readx;? British archaeologist Evans et al., found the ruins of the Minoan Palace on a gentle slope called Kevlar Mountain in Knossos, covering an area of square meters, with more than 1,500 large and small palace rooms, the floors are closely connected, the stairway corridor is tortuous and complex, the halls are scattered, the patios are numerous, the layout is not symmetrical, it is surprisingly ingenious, and it is difficult for outsiders to find it. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 info

The palace of King Knossos, built on a hill, is very large. In the center is a rectangular courtyard measuring 27.4 meters from east to west and 51.8 meters from north to south. The palace is centered on the central courtyard, the west building of the courtyard is mainly used for office gatherings, rituals and stockpiling, and the east building is the dormitory (the main hall [also called the "double axe hall", the symbol of the king of Minos] is the king's living place), living room, school and workshop. There is an amphitheater in the north and a staircase in the southeast corner that leads to the bottom of the mountain.

There are stairs connecting all the floors, especially the central grand staircase on the east side of the courtyard is the most magnificent, it has a patio for light, three sides form a colonnade, the corridor is wide, the color is gorgeously painted, next to it is the inner and outer two rooms of the double axe hall, separated by folding doors, which can keep warm in winter and ventilate in summer, showing the dexterity of Minoan architecture. The Queen's Quarters, next to the Hall of the Two Axes, is a typical Minoan luxury dwelling, with beautiful frescoes of dolphins playing in the water on the walls, and adjoining rooms with bathrooms and flushing toilets, and the frescoes throughout the palace are also masterpieces of ancient art. Judging from the various exquisite pottery excavated, the handicraft industry was quite developed at that time. In short, the architecture of the royal palace, from the post roads from Knossos to the plain of Faeste, the smelting of bronze, the long-handled bronze sword with ridges, the thin-shelled pottery, the richly painted pottery called the "Camares", and the early hieroglyphs, etc., all show the high level of cultural development at that time.

The interior of the palace is staggered, and the staircase is twisting and turning. Crete has a mild climate and an open colonnade layout in the palace halls. Decorative structure: architectural elements, such as columns, cornices, and different decorative lines, the pillars are thick and thin, well-proportioned, upright and handsome, and wall decorations, such as frescoes, colored reliefs, and mosaic collages, with realistic mural style and rich colors, and the corners of the walls are made of large stones.

No obvious temple architecture has been found, but the altar and the " (religious enclosure) are recognizable on intaglios and frescoes.

To date, the altar has only been found in the palace, indicating that the king also held religious power in his hands, representing the theocratic characteristics of the Minoan dynasty.

The Minoan artifacts contain a very sophisticated system of records, accounting, and other secretarial work, showing the existence of a considerable legal system.

The life of the ruling class was very comfortable, even from the point of view of the early society. They had elaborately decorated stone palaces with separate dormitories, huge halls, and ingenious devices that brought in light and air. Public facilities: paved, stepped roads, bridges, sanitary systems, and state-of-the-art drainage and water supply systems. Even the small dwellings of the inhabitants were made of stone with plaster inside. Cretan palaces have more than one floor, beautiful staircases, bathrooms, windows, folding doors and sliding doors. In the final phase, the arrangement of apartment rooms in some palaces suggests that there were at least separately spaced harems in the ruling class. The evidence is that Minoan frescoes depict groups of segregated women wearing jeweled ornaments (the princesses of the harem).

People eat fish, meat, and many kinds of vegetables, and drink wine and beer. The utensils used in kitchens, dining tables and luxury goods show a myriad of changes in appearance and function. Personal items such as brooches, pins, razors, tweezers, etc.; Everyday furniture, such as utensils made of a variety of materials, from huge storage jars to tiny ointment bottles, and kitchen utensils such as thrones, chairs, tables, etc., are carefully crafted to fit the human body. It is made of a variety of materials, from obsidian and other hard stones in the early days to terracotta and bronze. Crete has a history of large-scale olive and wine culture.

Chariots appear in the final stages, and there are pictures on Cretan clay tablets that show that people mastered the use of horses. Many roads are paved with sidewalks. Sports with more or less religious overtones are also often represented in works of art, especially bullfighting, dance, boxing, and military fighting.

Years later, the artifacts of the entire region showed a striking consistency with the establishment of the Minoan dynasty, and the development of local pottery almost completely ceased in favor of a uniform style of manufacture and decoration for all regions.

The Cretans got rid of the previous decline caused by the chaos of the princes, and returned to the path of solid development. They developed in stages a more convenient and expressive writing system, the linear script B.

The art of the whole region presents a unified spirit and pattern, and in religion they exhibit the same anthropomorphic style as well as the same ritual utensils. Objects produced in one place are found in others.

The religion of Cretan civilization entered the stage of idolatry. Its religious form provided the first samples for the later religions of Syria and Asia Minor in Western Asia.

The Cretans worshipped one goddess, perhaps several. The most unmistakable goddess is the "mistress of the animals," who has a twin brother, the "male master of the animals." But he's not that important. She is a huntress and is the origin of Artemis in ancient Greek legend. She or another goddess is also a mother, and the only male goddess is her young son, except for the "male master of the animals." It represents the fertility that is closely related to human beings. The goddess sometimes appears with the dove representing Ouranos (heaven) and sometimes with the serpent representing Chongnik (earth).

The Cretans, like the Egyptians, believed in life after death, and as in Egypt, they believed that after death, there was a reward and punishment for what one did during life. But on the whole, from the point of view of Cretan art, it seems that they were a merry people, not greatly oppressed by gloomy superstitions. They love bullfighting, where female fighters perform amazing stunts just like male fighters. Half-ox is a religious ritual, and the half-ox belongs to the highest nobility. The pictures that have been handed down are very vivid and realistic.

Sacred objects, such as objects used in religious ceremonies and their models, often figurines, played a large role: all plants and animals were sacred, and people used sacrifices (non-human, not burned), all forms of tribute and simulacrum, possession, and other religious practices. The deceased, as the person of the Great Mother, is an object of hero worship. This early nature worship explains many of the anomalies in ancient Greek religion, especially those of Artemis and Aphrodite.