Society
The Cretans are formally referred to as Minoans and formed what is considered as a civilized society around 2100 B.C. during the early years of the Bronze Age. Much of what modern historians know about the Minoans comes from Linear B which was discovered at the palace of Knossos. The tablet was translated and contained lists of inventory that is assumed to have been stored in the palace. Since the period when the Mycenaeans first inhabited the island of Crete they were ruled by a monarchy. The central or capital city of Crete appears to have been located at Knossos and remained there throughout the entire existence of ancient Cretan society. It is unclear as to what type of taxes were paid by the surrounding villagers to the crown, yet it is most likely that these people paid in tribute by providing goods and manufactured products. As stated earlier in the article the Mycenaeans did participate heavily in Mediterranean trade. Though many resources were available for the Mycenaeans on the island of Crete, there was always a constant demand for olive oil and grain (such as wheat) which were found inland on nearby Greece.
Read more about this topic: Ancient Crete
Famous quotes containing the word society:
“The institution of the family is decisive in determining not only if a person has the capacity to love another individual but in the larger social sense whether he is capable of loving his fellow men collectively. The whole of society rests on this foundation for stability, understanding and social peace.”
—Daniel Patrick Moynihan (20th century)
“The growing of food and the growing of children are both vital to the family’s survival.... Who would dare make the judgment that holding your youngest baby on your lap is less important than weeding a few more yards in the maize field? Yet this is the judgment our society makes constantly. Production of autos, canned soup, advertising copy is important. Housework—cleaning, feeding, and caring—is unimportant.”
—Debbie Taylor (20th century)
“One of the fundamental reasons why so many doctors become cynical and disillusioned is precisely because, when the abstract idealism has worn thin, they are uncertain about the value of the actual lives of the patients they are treating. This is not because they are callous or personally inhuman: it is because they live in and accept a society which is incapable of knowing what a human life is worth.”
—John Berger (b. 1926)