Minoans & Phoenicians

The Minoans Lived on the island of Crete Crete is located on the Southern edge of the Aegean Sea The Minoans dominated trade in the Mediterranean Sea from 2000 to 1400 B.C.E.

Pottery & Trade Best pottery of the era Trade pottery, swords, figurines, and vessels of precious metal. Along with goods, Minoans also exported their art and cultural. Trading turned Crete into a kind of “stepping stone” for cultural exchange

Knossos Capital City of Minoa, excavated in the 1800s Appears to be a peaceful culture as there is a lack of fortifications to the city. Named after their King, King Minos According to legend, Minos kept a half-human, half-bull monster, called the Minotaur in a labyrinth (a maze)

Sports Boxing Wrestling Bull-leaping

Mysterious End?!?! Possible Natural Disaster Overpopulated Invaders Survived earlier disaster in 1700 B.C.E. but they rebuilt the city Disaster in 1470 B.C.E. was an event that they did not recover from. Overpopulated Invaders Greece may have taken advantage of weakened condition and destroyed them.

Phoenicians Around 1100 B.C.E., after the decline of the Minoans, the Phoenicians take over as the major trader of the area Located in modern day Lebanon. Never united as a country Many wealthy city-states

Phoenicians Remarkable shipbuilders and seafarers First to venture pasts the Straight of Gibraltar and all the way to Britain They had trading outposts Around the Mediterranean They are famous for their purple dye created from a sea snail, murex Most important legacy, the Alphabet Developed a writing system that used symbols to represent sounds. One sign = one sound