Phaistos
Phaistos (, ; Ancient Greek: , , Linear B: ''Pa-i-to''; Linear A: ''Pa-i-to''), also Transliteration, transliterated as Phaestos, Festos and Latin Phaestus, is a Bronze Age archaeological site at modern Faistos, a municipality in south central Crete. It is notable for the remains of a Minoan palace and the surrounding town. Ancient Phaistos was located about east of the Mediterranean Sea and south of Heraklion. Phaistos was one of the largest cities of Minoan Crete. The name Phaistos survives from Ancient Greece, ancient Greek references to a city on Crete of that name at or near the current ruins. History Bronze Age Phaistos was first inhabited around 3600 BCE, slightly later than other early sites such as Knossos. During the Early Minoan period, the site's hills were Terrace (building), terraced and monumental buildings were constructed on them. Like other large Minoan cities, there was a palace that was built in an area that had been used earlier for communal feastin ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Minoan Palace
Minoan palaces were massive building complexes built on Crete during the Bronze Age. They are often considered emblematic of the Minoan civilization and are modern tourist destinations. Archaeologists generally recognize five structures as palaces, namely those at Knossos, Phaistos, Malia (archaeological site), Malia, Galatas Palace, Galatas, and Zakros. Minoan palaces consisted of multistory wings surrounding an open rectangular central court. They shared a common architectural vocabulary and organization, including distinctive room types such as the lustral basin and the pillar crypt. However, each palace was unique, and their appearances changed dramatically as they were continually remodeled throughout their lifespans. The palaces' function is a topic of continuing debate in Minoan archaeology. Despite the modern term "palace", it is generally agreed that they did not primarily serve as royal residences. They are known to have contained shrines, open areas for communal festiv ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Minoan Crete
The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age culture which was centered on the island of Crete. Known for its monumental architecture and energetic art, it is often regarded as the first civilization in Europe. The ruins of the Minoan palaces at Knossos and Phaistos are popular tourist attractions. The Minoan civilization developed from the local Neolithic culture around 3100BC, with complex urban settlements beginning around 2000BC. After 1450BC, they came under the cultural and perhaps political domination of the mainland Mycenaean Greeks, forming a hybrid culture which lasted until around 1100BC. Minoan art included elaborately decorated pottery, seals, figurines, and colorful frescoes. Typical subjects include nature and ritual. Minoan art is often described as having a fantastical or ecstatic quality, with figures rendered in a manner suggesting motion. Little is known about the structure of Minoan society. Minoan art contains no unambiguous depiction of a monarch, and te ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Early Minoan
The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age culture which was centered on the island of Crete. Known for its monumental architecture and Minoan art, energetic art, it is often regarded as the first civilization in Europe. The ruins of the Minoan palaces at Knossos and Phaistos are popular tourist attractions. The Minoan civilization developed from the local Neolithic Crete, Neolithic culture around 3100BC, with complex urban settlements beginning around 2000BC. After 1450BC, they came under the cultural and perhaps political domination of the mainland Mycenaean Greece, Mycenaean Greeks, forming a hybrid culture which lasted until around 1100BC. Minoan art included elaborately decorated Minoan pottery, pottery, Minoan seals, seals, figurines, and colorful frescoes. Typical subjects include nature and ritual. Minoan art is often described as having a fantastical or ecstatic quality, with figures rendered in a manner suggesting motion. Little is known about the structure of Minoan s ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Luigi Pernier
Luigi Pernier (23 November 1874 – 18 August 1937) was an Italian archaeologist and academic now best known for his discovery of the Disc of Phaistos.''Hidden History'' by Brian Haughton (2006), p. 115, , accessed 8 March 2009 Career ![]() ![]() [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Hagia Triada
Hagia Triada (also Haghia Triada, Hagia Triadha, Ayia Triada, Agia Triada), () is a Minoan archaeological site in Crete. The site includes the remains of an extensive settlement noted for its monumental NeoPalatial and PostPalatial period buildings especially the large ''Royal Villa''. It is located in the Mesara Plain about three kilometers from the larger Palace of Phaistos, with which it appears to have had close political and economic ties. It is also nearby the Minoan harbor site of Kommos. Excavations at Hagia Triada have provided crucial evidence concerning Minoan everyday life. Notable finds include the Hagia Triada sarcophagus and the " Harvester Vase". About 150 Linear A tablets were found, the largest cache at any Minoan site. Salgarella, Ester, "Drawing lines: The palaeography of Linear A and Linear B", Kadmos, vol. 58, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Linear A
Linear A is a writing system that was used by the Minoans of Crete from 1800 BC to 1450 BC. Linear A was the primary script used in Minoan palaces, palace and religious writings of the Minoan civilization. It evolved into Linear B, which was used by the Mycenaean civilization, Mycenaeans to write an early form of Ancient Greek, Greek. It was discovered by the archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans in 1900. No texts in Linear A have yet been Undeciphered writing systems, deciphered. Evans named the script "Linear" because its characters consisted simply of lines inscribed in clay, in contrast to the more pictographic characters in Cretan hieroglyphs – likewise undeciphered – that were used during the same period. Linear A belongs to a group of scripts that evolved independently of the Egyptian and Mesopotamian systems. During the second millennium BC, there were four major branches: Linear A, Linear B, Cypro-Minoan, and Cretan hieroglyphs, Cretan hieroglyphic. In the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Linear B
Linear B is a syllabary, syllabic script that was used for writing in Mycenaean Greek, the earliest Attested language, attested form of the Greek language. The script predates the Greek alphabet by several centuries, the earliest known examples dating to around 1450 BC. It is adapted from the earlier Linear A, an undeciphered script perhaps used for writing the Minoan language, as is the later Cypriot syllabary, which also recorded Greek. Linear B, found mainly in the Minoan palace, palace archives at Knossos, Kydonia, Pylos, Thebes, Greece, Thebes and Mycenae, disappeared with the fall of Mycenaean Greece, Mycenaean civilization during the Late Bronze Age collapse. The succeeding period, known as the Greek Dark Ages, provides no evidence of the use of writing. Linear B was deciphered in 1952 by English architect and self-taught linguist Michael Ventris based on the research of American classicist Alice Kober. It is the only Bronze Age Aegean script to have been deciphered, w ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Vincenzo La Rosa
Vincenzo La Rosa (October 21, 1941 – November 5, 2014) was a distinguished Italian archaeologist known for his significant contributions to the study of prehistoric and Aegean civilizations, stemming from his archaeological work in Crete and Sicily.Vincenzo La Rosa. Una lezione per il futuro, Università di Catania, 10 Μαΐου 2025 Early life Vincenzo La Rosa was born in , in the , Sicily and graduated in 1964 from the[...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Federico Halbherr
Federico Halbherr (15 February 1857 in Rovereto, then in the Austro-Hungarian Empire – 17 July 1930 in Rome) was an Italian archaeologist and epigrapher, known for his excavations on Crete. In particular, he is known for his excavations of the Minoan palace at Phaistos and the Minoan town of Hagia Triada. A contemporary, friend, and advisor of Arthur Evans, he began excavating at Phaistos before Evans began excavating at Knossos. Some of his work was funded by the Archaeological Institute of America. Biography Family background Federico (English Frederick) Halbherr was born into a prosperous family in Rovereto, then part of Austria, in the district of Trentino. The distant ancestors of the name were a Swiss family, goldsmiths by occupation, who had arrived in Trentino centuries ago, during its long period of being an independent kingdom. Federico was the son of Giovanni Battista (English "John the Baptist") Halbherr and his second wife, Rosa (Fontana) Halbherr. Federico h ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Doro Levi
Teodoro "Doro" Levi (1 June 1899 – 3 July 1991) was an Italian archaeologist who practiced in the Mediterranean countries in the 20th century. Specifically, Levi conducted excavations in Italy, Greece, and Turkey. From 1938 to 1945, Levi was a member of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. Levi has published a number of technical manuscripts on archaeology such as ''Festos e la Civiltà Minoica, tavole I'' published in 1976. Some of Levi's most significant work was a long term excavation at Minoan Phaistos, which site is the second most significant Minoan settlement (following Knossos) and which has yielded important finds such as the Phaistos Disk and extensive Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ... pottery. References 1890 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kouloura
A kouloura, or kouloures (Greek plural ''koulourai''), is a circular subsurface pit with stone walls found in certain settlements within Ancient Crete, including the Minoan palaces at Phaistos, Knossos, and Malia. According to the stratigraphy, the kouloura were all constructed around MM II (1850–1750 BC). Etymology The name ''kouloura'' was coined by Arthur Evans during his expedition to Knossos in 1903. He named the pits after kouloura, the round Greek bread, because of the similar shape of the two objects. Discovery and locations The first four kouloures were discovered in 1903 at Knossos by Arthur Evans. Subsequently, discovered eight additional kouloura at Malia, and the duo of Luigi Pernier and Doro Levi unearthed four at Phaistos. These pits have always been found within the confines of major sites, including the West Court of Knossos and the Upper Court of Phaistos. Function Multiple theories have been put forward regarding the function of these kouloura in Ancient M ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |