Ancient Mycenae in Greece. The ancient city of Mycenae: archaeological finds, myths and legends

• Troy and the Trojan War.
  Troy (Turkish Truva), second name - Ilion, is an ancient city in the north-west of Asia Minor, off the coast of the Aegean Sea. It was known thanks to the ancient Greek epics and was discovered in the 1870s. during G. Schliemann's excavations of the Hissarlik hill. The city gained particular fame thanks to myths about Trojan War and the events described in Homer’s poem “The Iliad,” according to which the 10-year war of the coalition of Achaean kings led by Agamemnon, the king of Mycenae, against Troy ended with the fall of the fortress city. The people who inhabited Troy are called Teucrians in ancient Greek sources.
• Troy is a mythical city.
  For many centuries, the reality of Troy's existence was questioned - it existed like a city from legend. But there have always been people looking for a reflection of real history in the events of the Iliad. However, serious attempts to search for the ancient city were made only in the 19th century. In 1870, Heinrich Schliemann, while excavating the mountain village of Gissrlik on the Turkish coast, came across the ruins of an ancient city. Continuing excavations to a depth of 15 meters, he unearthed treasures that belonged to an ancient and highly developed civilization. These were the ruins of Homer's famous Troy. It is worth noting that Schliemann excavated a city that was built earlier (1000 years before the Trojan War); further research showed that he simply walked right through Troy, since it was built on the ruins of the ancient city he found.
• Troy and Atlantis are one and the same.
  In 1992, Eberhard Zangger suggested that Troy and Atlantis are the same city. He based his theory on the similarity of the descriptions of cities in ancient legends. However, this assumption did not have a widespread and scientific basis. This hypothesis did not receive widespread support.
• The Trojan War broke out because of a woman.
  According to Greek legend, the Trojan War broke out because one of the 50 sons of King Priam, Paris, kidnapped the beautiful Helen, the wife of the Spartan king Menelaus. The Greeks sent troops precisely to take Helen away. However, according to some historians, this is most likely only the peak of the conflict, that is, the last straw that gave rise to the war. Before this, there were supposedly many trade wars between the Greeks and the Trojans, who controlled trade along the entire coast of the Dardanelles.
• Troy survived for 10 years thanks to outside help.
  According to available sources, Agamemnon's army camped in front of the city on the seashore, without besieging the fortress from all sides. King Priam of Troy took advantage of this, establishing close ties with Caria, Lydia and other regions of Asia Minor, which provided him with assistance during the war. As a result, the war turned out to be very protracted.
• The Trojan horse actually existed.
  This is one of the few episodes of that war that has never found its archaeological and historical confirmation. Moreover, there is not a word about the horse in the Iliad, but Homer describes it in detail in his Odyssey. And all the events associated with the Trojan horse and their details were described by the Roman poet Virgil in the Aeneid, 1st century. BC, i.e. almost 1200 years later. Some historians suggest that the Trojan horse meant some kind of weapon, for example, a ram. Others claim that Homer called the Greeks that way. sea ​​vessels. It is possible that there was no horse at all, and Homer used it in his poem as a symbol of the death of the gullible Trojans.
• The Trojan horse got into the city thanks to a cunning trick by the Greeks.
  According to legend, the Greeks spread a rumor that there was a prophecy that if a wooden horse stood within the walls of Troy, it could forever defend the city from Greek raids. Most of the city's residents were inclined to believe that the horse should be brought into the city. However, there were also opponents. The priest Laocoon suggested burning the horse or throwing it off a cliff. He even threw a spear at the horse, and everyone heard that the horse was empty inside. Soon a Greek named Sinon was captured and told Priam that the Greeks had built a horse in honor of the goddess Athena to atone for many years of bloodshed.
  Tragic events followed: during a sacrifice to the god of the sea Poseidon, two huge snakes swam out of the water and strangled the priest and his sons. Seeing this as an omen from above, the Trojans decided to roll the horse into the city. It was so huge that it couldn’t fit through the gate and part of the wall had to be dismantled.
• The Trojan Horse caused the fall of Troy.
  According to legend, on the night after the horse entered the city, Sinon released the warriors hiding inside from its belly, who quickly killed the guards and opened the city gates. The city, which had fallen asleep after the riotous festivities, did not even offer strong resistance. Several Trojan warriors, led by Aeneas, tried to save the palace and the king. According to ancient Greek myths, the palace fell thanks to the giant Neoptolemus, son of Achilles, who smashed the front door with his ax and killed King Priam.
• Heinrich Schliemann, who found Troy and amassed a huge fortune during his life, was born into a poor family.
  He was born in 1822 into the family of a rural pastor. His homeland is a small German village near the Polish border. His mother died when he was 9 years old. My father was a harsh, unpredictable and self-centered man who loved women very much (for which he lost his position).
  At the age of 14, Heinrich was separated from his first love, the girl Minna. When Heinrich was 25 years old and already becoming a famous businessman, he finally asked Minna's hand from her father in a letter. The answer said that Minna married a farmer. This message completely broke his heart. Passion to Ancient Greece appeared in the boy’s soul thanks to his father, who read the Iliad to the children in the evenings, and then gave his son a book on world history with illustrations.
  In 1840, after a long and grueling job in a grocery store that almost cost him his life, Henry boarded a ship bound for Venezuela. On December 12, 1841, the ship was caught in a storm and Schliemann was thrown into the icy sea; he was saved from death by a barrel, which he held on to until he was rescued. During his life, he learned 17 languages ​​and made a large fortune. However, the peak of his career was the excavation of the great Troy.
• Heinrich Schliemann undertook the excavations of Troy due to unsettled personal life.
  This is not excluded. In 1852, Heinrich Schliemann, who had many affairs in St. Petersburg, married Ekaterina Lyzhina. This marriage lasted 17 years and turned out to be completely empty for him. Being a passionate man by nature, he married a sensible woman who was cold towards him. As a result, he almost found himself on the verge of madness. Unhappy couple had three children, but this did not bring happiness to Schliemann.
  Out of desperation, he made another fortune by selling indigo dye. In addition, he became closely involved Greek. An inexorable thirst for travel appeared in him. In 1868, he decided to go to Ithaca and organize his first expedition. Then he went towards Constantinople, to the places where Troy was located according to the Iliad and began excavations on the Hissarlik hill. This was his first step on the path to the great Troy.
• Schliemann tried on jewelry from Helen of Troy for his second wife.
  Introduced him to Henry's second wife old friend, it was 17-year-old Greek Sofia Engastromenos. According to some sources, when Schliemann found the famous treasures of Troy (10,000 gold objects) in 1873, he moved them upstairs with the help of his second wife, whom he loved immensely. Among them were two luxurious tiaras. Having placed one of them on Sophia’s head, Henry said: “The jewel that Helen of Troy wore now adorns my wife.” One of the photographs actually shows her wearing magnificent antique jewelry.
• The Trojan treasures were lost.
  There is a deal of truth in it. The Schliemanns donated 12,000 objects to the Berlin Museum. During World War II, this priceless treasure was moved to a bunker from which it disappeared in 1945. Part of the treasury unexpectedly appeared in 1993 in Moscow. There is still no answer to the question: “Was it really the gold of Troy?”
• During excavations at Hisarlik, several layers of cities from different times were discovered.
  Archaeologists have identified 9 layers that belong to different years. Everyone calls them Troy. Only two towers have survived from Troy I. Troy II was explored by Schliemann, considering it the true Troy of King Priam. Troy VI was highest point development of the city, its inhabitants traded profitably with the Greeks, but this city seems to have been severely destroyed by an earthquake.
  Modern scientists believe that the found Troy VII is the true city of Homer's Iliad. According to historians, the city fell in 1184 BC, being burned by the Greeks. Troy VIII was restored by Greek colonists, who also built the temple of Athena here. Troy IX already belongs to the Roman Empire. I would like to note that excavations have shown that Homeric descriptions very accurately describe the city.

Long before Greece was called ancient, around 1600 BC, the Eastern Mediterranean was inhabited by a civilization of traders and conquerors. These were the times of myths and legends.

The gods at that time often descended from, and mortals were ruled by their offspring. It was then that the well-known Perseus, the son of Zeus and the daughter of the Argive king, being the ruler of nearby Tiryns, founded the ancient city of Mycenae.

The city has become so great importance what's last up historical period Greek civilization is called "Mycenaean".

A little history

Whether Perseus founded Mycenae having decided to leave a memory of himself also as a builder of cities, or as a sign of another victory is unknown. But many generations of his descendants ruled it, until the royal dynasty of Atreus came to replace it.

Some legends claim that Perseus chose this place because he lost the tip of his sword here (mykes), others that Perseus found a mushroom (mykes in Greek) and, to escape thirst, drank water from it.

A more prosaic legend says that Mycenae was founded by the Achaeans, an ancient warlike tribe.
Be that as it may, the city is located in a strategically convenient location. They laid it at the foot of one of the mountains in the northeast.

The first mention of Mycenae as a “gold-abundant” or “filled with gold” city was made by Homer in his epic.

Later, the German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann, during the excavations of Mycenae, found an explanation for this. The tombs and tombs on its territory were filled with gold jewelry and simply trinkets of very skillful work.

All this testified to the fabulous wealth of the rulers and nobility. Their remains were buried under a pile of gold items. Interestingly, not a single iron object was discovered.

Among the gold items found by archaeologists were: tiaras, finely crafted bracelets, copper cauldrons with elegant gold buttons, gold bowls and jugs, many gold animal figurines, death masks, the most famous of which is the mask of Agamemnon, as well as many bronze swords.

The archaeological finds discovered in the tombs became the largest treasure in the world, not only in quantity (more than 30 kg of gold items were found), but also in artistic and historical significance. Later they were surpassed only by the finds found in the tomb of Tutankhamun.

All artifacts were transferred to the Archaeological Museum of Athens and the Archaeological Museum of Mycenae.

The favorable geographical position of Mycenae facilitated the trade of the inhabitants.
Wine, perfume, fabrics, bronze, gold and amber products were exported.

Wealth grew rapidly and the state prospered. Mycenae became very influential, and according to scientists, controlled the entire Mediterranean. Their rulers even led the confederation of Peloponnesian kingdoms.

Mycenaean culture, weapons, and even fashion spread throughout the known world. This was the reason for repeated attacks on the city. However, the Mycenaeans themselves were warlike.

During its existence, Mycenae and the Mycenaean state left a solid mark on history. The rulers of the city are heroes of legends and myths. The history of Mycenae is associated with many tragic and heroic events.

For example, the legendary Trojan War was unleashed by the Mycenaean king Agamemnon. We will not go into the details of the divine civil strife associated with the apple of discord and the struggle of the Olympic beauties for the title of “most beautiful,” in which King Menelaus and his wife Helen the Beautiful were involved, which led to the fall of Troy.

Historians are still inclined to a more realistic version that it was the ruler of Mycenae Agamemnon who went to war against the city, since Troy competed with them for dominance in the region. The siege of the city lasted for a decade.

Researchers attribute these events to the 13th–12th centuries. BC BC, but the date is controversial. Victory was granted by the gods to the king of Mycenae because he sacrificed his daughter, for which later, according to one legend, he was killed by his wife, who did not forgive him for the murder of her child.

According to another legend, during the long absence of her husband, Clytemnestra took a lover - cousin Agamemnon. And when the legitimate spouse returned from the war, they simply killed him, expelled the children - the legal heirs to the throne, and began to rule Mycenae.

The rapid development of the Mycenaean civilization is as inexplicable as its sudden disappearance. It is not established exactly how and why their state fell. Historians have put forward various hypotheses according to which the destruction of the city and the death of the state could have occurred as a result of inter-class clashes.

According to other theories, a series of earthquakes and the destruction of trade routes caused the rapid fall of civilization. It is possible that this was ultimately facilitated by the invasion Sea people- Dorians. But it is known for sure that the death of the Mycenaean civilization coincided with the end of the Bronze Age.

The “Bronze Collapse” was accompanied by the fall of states and the destruction of large cities. Writing and traditions were lost, trade came to naught. The Eastern Mediterranean has plunged into darkness.

How to get to Mycenae

Time is inexorable, and now we can only see the ruins of a once powerful city. This is all that has reached us.

Mycenae is one of the greatest monuments Bronze Age.
The city is located in the east of the rocky ridge of the Peloponnese Peninsula.

The landmark is the town of Mykenes, located 2 km away. Geographical coordinates ancient city: 37° 43? 50? With. sh., 22° 45? 22? V. d. From the capital of Greece - approximately 90 km to the southwest of the peninsula, or 32 km to the north from the Gulf of Argolikos.

You can get to Mycenae by regular bus from Athens from the KTEL Athenon bus station in about two hours, the ticket costs about 12 euros. But you can get to Mycenae on your own, armed with a navigator or map. You must first drive to the city of Argo, and from there go to Mycenes, passing another one - the Corinth Canal.

There are ruins on the territory archaeological park"Mycenae". Entrance to the park is paid. Tickets are sold at the entrance and cost 8 euros, and children under 18 do not need to purchase tickets. By presenting your ticket, you will be able to see the Mycenaean Acropolis, the Archaeological Museum and the Treasury of Atreus.

When booking an excursion to Mycenae via the Internet or in hotels, check if there is a Russian-speaking guide. As a rule, a visit to Mycenae in such excursions is planned along with other attractions, so the cost depends on the type of transport, the number of places visited and the category of excursion.

What to see

Like many cities, Mycenae had its own ruler, respectively a royal palace and a well-fortified citadel.

The city is surrounded by a 900-meter wall made of huge stones. The construction was carried out, no more, no less, by the giants Cyclops.

Otherwise, how else can one explain the origin of such a powerful defensive structure. The stones are fitted so tightly to each other that there is a feeling of solidity of the walls. Such masonry was commonly called cyclopean. The weight of some stones reaches 10 tons.

The Royal Palace was built on the top of a small hill at the foot of the mountain. This is the so-called upper city - the acropolis.

Not only the reigning dynasty lived here, but also other nobility and aristocracy. This is the center of political governance of the city-state. The territory also contained temples, warehouses and burial places of deceased rulers.

The center of the Royal Palace is a rectangular room with columns and a fireplace in the floor - the royal reception room.

The so-called Megaron served as the administrative center of the city and meetings, conferences and courts were held there.
Megaron also housed the symbol of royal power - the throne. In our time, only the foundation of the structure has been preserved.

The royal chambers are located on the northern side of the palace. A temple with round altars was also erected here, near which a stone made of Ivory sculpture depicting two goddesses and a child.

Ordinary people lived outside the walls of the fortress at the foot of the hill. It is interesting that the buildings had a trapezoidal shape, with a short base directed towards the acropolis. Because of this, the entire city from above resembled a fan. The most famous buildings are the House of the Sphinx, the House of the Wine Merchant, the House of Shields and the House of the Oil Trader.

It was possible to get to the fortress only along the road through. This is the most famous architectural landmark of Mycenae.

The gate is built from four powerful limestone slabs. Their span is a square, the side of which is about 3 meters. They were most likely closed with wooden doors, which have not survived to this day.

Their existence can be judged by the indentations on the side walls. The pediment is decorated with a bas-relief depicting two lions, which were a symbol of the royal dynasty and personified its power.

Lions stand on their hind legs and lean them on a column. Their heads have not survived, and according to different versions they were made of either ivory or gold. This is the oldest sculptural composition in Europe.

A large staircase leads to the royal palace, starting from the courtyard at the Lion Gate. It is interesting that bureaucracy already existed then. Clay tablets found during excavations in the palace turned out to be financial reports, lists of slaves and artisans.

Mycenae had the greatest treasure for all fortresses - underground water sources.

The inhabitants dug a deep tunnel to a spring known as the Perseus Fountain. This fountain and a huge defensive wall helped them withstand long sieges.

Behind the walls of the citadel, archaeologists discovered giant domes - tombs of kings and nobles, built from powerful stone slabs. The tombs were camouflaged with a mound, and a long corridor, the dromos, led inside.

The corridor, through a high, up to 7 meters high, monumental entrance, led to an internal vaulted chamber. After the funeral, the tomb was closed, and all entrances were covered with earth. The most famous and well-preserved is the treasury or tomb of Atreus, the father of Agamemnon.

But the tomb was plundered long before archaeologists found it.

On the territory of the fortress itself, as a result of excavations, royal graves were discovered, immediately behind the Lion Gate.

Heinrich Schliemann excavated five royal burials here. They contained the remains of nineteen dead, buried under piles of gold jewelry. The most famous find was the golden death mask.

According to Heinrich Schliemann, the mask belonged to Agamemnon himself. Later it turned out that the burials were made several centuries earlier than the time of the legendary Trojan War.
In 1999, the ruins of Mycenae were included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Despite the fact that time has not been kind to the city, visiting it is very informative and interesting.

The Mycenaean culture began to flourish. We learn about this period of Greek history from the myths about the Trojan War, information from which is confirmed by archaeological finds. The self-taught German scientist Heinrich Schliemann devoted his entire life to the search for the mysterious Troy; it was to him that the honor of discovering ancient Troy and Mycenae belongs.

Background

At the turn of the 2nd and 3rd millennium BC. Achaean tribes began settling the Balkan Peninsula, displacing local tribes from there. By the 15th century BC. The Achaean civilization reached its peak, spreading its influence over the entire peninsula.

Events

Throughout their history, the Achaean Greeks were unable to build a single centralized state, as was the case with the powers of the Ancient East. Relatively small kingdoms were constantly in a state of conflict with each other, although there were also cases of political alliances between them. Typically, such alliances were created for campaigns of conquest against external enemies: for example, around 1200 BC, Crete was conquered by the Achaeans.

Due to constant internal wars, cultural, economic and political life Achaean state entities concentrated around the palace-citadel, which makes this civilization similar to the Cretan-Minoan culture, although the latter was much less warlike character. One of the largest citadels was located in the Mycenaean region, thanks to the rich archaeological finds in this area associated with the Achaeans, their civilization was called Mycenaean.

Around the 14th century. BC. The mass migration of the Achaeans to the Asia Minor peninsula (the territory of modern Turkey) began. This historical period is reflected in the work of the ancient poet Homer “Iliad”, which tells about the united campaign of the Achaeans under the leadership of King Agamemnon against Troy; the epic tells us about the ten-year siege of this settlement, which ended with its plunder. It can be argued that the Iliad tells us about the military confrontation between the Achaeans and the inhabitants of Asia Minor, which ended in the victory of the former, as evidenced by the many Achaean settlements in this region, the creation of which corresponds to approximately the 13th century. BC.

At the turn of the XIII and XII centuries, the Balkan Peninsula was overwhelmed new wave resettlement: less developed culturally and economically, than the Achaeans, but succeeded militarily (this is due to the development of the production of iron weapons), the Dorians quickly captured the Mycenaean citadels and subjugated their owners. The Dorian conquest of Greece is considered to be the end of the Mycenaean civilization.

Participants

Agamemnon is the legendary Mycenaean king, leader of the campaign against the Trojans.

Priam is the legendary last king of Troy who resisted the Achaean invasion.

Heinrich Schliemann - German archaeologist, discovered Mycenae and Troy.

Conclusion

The Mycenaean civilization left behind a rich cultural heritage, she also contributed to the formation of the civilization of classical Greece, and the famous “Iliad” and “Odyssey”, telling about the Mycenaean era, became the most significant works for the ancient world.

Mycenae and Troy

After the death of the Cretan civilization, the Mycenaean culture began to flourish. We learn about this period of Greek history from the myths about the Trojan War, information from which is confirmed by archaeological finds. The self-taught German scientist Heinrich Schliemann devoted his entire life to the search for the mysterious Troy; it was to him that the honor of discovering ancient Troy and Mycenae belongs. In today's lesson, we will follow Schliemann to visit the ruins of ancient Mycenae and Troy, learn about the mythological and historical reasons for the outbreak of the war between the Greeks and the Trojans.

Mycenae was located in Southern Greece, on a rocky hill. The city was surrounded by a fortress wall 900 meters long and 6 meters wide. The entrance to the fortress, made of huge blocks of stone, passed through the Lion Gate. The entrance opening from the gate has been preserved. Near the Lion Gate, archaeologists excavated royal graves. Numerous precious jewelry was found in the tombs. From the golden masks lying on the faces of the buried, one can imagine the appearance of the Mycenaean rulers. They had stern faces with beards and mustaches.

During excavations of royal palaces in ancient Greek cities, hundreds of clay tablets with inscriptions were found. These inscriptions have been read. They contain lists of female slaves, rowers on ships, and artisans who worked for the king. Many inscriptions talk about preparations for war. The Mycenaean kings, greedy for other people's wealth, undertook long campaigns for booty.

Around 1200 BC e. Greek cities united under the leadership of the king of Mycenae and opposed Troy, a rich trading city on the coast of Asia Minor. The siege of the city lasted 10 years and ended with the fall of Troy.

The Greeks failed to take advantage of the victory. Warlike tribes invaded Greece from the north. Long-haired, wearing animal skins, they devastated the south of the country, destroying Pylos, Mycenae and other cities. The population hid in the mountains and moved to the islands of the Aegean Sea and Asia Minor. There was a decline in the economy, and writing was forgotten.

Among the newcomers were Greek tribes related to those who lived in Greece before their invasion. They settled in deserted lands.

From generation to generation, the Greeks passed on myths about their gods, ancient heroes and the war with the Trojans. One day the gods arranged a luxurious feast. The goddess of quarrels and discord was not called upon him. However, she appeared uninvited and quietly threw among the feasting Golden Apple with the inscription: “To the most beautiful.” Three goddesses argued over an apple. One was Hera, the eldest of the goddesses (the Greeks portrayed her as a beautiful and majestic woman). The other is the warrior Athena. Despite her menacing appearance, she was just as attractive. The third is Aphrodite, the eternally young goddess of beauty and love. Each of the goddesses believed that the apple was destined for her. They turned to the god of thunder and lightning, Zeus, asking him to judge them. But Zeus, although he was the main god, did not want to interfere in the quarrel, because Hera was his wife, and Athena and Aphrodite were his daughters. He ordered them to turn to the Trojan prince Paris so that he would resolve the dispute about the golden apple.

The three goddesses flew across the Aegean Sea and appeared before Paris. “Award the apple to me,” said Hera, “and I will make you the ruler of all Asia.” “If you award the apple to me,” Athena intervened, “I will help you accomplish great feats and become famous.” Aphrodite said: “Give me the apple, and I will find you the most beautiful woman in the world to marry.” Paris awarded the apple to Aphrodite. From then on, she began to help him in everything, and Hera and Athena hated Paris and all the Trojans.

Elena was considered the most beautiful of women. She lived in the Greek city of Sparta and was the wife of King Menelaus who ruled there. It was as if Paris came to visit him. He was received kindly and cordially. But when the king left for several days on business, Aphrodite inspired Helen to love Paris. She forgot her husband and agreed to flee to Troy. Returning home, the king of Sparta Menelaus became furious and began to call all the kings of Greece to war against Troy. They agreed to participate in the campaign.

The Greeks crossed the sea on hundreds of ships and landed near Troy. Having pulled the ships ashore, they set up a camp, protecting it with a wall. Fighting began on the plain between the camp and Troy. For many years the Greeks unsuccessfully besieged Troy. The Trojan War was Mycenae's last venture. According to myths, Troy was defeated and captured by the Greeks. In reality, the city was destroyed by an earthquake around 1300 BC. e. The long war exhausted the strength of Greek cities, including Mycenae, after which their decline began.

Bibliography

1. A.A. Vigasin, G.I. Goder, I.S. Sventsitskaya. Ancient world history. 5th grade - M.: Prosveshchenie, 2006.
2. Nemirovsky A.I. History reading book ancient world. – M.: Education, 1991.

Now the time has come to talk about the ancient Cyclopean fortifications in Mycenae, which concludes the story of what we saw in Greece. Next will be only a final post, but for now let’s return to the walls, which are more than three thousand years old, walk among them, try to imagine what they once were like...

The city was surrounded by a 900 m long fortress wall, which enclosed an area of ​​over 30,000 sq.m. In some places, vaulted galleries with casemates were built inside the walls, in which weapons and food were stored (the thickness of the wall here reaches 17 m). The entire system of defensive structures of the Mycenaean fortresses was carefully thought out and guaranteed the defenders against unforeseen accidents.

The approach to the main gate of the citadel was arranged in such a way that the enemy approaching it was forced to turn towards the wall on which the defenders of the fortress were located with their right side, not covered by a shield. Behind the gate inside the fortress there was also a narrow courtyard, framed on both sides by walls, where it was easy to defend against enemies who broke through the gate.

Now, having entered the gate, we find ourselves in an open space, which is mainly occupied by a circular fence, formed by two rows of stone slabs placed on edge: they mark the sites of earlier shaft tombs. Inside this enclosure were tombstones, some with human figures carved on them. Between the circle of the fence and the wall there were houses and warehouses.

This so-called Circle A of the shaft tombs was included in the perimeter of the fortification walls during their construction, apparently as a kind of sacred, cult center. The earliest Mycenaean fortifications left this necropolis outside the citadel.

Throughout the 3rd and 2nd millennia, there are 5 main groups of burials: pit, box, shaft, chamber and dome. The most important monument of Mycenae are the shaft tombs. (XVI century BC). The first six graves of this type were discovered in 1876 by G. Schliemann within the Mycenaean citadel. These rectangular, somewhat elongated tombs were carved into soft rock to a depth of 0.5 to 3-4 m; they represent a further development of pit and box burials.

Archaeologists have recovered from them many precious objects made of gold, silver, ivory and other materials. Massive gold rings decorated with carvings, tiaras, earrings, bracelets, gold and silver dishes, magnificently decorated weapons, including swords, daggers, armor made of sheet gold, and finally, completely unique gold masks that hid the faces of the buried were found here. Amber, ostrich eggs and other obviously imported items were found in the graves.

The artwork in these tombs shows the influence of Cretan art, although the subject matter of the images differs significantly from Cretan. Minoan pottery was also found in the tombs. The tombs are located among the graves of the so-called. Middle Helladic period. Obviously, these were the burial places of rulers.

The richness of the inventory of the shaft tombs indicates a significant development of productive forces during the transition to the Late Helladic period. Widespread use of bronze, abundance precious metals and their generous use is a clear indicator of the separation of crafts from agriculture and the long-term accumulation of labor skills among Mycenaean artisans. The presence of things of foreign origin indicates connections, possibly trade, with distant countries. The totality of finds in the shaft tombs gives reason to consider the Mycenaean society of that time to be a class society. Slave society arose in Mycenae as a result of internal development.

The main street leads to the gate from the lower city past the sacred Mycenaean circle of shaft graves B (which date back to the 16th century BC and are older than the famous royal shaft tombs of circle A excavated by Schliemann).

Next to this complex are the remains of a building from the late Mycenaean period, also excavated by Schliemann, which today received the name “House of the Military Vase”, thanks to the famous large Mycenaean crater with images of warriors found here. This crater is today on display at the Athens National Museum.

It's time to remember the history of the archaeological excavations of Mycenae. The location of the ancient city was known for a long time - long before the moment when Schliemann first found himself at the walls of the ancient city in 1868. Images of a fortified acropolis on a rocky hill in the Argive valley are known already in the 18th and early 19th centuries. For example, here is a romanticized image of the Mycenaean Acropolis. Isn't it difficult to find out?

The history of Mycenae is one of the darkest and at the same time one of the most sublime chapters in the history of Greece, full of dark passions. It was archaeologists who proved the real existence of the events described in ancient poems. According to Homer's Iliad and Aeschylus' Agamemnon, Greece in the Mycenaean period was a country high culture. The ancient historians Herodotus and Thucydides spoke of the Trojan War as a true incident, and of its heroes as real people.

Meanwhile, at the time when the Greeks came into the spotlight of modern history, they did not particularly stand out among other peoples - neither the luxury of palaces, nor the power of kings, nor a large fleet. It was undoubtedly much easier to attribute the information contained in Homer’s poems to the writer’s imagination than to agree that the era of high civilization was followed by an era of decline with its barbarism, and then a new rise of Hellenic culture.

Today, Mycenae is primarily associated with the name of Schliemann, who, having studied the texts of Homer’s poems, discovered Troy, and then the “royal tombs” in Mycenae.

In 1876, as a result of a fairly quick exploration, Schliemann excavated the shaft tombs of circle A, located inside the walls of the fortification, and made his world-famous finds. Among several golden tombstone masks, he chose the most “intelligent” face, as it seemed to him, and attributed it to Agamemnon.

The shaft tombs discovered at Mycenae by Schliemann in 1876 were the earliest of the sites: there are no Neolithic artifacts here, and the Early and Middle Helladic remains are extremely insignificant. The objects found in the tombs date from the transition from the Middle Helladic to the Late Helladic period and illustrate the connections that existed between Greece and Crete ca. 16th century BC. View of Schliemann's excavations in Mycenae in an ancient engraving:

These tombs consisted of six large stone wells located in an area that was subsequently surrounded by a wall. 19 skeletons were found in the wells, one of which was preserved in partially mummified form. On the faces of several of those buried were masks made of beaten gold.

Here the plan clearly shows the location of all objects, incl. and tombs:

The graves contained treasures - objects made of gold, silver and bronze, including jewelry, bowls, swords, rings and other objects. Among last category- numerous gold disks and plates embossed or embossed on them in the form of octopuses, rosettes and other shapes typical of Mycenaean burials: these could be sparkles from clothing or decorations on coffins or other decorations.

There were also bronze daggers with hammered gold handles and designs on the blades made using the technique of gold and silver inlay; two have hunting scenes depicted in a lively and expressive manner.

The total weight of gold found here is more than 14 kg. Nowadays, Schliemann's finds adorn the exhibition of the National Archaeological Museum of Athens.

But some of the finds are also presented in Mycenae:

Some of the treasures today are not inferior to the creations of current designers. ;-)

Late Helladic potters made dishes of various sizes - from small goblets to huge vessels. The clay was well cleaned, the walls of the vessels were made thin, the surface of the vases was often polished, and the firing was of high quality.

In Athens, Schliemann, by the way, built himself luxury mansion, the walls of which he decorated with paintings, in accordance with his eccentric taste, placing images of himself and his wife among the ancient gods and heroes.

The six tombs contained a variety of metal products of high artistic level - weapons, drinking vessels, jewelry, masks, as well as 16th-century ceramics. BC.

It is an extremely rare case that royal burials from such an ancient era have survived to this day without actually being plundered. Most of these finds are exhibited in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens and are the most important part of the museum's exhibition.

By the way, it was in Mycenae that the famous steles with images of chariots were discovered - one of the oldest in Europe. Subsequently, with varying degrees of intensity, excavations were carried out throughout the 20th century (by the British school of archaeology and Athenian archaeologists), as a result of which a complex of buildings inside the fortification, the palace itself, many buildings outside the walls, tholos tombs and many other monuments were uncovered.

But let's return to the acropolis. Moving up the preserved ancient staircase, which turns into a ramp paved with stones, you can climb to the very top of the hill, where the palace of the ruler of Mycenae was located.

Nowadays it is poorly preserved, but once it was entered via a two-flight staircase in the Minoan style with ceremonial reception chambers.

The monumental palace consisted of many ceremonial, residential and utility rooms; in a separate sanctuary there were statues of gods made of marble and terracotta.

At the top of the stairs there was a rectangular courtyard, into which Big hall, or megaron, consisting of a portico with two columns, a reception room and a rectangular main hall.

The structure of this official palace premises is described by Homer and it is similar to other Mycenaean palaces - in Megara, Pylos, Tiryns. Central Hall The megaron had dimensions of 12.95 x 11.50 m. In the center of this room there was a sacred round hearth, around which there were 4 wooden columns that supported the roof and were decorated with bronze plates and the throne of the ruler.

The hearth was repeatedly painted with colored patterns on thin layers of plaster. The floor of the hall is paved with flat slabs. Remains of fresco paintings were discovered here and are now in the museum.

The Achaeans borrowed many important elements of their culture from Crete. Among them are some cults and religious ceremonies, fresco painting in palaces, water supply and sewerage, styles of men's and women's clothing, some types of weapons, and finally, linear syllabary. All this, however, does not mean that the Mycenaean culture was just a minor peripheral variant of the culture of Minoan Crete, and the Mycenaean settlements in the Peloponnese and elsewhere were simply Minoan colonies in a foreign “barbarian” country (this opinion was stubbornly held by A. Evans). Many characteristics Mycenaean culture suggests that it arose on Greek soil and was successively connected with ancient cultures this area, dating back to the Neolithic and Early Bronze Ages.

Great changes have taken place in the craft. The construction of palaces, defensive walls, tombs, roads, etc. urgently required new tools of production. Mycenaean builders used several types of chisels, drills, various hammers and saws; Axes and knives were used to process wood. Whorls and loom weights were discovered in Mycenae.

Megaron, which gave the textbook plan of a Greek dwelling of the 2nd-1st millennia BC, still allows you to imagine the view from the window of the palace of the proud Achaean leader - a cliff, a mountain, hills and a plain right up to the foggy sea in the distance.

Wrote very well about Megaron carmelist , although he wrote about Tiryns, this quote can also be applied to Mycenae: construction technique is determined by the measure of human strength alone, someone's brilliant architectural thought has just made it possible to invent a masonry method right angle made of stone. Another engineering genius thought of placing an ordinary tree trunk under the ceiling and created the most iconic element of architecture - a column. The symbiosis of these two creations gave birth to the megaron - the prototype of the future ancient classics. I think that the joy of the builders knew no bounds; they sculpted one megaron to another until they had sculpted the entire palace complex of Tiryns.

Let's summarize the above - the characteristic elements of the megaron:
- three-way division: balcony, vestibule and throne room;
- a large round hearth in the center of the throne room;
- four columns arranged in a square around the fireplace in the throne room;
- the throne is located against the middle of the right wall in the throne room;
- the floors and walls of the megaron are richly decorated with frescoes and geometric patterns;
- stone benches were located near the right and left walls of the throne room

The king's megaron had a sacred character: the king, who was also the high priest, sat on a throne, and the priests around him were on benches.

Megaron section:

There were many other rooms here and higher on the mountain, but for the most part no trace remains of them. Let us mention some of them: the courthouse was located directly in front of the megaron. Usually the court was surrounded on three sides by a colonnade. In Mycenae, near the court, the “Great Staircase” (a stone staircase originating from the “Lion Gate”) ends.

Megaron of the queen - in Mycenae this room is inferior in size to the megaron of the king, but was just as luxurious and with two light wells. The queen's megaron is located next to the north side of the king's megaron.

Bathroom - discovered near the royal rooms. The bathtub itself is assembled from fragments, and like all other small bathtubs, it is a sit-down bathtub. Even the Mycenaean kings did not have large baths!

At the top of the mountain there are traces of an archaic Doric temple, an archaic relief was discovered here, and objects dating back to the Hellenistic period were also found. In the southwestern part of the Palace, a vast area was occupied by a sanctuary. Dedicatory gifts to the deity, dues, gifts and income of the king were kept here. The pithoi currently visible were used to store oil and wine, and possibly grain, although little of the latter has been discovered. In the masonry tanks located in front of the pithos, precious utensils were probably stored. The storerooms had neither windows nor light wells and were illuminated by oil lamps.

In the northwestern corner of the fortified territory there was an underground spring with a reservoir, to which a staircase of 83 steps led. Ancient name source - Perseus. An underground stepped gallery was cut from the fortress to a source located far below.

Descending from the top of the hill, you must definitely look into the citadel, which goes deep into the walls, and then into the ground, a man-made gallery leading to an underground spring and a cistern with drinking water supplies. This typically Mycenaean vaulted room, built from huge, poorly processed limestone blocks, ending with a passage carved into the rock to the cistern, makes a huge impression with its power and size. Here in the wall you can see two narrow loopholes that could serve secret passage for sudden attacks during a siege.

In the middle of the Late Helladic period, Mycenae began to weaken. Residents apparently expected attacks. Excavations show that all water sources were brought to the northern gate of the acropolis, and in its northeastern corner a deep underground cistern was built into which the waters of the Perseus spring flowed.

In conclusion, I would like to cite the arguments of American scientists about the connection between the Minoan and Mycenaean palaces.

The location of the Central Megaron at Mycenae clearly indicates that it was the architectural center of the palace structure. The location of all other buildings depends on the location of the megaron. In Mycenae, the megaron is the heart of the palace, the immediate administrative center. In Mycenae, the royal megaron housed courts and administration.

In contrast, in Crete, at the Palace of Knossos, the royal megaron is not a central structure, it is simply a monumental version of a normal private house. There are other throne rooms at Knossos that were used by kings for specific religious or state purposes. In this sense, the architecture of the Mycenaean Palace can be characterized as centripetal, in contrast to the centric nature of the Palace of Knossos.

Mycenaean palaces reflect much greater individuality than Cretan palaces in the sense that in Mycenae every building is unique, and in the Knossos palace there are about 30 storerooms alone. In Mycenae, palace architecture and the dwellings of ordinary people are sharply contrasted. If in Crete the buildings of the “lower cities” corresponded in style to palaces, then in Mycenae there is no similarity between the palace and the dwellings common people not found, despite an attempt by a University of Minnesota expedition in the 1960s and 1970s to compile full plan Mycenae. The palace at Mycenae is always associated only with the residence of the monarch and associated annexes, and this distinction between the royal domain and the residence of the common people was emphasized by the design of the massive walls around the citadel.

Sources cited in posts about Mycenae.