The Minoans of The Minoans of Crete built great complexes that archaeologists call palaces. At Knossos, near modern Heraklion, the palace had hundreds of rooms on several floors. Phaistos and Malia were nearly as grand, and Zakros sat at the far eastern tip of the island.
Key idea
A building with many jobs
| What archaeologists found | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Rows of storerooms full of huge jars (pithoi) | Oil, wine and grain collected and stored |
| Workshops for pottery, stone vessels and fine metalwork | Craftsmen working for the palace |
| Shrines, altars and ritual objects | Worship and festivals |
| Clay tablets, sealings and labels with writing | Officials counting what came in and went out |
| A large open central court | A gathering place, perhaps for ceremonies |
We do not even know whether a king lived at Knossos. The word "palace" is a convenient label from Evans's time. What the buildings clearly did was gather the produce of the countryside, keep track of it and pay it out again to workers, craftsmen and gods. That is exactly the kind of business that needs writing.
Why it works
Common mistake
Two palace periods
The first palaces were built around 1900 BC and destroyed around 1700 BC, probably by earthquakes. They were rebuilt on an even grander scale. This second palace period was Minoan Crete at its height, and it ended with destructions across the island around 1450 BC. After that, only Knossos still worked as a palace, now run in Greek with Linear B, as you will see in The Mycenaeans.
Worked example: Reading the evidence
- Many large jars mean storage of liquids or grain.
- Labels with writing mean someone was keeping track of the contents.
- So it was a storeroom managed by palace officials.
Answer: A storeroom, with records of what it held.
Worked example: Which is a Cretan palace?
- Pylos is on the west coast of the mainland and Thebes is in central Greece; both are Mycenaean palaces.
- Malia is on the north coast of Crete, east of Knossos.
Answer: Malia.