Minoan civilization possibly inspired Plato's Atlantis myth. Minoans existed on Crete (Greece) and Greek islands before Mycenaean civilization Minoan civilization was sophisticated with indoor plumbing, large palaces, and wealth comparable to Roman civilization The island of Thera (Santorini) erupted around 1450-1500 BC in the fourth largest volcanic explosion in world history
Minoans on Crete had indoor plumbing & wealth rivaling Rome — centuries BEFORE classical Greece! Their decline after Thera's eruption (~1600 BC, one of the largest in Mediterranean history at ~60 cubic km of material) may have inspired Plato's Atlantis 🌋🔱
Key Facts
- Minoans existed on Crete (Greece) and Greek islands before Mycenaean civilization
- Minoan civilization was sophisticated with indoor plumbing, large palaces, and wealth comparable to Roman civilization
- The island of Thera (Santorini) erupted around 1450-1500 BC in the fourth largest volcanic explosion in world history
- The eruption expelled approximately 30 million kilotons of energy
- Superheated debris from the eruption reached Egypt and the Mediterranean
- The eruption destroyed the Minoan city of Akrotiri
- Minoans were one of the few ancient Mediterranean cultures that did not glorify warfare
- Minoan civilization declined after the eruption, followed by Mycenaean dominance
- The Minoans were wealthier and more sophisticated than contemporary Egyptian civilization
- Minoan art and culture remain largely mysterious and poorly understood
Related site: Crete (Greece) — view location, images, and history on the Ancient Nerds map.
Source: Exploring the Americas with @LukeCaverns @W by Wandering Wolf