What is ancient Mycenae?

Mycenae is an ancient city located on a small hill between two larger hills on the fertile Argolid Plain in Peloponnese, Greece. The Bronze-age acropolis, or citadel built on a hill, is one of the great cities of the Mycenaean civilization that played a vital role in classical Greek culture.

What was Mycenae named after?

Thus, Pausanias ascribes the name to the legendary founder Perseus, who was said to have named it either after the cap (mykēs) of the sheath of his sword, or after a mushroom he had plucked on the site. The earliest written form of the name is Mykḗnē (Μυκήνη), which is found in Homer.

Why is Mycenae important?

Mycenae is the largest and most important center of the civilization that was named “Mycenaean” after this very citadel. Mycenaean is the culture that dominated mainland Greece, the Aegean islands, and the shores of Asia Minor during the late Bronze Age era (circa 1600-1100 BCE).

What happened to Mycenae?

Around the year 1200 BCE the Mycenaean civilization shows signs of decline. By 1100 it was extinguished. The palaces were destroyed, and their system of writing, their art, and their way of life were gone. According to Greek legends, they were replaced by half-civilized Dorian invaders from the north.

Is Mycenae a Sparta?

In modern and indeed classical Sparta itself, there are no traces of Mycenaean material. However there is an important Mycenaean site known as the Menelaion which lies some distance outside Sparta on the other side of the river on the eastern side, the opposite side to Mount Taygetus.

How was Mycenae destroyed?

New study finds: Ancient Mycenaean civilization might have collapsed due to uprising or invasion. For many years, the prevailing theory on how the Mycenaean civilisation collapsed was that devastating earthquakes led to the destruction of its palaces in the Peloponnese, southern Greece around 1,200 BC.

What caused the fall of the Mycenaean civilization?

Suggestions from scholars to explain the general collapse of the Mycenaean culture (and other contemporary ones in the Mediterranean) include natural disaster (earthquakes, volcanic explosions, and tsunami), overpopulation, internal social and political unrest, invasion from foreign tribes such as the Sea Peoples,

Who found the city of Troy?

Heinrich Schliemann established archaeology as the science that we know today. The German adventurer and multimillionaire, who died 130 years ago, discovered Troy and what he thought was the Treasure of Priam.

Where was Sparta located?

Sparta was a city-state located in the southeastern Peloponnese region of ancient Greece. Sparta grew to rival the size of the city-states Athens and Thebes by subjugating its neighboring region of Messenia. Though Sparta absorbed this population, it did not integrate the conquered people into society.

What was the most powerful Greek city state?

Of these, Athens and Sparta were the two most powerful city-states. Athens was a democracy and Sparta had two kings and an oligarchic system, but both were important in the development of Greek society and culture.

Why did the mycenaeans become rich and powerful?

The Mycenaeans were rich and powerful. They controlled the sources of precious metals and used them to earn income and dominate trading routes. The Mycenaeans fought against the Trojans in the Trojan War and Odysseus, a Mycenaean, got lost on his way home from Troy.

How did the mycenaeans become so powerful?

The Mycenaeans invaded or moved into Crete in around 2000 BC. The many established trade routes throughout the Mediterranean also helped the Mycenaeans gain wealth and power. They gained power from trade, waging war, and conquering land.

Was Agamemnon a real person?

There is no good evidence as of now whether Agamemnon was a real person or not. It’s possible that his name existed and was later attached to the leader of the Greek army at Troy, but this is all just conjecture.

Why did the Dorians destroyed the mycenaeans?

On the one hand, it is possible that the destruction of the Mycenaean centres was caused by the wandering of northern people (Dorian migration): destroying the palace of Iolcos (LH III C-1), the palace of Thebes ( late LH III B), then crossing Isthmus of Corinth (end of LH III B) and destroying Mycenae, Tiryns and

Who is known as the father of democracy?

Although this Athenian democracy would survive for only two centuries, its invention by Cleisthenes, “The Father of Democracy,” was one of ancient Greece’s most enduring contributions to the modern world. The Greek system of direct democracy would pave the way for representative democracies across the globe.