Palaces and Architecture
What is the name of the largest Minoan palace complex on Crete?
Knossos
What legendary ruler is traditionally associated with Knossos?
King Minos
Name ONE major agricultural product produced by the Minoans
Olives, grapes or grain
What animal appears frequently in Minoan religious imagery?
What colourful form of wall decoration provides significant evidence about Minoan life?
Name ONE other major Minoan palace complex besides Knossos.
Phaistos, Malia or Zakros
Name a fresco that depicts the status of women in Minoan Crete
Ladies in Blue fresco, Procession fresco and Grandstand fresco
What large storage vessels were used to hold products such as oil and grain?
Pithoi
What type of Minoan religious site was located on mountains or elevated areas?
Peak Sanctuary
What undeciphered writing system was used by the Minoans?
Linear A
What area of a Minoan palace was surrounded by important rooms and used as a major focus of palace activities?
The central courtyard
What evidence suggests that Minoan palaces were involved in administration and record keeping?
What palace area containing long rows of storage rooms demonstrates the importance of storing agricultural goods?
Magazines
What term is given to the distinctive horn-shaped religious symbols found at sites such as Knossos?
Horns of Consecration
What marine animal frequently appeared in Minoan art and pottery?
Octopus
What palace feature at Knossos contained a throne flanked by griffin frescoes?
The Throne Room
What term describes a system in which goods were collected, stored and then distributed through the palaces?
Palace economy
What objects were used to secure and identify goods and provide evidence for the administration of Minoan trade?
Clay sealings
What type of small figurine, commonly deposited at sanctuaries as an offering to the gods, provides evidence for Minoan religious practices?
Votive offerings
What famous vessel discovered at Agia Triada depicts groups of men in a procession and provides evidence for Minoan activities and society?
The Harvesters Vase
What term describes the rectangular sunken basins reached by steps found at Knossos and other Minoan sites?
Lustral basins
Which famous image from Knossos was interpreted by Arthur Evans as depicting a male religious-political ruler?
The Prince of Lillies Fresco
What term describes the network of Minoan overseas influence and trade proposed by later Greek writers and modern historians?
Thalassocracy
What cave, associated in later Greek tradition with the birth of Zeus, was also an important Minoan religious sanctuary?
Dikteon Cave / Psychro Cave
What type of luxury drinking or pouring vessel, often made of stone and sometimes shaped like an animal head, was used by the Minoans?