The History of the

Ancient Mediterranean

Mr. Ott @ BETA 2010

Minoans – Phoenicians - Mycenaean - GreeksAim: How did geography influence Mediterranean civilizations?

Do Now: Worksheet “Beginnings”

Geography of the Mediterranean

Continent: Europe

Seas:MediterraneanAegeanIonian

Civilizations:MinoanMycenaeanAncient Greece

How did Geography help Mediterranean Civilizations?

What do you thinktheir economy revolved around?

LocatedNear Water

Sea Trade

The Minoans• 3000-1500 BCE

• Includes the island of Crete• Culture was completely lost until Sir Arthur Evans decided to search for it in 1900• Named the culture Minoan after the legendary King Minos• Minoans known for Bull leaping

The Minoans

• Earthquake (c.1700 BCE)

• Volcanic eruption (c.1500 BCE)

• Tidal waves (following volcanic eruption)

• The Minoans disappear

Natural disasters hit Crete!

Palace @ Knossos• Commercial and religious center• Had an advanced shipping and receiving system for

receiving imported goods

Artist’s rendition of then palace Today

Mycenaean Culture

• Dominated the Aegean after the volcanic eruption at Thera– Conquered Crete and

took over Palace of Knossos

• Palace was built on a hilltop

Citadel- City palace on a hilltop

• Lions Gate• Crowned the entrance

to the citadel/palace• Displays lions being

obedient to the Nature Goddess– Heads missing due to

time and elements

Royal Tombs• Tombs built in a round

shape mound• Enormous size

indicates tombs were used for royalty

• Buried dead with treasures, much like Egyptians– Same beliefs in afterlife

Mask of Agamemnon

• Made of pure gold– Often used in royal

art– Had to be imported,

not readily found on island

• Death Mask– Used to positively

identify the dead in the afterlife

Phoenicians• Most powerful

civilization once the Minoans fell, but they never united to form a country.

• Extraordinary shipbuilders and sailors

• Greatest colony was Carthage

• Alphabet (Letters Represented Sounds) – later adopted by Greeks & basis for our English Alphabet

Geography of Greece

• Greece is a small country in Europe.

• Greece is near the Mediterranean Sea.

• The main part of Greece in on a peninsula.

• A peninsula is a body of land surrounded by water on three sides.

• The rest of Greece is made up of islands.

The Climate

• The climate is Mediterranean.

• The Mediterranean Sea affects the Greek climate, cooling the air in summer and providing warmth in winter.

• The warm summers are cooled by a seasonal breezes from the Mediterranean.

• The Greek winter is moderate. It can be rainy on costal regions and snowy in the mountains