im sorry ik this is more than 150 words :(
Explanation:
The Minoans and Mycenaean civilizations both resided in present-day Greece, while the Minoans based their civilization on the island of Crete, and the Mycenaeans on mainland Greece. The Minoans, who were known particularly for their extensive trade and dominance of the sea, existed from about 27th century B.C. to 14th century B.C. until the Mycenaeans defeated them and took over (Biers, 1980, 27). On the other hand, the Mycenaeans were more war and military oriented than the Minoans, as seen by their victory over the Minoans and their material culture, which will be looked at later. As far as language is concerned, Mycenaeans appeared to use a language called Linear B, which consisted of 87 different signs and several ideograms, or graphic symbols that represents an idea or concept. There has been a large amount of evidence found in the palaces of the Mycenaean civilization in the form of clay tablets. The Minoans used a system called Linear A, a mostly syllabic script that contains 75 signs and several ideograms; unfortunately, archaeologists still haven’t completely deciphered all of the symbols (Burkert, 1985, 20). We do know however, that Linear A tablets contained accounting transactions, which supports the idea that Minoans were more trade oriented (Biers, 1980, 26). Both civilizations were very complex and advanced with complex social hierarchies; this complexity is best seen by examining the archaeological remains of each civilization’s architecture and different types of art pieces including paintings, sculptures, and pottery.
Although the Minoan and Mycenaean styles of architecture were very similar, there were still several structural differences due to their trade and military backgrounds.
Mycenaeans were especially talented at working “with large blocks of stone” (Biers, 1980, 67), a technique called megalithic architecture, which made it possible for Mycenaeans to construct enormous, heavily fortified walls that surrounded their palaces. This was in stark contrast to Minoan palaces as they probably felt that fortifications around palaces may have been superfluous due to their isolation location and strong navy. Minoans also used a post and lintel system, or in other words, “verticals and horizontals” (Biers, 1980, 29), as opposed to the Mycenaean megalithic structure. A distinct feature of the Mycenaean style of architecture is the “relieving triangle above a lintel block”, an architectural element best displayed on the Lion Gate at Mycenae (Preziosi and Hitchcock, 1999, 176).
Both civilizations had palaces with intricate and detailed floor plans that covered a vast amount of land and had a central area upon which the rest of the palace would be built around. Typically, in Minoan palaces such as Knossos, the central area would be a large courtyard which was the “focus of everyday life and served as the site for religious rituals and other ceremonial functions” (Biers, 1980, 29). On the other hand, the central area of a Mycenaean palace was called a megaron. Typically, Mycenaean palaces such as Pylos, were highly decorated; this included the “walls and the floor” and even the hearth, which had “spiral and flame patterns” painted several times (Biers, 1980, 71). Another aspect of the Mycenaean culture that showed they had a military sense was their utilization of advanced hydraulic engineering. Not only did they have great fortification walls, but they had carefully maintained roads that served as an important network connector to their various major centers (Biers, 1980, 74). While it is reasonable to conclude that both civilizations had impressive pieces of architectural work, the Mycenaeans tended to have a greater abundance of military architecture in its world.
