The Minoans: The Lost Civilization

This session we'll discuss the Minoans - the ancient Bronze Age culture that dominated the Mediterranean and may have been the inspiration behind Atlantis. The Minoans (or Eteo Cretans) - so named for their later association with the stories of King Minos and the Minotaur - resided on Crete and Santorini. Known for being extremely advanced, with trade routes extending from Great Britain to Afghanistan, these mysterious people were heavily influential in later Greek culture. Evidence shows the Minoans were matriarchal in their religion and may have also been matriarchal in government. We'll explore their fascinating culture and talk about how their power was supplanted by the migrating Mycenaean peoples (early Greeks) and how this societal shift was reflected in Greek mythology, depicting stories of patriarchal Greek gods overtaking the Minoan matriarchal goddesses.