Studied by 3 peopleWhere is the palace located in Mycenae and why is it there ?
It is at the top as they are war orientated so it would be harder for people attacking to get to as well as this you can see attackers from afar
What were sally ports ?
A gap in the city’s outer wall where men rushed out through them to surprise enemies
Where were sally ports located ?
There was a north and south sally port
What was the northern sally port like ?
It was a secret passage going under the wall to a cistern 18m under the ground
What was the southern sally port like ?
It was wide 2.5m and can be seen form a distance
How were the sally ports built ?
Using corbelling
What does the Mycenaean cistern suggest ?
Evidence for siege warfare
What were the walls around Mycenae like ?
They were between 5.5 and 7.5m thick and 12m high
However the walls were shorter around the lion gate
What were the walls of Mycenae built out of ?
limestone blocks with no mortar instead small bits of limestone filled gaps between blocks
How were the blocks moved in Mycenae ?
moved on rollers and others on earth ramps
What was structure of the walls like in Mycenae ?
Big blocks made up the visible parts of the wall and the inner core of the wall is made of earth and rubble
What was the main entrance to the city of Mycenae ?
The lion gate
What was the lion gate area made of ?
Conglomerate shinier and smoother than the limestone of the normal walls
What does the lion gate look like ?
the opening was a 3m square
there are holes for the door and bar that would have locked the gate
There were 2 lions paws resting on alters but heads missing
columns are above the altars
What style are the columns above the alters on the lion gate ?
They are in a Minoan style
How are the lions carved ?
In relief
What was the entrance to the lion gate like ? And why ?
there was a ramp which funnelled the enemy towards the lion
The walls around the ramp made it so defenders could fire down on attackers
What is the oldest tomb found in Mycenae ?
Grave circle B discovered in 1952 after circle A
Where was grave circle B located ?
200m east outside the city walls
What is in grave circle B ?
They were a mix of shaft and cist graves
and because of possessions found it is believed over 1/2 of the graves are of royals
35 men women and childeren were found
some were marked with stelai
What did it mean is a stele was blank ?
It was a womans grave
Where was grave circle A located ?
Inside the city walls found before B
What did grave circle A look like ?
it was 28m wide and surounded by a wall of small stones
it was later rebuilt with a new double wall around it and the ground was raised up
What type of graves did Circle A contain ?
There were 6 shaft graves which were bigger and deeper than those in B
What was Grave circle A ?
It was a royal burial site
What was found in Grave circle A ?
9 women
8 men ans 2 children
14kg of gold and lots of amber glass and ivory
Are there any stelai in grave circle A ?
Yes there are 3 each featuring chariots
What tombs are outside of Mycenae ?
Aegisthus and Clytemnestra and the treasury of Atreus
What types of tombs were Aegisthus and Clytemnestra ?
They were tholos tombs - beehive / igloo shape
When were the tombs of Aegisthus and Clytemnestra built ?
1300 late/middle
What is the set source for Mycenae ?
The Mycenaean lady
What is the Mycenaean lady ?
A fresco found in grave circle A
Where was tyrins located ?
It was on a hill 18m higher than the surrounding land
What was the layout like ?
It was only 300m long and between 45-100m wide
there is a curved western wall for defence
How tall were the walls of Tyrins ?
10m so smaller than Mycenae but also believed to be built by cyclopes
What was the main entrance gate of tyrins like ?
There was a large ramp up to the walls and a long narrow passage between the 2 gates to past the entrance to trap enemies
What was the west wall of tyrins like ?
It was curved and had a stairway up to a narrow corridor
Where was the highest part of tyrins ?
The upper city where the palace was
What was the main room in the palace of Tyrins ?
The megaron
What did the megaron look like ?
A hearth in the middle surrounded by 4 wooden pillars and platform for the throne
there was a plaster floor with pictures of dolphins and octopuses and wall frescoes of fancy ladies and hunting
What was built into the outer walls of tyrins ?
Galleries - long covered passages inside the walls
What is the most famous Mycenaean city ?
Troy
How many layers of troy are there ?
10 each given a roman numeral
When does the oldest city at troy start ?
3000 BC way before the beginning of the Mycenaean age
What are the 2 possible troys in which the Iliad takes place ?
Troy VI & VIIa
Why do we think Troy VI is the city of troy in the Iliad ?
It was destroyed round 1250 which matches up with how the trojan war is traditionally around 1200
It was a rich city with loads of big houses similar to homers description
Walls are 7m tall with towers whch are described in the Iliad
looks like a flourishing city similar to the Iliad
Why might Troy VI not be the city of troy from the Iliad ?
They believe it was destroyed by an earthquake whereas most accounts say it was destroyed by fire
Only one arrowhead was found and no dead bodies so does not suggest a war took place
Why do we think Troy VIIa is the city of troy in the Iliad ?
It had large towers matching homers descriptions
only single storey houses and very close together suggesting emergency housing for Trojans during the war
Storage jars found buried in the ground for emergency supplies
only existed for 30-40 years but destroyed by fire like in the aeneid
bronze arrowheads and partial human remains found
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