1. Separating Truth from Fiction

3. Military elite, around 1600BC Ruled over mainland Greece & the island of Crete Palaces; hydraulic engineering Four main capitals with centralised economy Destroyed between 1250BC to 1200BC; conflict or earthquake? Mycenaean Begins 1540BC: 18 th dynasty, under Ahmose who expelled the Hyksos from Egypt New warrior ethos in Egypt; standing army established Innovations in warfare Prosperity: art and architecture Military pharaohs New Kingdom Egypt From 1650 to 1180 BC Controlled central Anatolia Controlled important centre of trade routes in the ancient Middle East Toward 1200BC, upheaval led to sacking of the city, perhaps by invaders from the North Hittites Three major cultures were prominent in this area

4. King (wanax) Lawagetas (2 nd to king) Equetai (followers) Telestai (major land owners) Governors & deputy governors Leaders of craft groups Religious dignitaries Craftspeople Shepherds & workers

5. Established empire in northern Syria and Palestine Pharaoh Small detachments of troops stationed in various centres Provincial Egyptian governors loyal to Egypt and required to pay tribute Native city rulers

6. King Swore oaths of loyalty to king; rewarded with grants of land Aristocratic barons Worked either on the land or as craft workers Free citizens Belonging to individual owners or under control of the state Slaves

7. Mycenaean Established palaces at Mycenae, Pylos, Tiryns, Thebes and probably Athens Centralised, very tightly controlled economy Linear B tablets record taxation, distribution of rations, sales of slaves & estate ownership Egyptian New Kingdom saw rise of new warrior ethos; standing army Innovations in warfare: horse-drawn chariot; composite bow Rulers led their troops into battle Peak of material prosperity and imperial power Art & architecture flourished Hittite Agriculture basis of economy Trade & industry important Religion focused on people’s relationship to nature King had extensive religious duties Humane legal system Disciplined army

8. Written sources Homer’s Iliad, written c.800BC (fiction?) Herodotus, Histories, retelling of stories passed down (5 th C BC) Hittite documents (inconclusive) Excavations at Hisarlik (9 layers excavated) Schliemann believed Troy II to be Homer’s Troy (later disproved) Most likely levels to be Homeric Troy are Troy VI or Troy VIIa Excavations at Mycenae Archaeological finds

9. Troy was known as Ilium in the Homeric epic. Hittite texts refer to a city called Wilusa. Are they the same city?

10. Heroes of the Trojan War

11. Trojans Paris: son of King Priam, abducts Helen King Priam: ruler of Troy Hector: son of Priam and best Trojan warrior Achaeans Helen: wife of Menelaus, an Achaean king Agamemnon: Mycenaean king, leader of the Achaeans Achilles: best warrior of the Achaean contingent

12. The Greek Gods play a major part in Homer’s Iliad, which represents the Trojans and the Achaeans as pawns in a contest between the Gods.

13. Zeus Chief of the gods; the sky-god Love for Troy, but allows Hera to plot destruction Hera Zeus’ wife and sister; goddess of marriage Loves Argos, Sparta & Mycenae; hates Troy & its people Athena The goddess of warriors, gifts, wisdom; daughter of Zeus Supports & helps the Achaeans; hostile to Troy Aphrodite Goddess of love; daughter of Zeus & Dione Supports Trojans & rescues Paris from Menelaus

14. Apollo Sun-god, god of music & archery; son of Zeus & Leto Favours Trojans Poseidon God of the sea, brother of Zeus Hates Troy; helps Achaeans Ares God of war; son of Zeus & Hera Supports the Trojans

15. AchillesHektor Commander of men from Pelasgian Argos Quarrels with Agamemnon Seeks revenge on Hektor Son of Priam & Hekabe; leader of the Trojans Proposes formal duel between Paris & Menelaus Kills Patroklos Killed by Achilles

16. ParisHelen Son of Priam & Hekabe Also known as Alexandros Abducts Helen Afraid of Menelaus & angers Hektor Wife of Menelaus Abducted by Paris Daughter of Zeus Duel to decide her ownership

17. PriamAgamemnon/ Menelaus King of Troy; father of Hektor & Paris A man of honour Kind to Helen; blames gods Agamemnon: King of Mycenae Leader of the Achaean army Menelaus: King of Lacedaemon Husband of Helen Brother of Agamemon

18. A summary of Jeremy B. Rutter’s: Prehistoric Archaeology of the Aegean Lesson 27 at: Jeremy B. Rutter's Prehistoric Archaeology of the AegeanJeremy B. Rutter's Prehistoric Archaeology of the Aegean

19. Blegen 1240 B.C. 1270 B.C. Nylander 1200-1190 B.C. Mycenaean imports containing LHIIIC types Podzuweit After 1190 B.C.

20. Destruction of Troy VIIa (suggested dates) 1270 B.C.1240 B.C.1190 B.C. 1334 B.C. (Douris) 1250 B.C. (Herodotus) 1209 B.C. (the Parian Marble) 1184 B.C. (Eratosthenes) Trojan War (as dated by later Greeks)

21. Fortifications Collapsed in Troy VI but reconstructed Southern extension made approach to gate more difficult for attackers – used masonry from destroyed walls of Troy VI Troy VII: repairs only; no new program of fortification building

22. Architecture Far more houses packed into citadel (inside city walls) than were in Troy VI Houses are sturdy and many have pits dug below ground level for storing large containers Houses only one storey (in Troy VI were multi- storey mansions)

23. Skeletal remains Human bones resulting from destruction of Troy VIIa No human remains from earlier destroyed levels of Troy Indicates that survivors of Troy VIIa unable to recover and bury their dead

24. Pottery Pottery from Troy VIIa very similar to that of Troy VIh Much less imported Mycenaean pottery than in Troy VIh Mycenaean imports that were found are later in date than that of Troy VIh

25. What conclusions can be drawn?

26. Increased population sought protection within walls Need for storage space evidence for a siege Violent destruction of city evidence of failing to withstand siege; city destroyed by human agency Changed social structure – no longer just monarch & aristocracy inside citadel Similar changes on Greek mainland Smaller houses due to change in social structure; need for underground storage

27. Less imported Mycenaean pottery because Trojans at war with Mycenae Mycenaean overseas trade in a general slump Evidence for this – decline in Mycenaean pottery being imported elsewhere as well Not all “Mycenaean” pottery actually from the Greek mainland