they move from one language to another. And even if the term vanaka vanax that you brought up, because we can read the Linear B tablets can be interpreted as a kind of kingship is often translated as king, that doesn't necessarily mean that it had the Same meaning in a Minoan context. In Homer, for example, the term has already changed meaning. And the top dogs in the Iliad and the Odyssey are usually called basileus. And that is again the term that is normally translated as king. The term basileus already appears in Linear B, but it does not indicate the top dog. It's just minor local ruler somehow associated with metalwork. So already between, say, the Linear B tablets and Homer, 700 years difference, let's say the term basileus has changed meaning. So who knows? I believe that probably both terms, Wanaka basileos, originate from Minoan Crete, because they're not Indo European terms, words. They don't seem to have an Indo European origin. So it's a language that seems different from Greek. But what was their actual meaning in Minoan Crete? We just don't know.

[Tristan Hughes]

So it seems like there's a lot of mystery regarding the hierarchy early on in the story of the Minoans, especially before you get the arrival of linear B and the function of the palaces and so on. Very briefly, before we go on to connections, what are the main cities, do we think are the main settlements in Minoan Crete? Let's say in the second millennium BC We've got Knossos already. But should we be imagining if there are quite a few palaces around, almost like little independent polities on the large island of Crete?

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Yes, whether they are independent polities all the time, again, it's another vexed question. But let's say in the first half of the second millennium we have palaces, important palaces, not just at Noncens, but also Festos Malia, for example. And then some of these palaces are destroyed. Some of these palaces and also other settlements seem to be destroyed. And some of the destructions are due to earthquakes, some seem to be due to fire and so on, and then they are built anew. And at some point, some people think that Knossos probably starts getting the upper hand. When exactly this happens again is a matter of speculation and not everybody agrees. Then we also have palaces, you know, in the mid second millennium, we also have the constructions of small palaces. We have big, big palaces with central court at Malia, Festos, Knossos, Zakro. But also we have smaller palaces, even in places that are only an hour drive from Knossos. There is one at a place called Galatas, a mini palace. One of the big mysteries is that we have a really big settlement in East Crete near a palace on the far east of the island. Beautiful place, wonderful place to go swimming too. By the way is Kato Zakro. And very near it there is a huge settlement called Palecastro. And this is really large settlement. And people have been digging there since 1902. But it doesn't seem to have a palace. So either people have been digging in the wrong place, or this was a mega site that didn't have a palace.

[Tristan Hughes]

So do we know much then, Nico, about the Minoans and their wider connections with the Mediterranean world? If the people are first of all venturing to Crete, you know, thousands of years ago, they must surely have quite wide ranging connections by the time of the Minoans in the Bronze Age.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Absolutely, absolutely. I mentioned their context with the Egyptians. You know, we have finds of Egyptian things on Crete starting already in the third millennium and vice versa. We have things from Minoan Crete in Egypt. Ditto for other parts of the eastern Mediterranean. From Syria, you know, the regions that we now called the Levant, Syria, Lebanon, Cyprus. Again we have objects from this area that were found on Crete and vice versa. We even have for certain periods frescoes produced in Minoan style found in Egypt, in Syria, in what is modern day Israel. Isn't that amazing? So were they people exchanging not just goods, but also perhaps craftsmen, as people did in the Renaissance? You know, sometimes people in various courts of Renaissance Europe exchanged really good craftsmen, or really good craftsmen sought the patronage of different people around the different courts of Europe.

[Tristan Hughes]

It does seem that there's quite a bit of movement, isn't there, you know, of people. So these trade routes, these connections that the Minoan Cretans had in the third, second millenniums BC it allowed the exchanging of goods, importing, exporting, but also of ideas too.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Ideas, people. We only have proxies. They must have exchanged things like foodstuff. They must have exchanged thing that doesn't survive. But we have the containers, the clay containers that were exchanged. Yes, they exchanged ideas. Because, for example, we know that there are certain Egyptian divinities, you know, the minor artisans, they start changing them to suit more local tastes. So absolutely change of ideas. And let's not forget, ideas don't have legs. Ideas are exchanged through people traveling around. And we should never think that, because we are talking of 5,000 years ago, that people were not moving around.

[Tristan Hughes]

We've largely covered in our episode today the story of the early Minoans, their origins, their rise. And we haven't really covered the end. And I feel that will all be in another episode, writing, religion and so on. I think the last thing that I'd like to ask before we wrap up is keeping on that trade thing a bit more. Purple dye. I mean, how important is, like, the maritime world and. And things like purple dye to the Minoans? I want to ask this as the last question before we.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

Well, it was certainly important because you find remains of purple dye productions at many archaeological sites on Crete. I can't think off the top of my head, to be 100% honest, if they have already found evidence for purple dye production as early as the third millennium, but certainly in the second millennium, there is plenty of evidence and sometimes linked to small islands. Also around the island of Crete. Some American colleagues have excavated one of these areas where they, you know, a little settlement on a small island off the coast of South Crete that seemed to have been a settlement used exclusively for this purpose for extracting purple dye. The last time I worked on an excavation on Crete was at the site of Palenquestro. And there too, we found a pile, a huge pile of shells, because purple comes from this poor animal that lives inside the shell.

[Tristan Hughes]

So these are the Murex shells. So that's good to clarify, isn't it? The purple dye is extracted from this.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

This shelled from the animal.

[Tristan Hughes]

Yes.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

On seashores, you don't want to be near purple shell production. It really stinks. A colleague of mine decided to do some experimental archaeology and extracted a number of these poor animals from their shells and let them macerate. And the sting, I don't think I've ever felt smelled anything as bad as that.

[Tristan Hughes]

Nico, this has been really interesting. As mentioned, I know we've only really covered the earlier story of the Minoans, but it is interesting, it, isn't it? How with the third millennium, with the second millennium BC before the arrival of the Mycenaeans, you know, with the archaeology that you have, there's still so much more to piece together. As mentioned at the start, it's still very mysterious, and it feels like there is. There's a lot more to talk about and a lot more to speculate about, but we've made a start.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

And people always think that although people have excavated The Knossos since 1900, they found everything. It's just the tip of the iceberg. There is so much more that can be excavated anywhere on Crete.

[Tristan Hughes]

There we go. Nico, it just goes to me to say thank you so much for taking the time to come back on the podcast today.

[Professor Nicoletta Momigliano]

No problem. Lovely to talk to you as usual. Thank you.

[Tristan Hughes]

Well, there you go. There was Professor Nicoletta Marmigliano giving you an introduction to the Minoans and how they rose to prominence more than 3,500 years ago. As mentioned right at the beginning, we realized quickly when doing this episode that we needed more than one episode to do the Minoans justice to cover their entire story. So don't you worry, we'll be doing more Minoan episodes in the future where we explore more of the marvels and mysteries of the Minoans. Stay tuned for for those thank you for listening to this episode of the Ancients. Please follow the show on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps us and you'll be doing us a big favour if you leave us a rating as well. Well, we'd really appreciate that. Don't forget, you can also listen to us and all of History Hit's podcasts ad free and watch hundreds of TV documentaries when you [e-mail] subscribe.

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[Tristan Hughes]

If you work as a manufacturing facilities engineer, installing a new piece of equipment can be as complex as the machinery itself. From prep work to alignment and testing, it's your team's job to put it all together. That's why it's good to have Grainger on your side. With industrial grade products and next day delivery, Grainger helps ensure you have everything you need close at hand through every step of the installation. Call 1-800-GRAINGER click granger.com or just stop by Grainger for the ones who get it done.