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Reviews (4)
Sep 04, 2021
a true 'pocket rocket' of a small format introduction to the theme.
amazing unexpected gem of a book for the pocket money price i paid.
small paperback format and notebook-ish in style, but surprisingly rich and varied in themes/scope, presenting enough to satisfy of every aspect you will probably be curious about (if the Minoans and the material culture of their time appeals to you), without wanting to get bogged down in hardcore academic writing.
it's also generously served with tons of photos and diagrams to illustrate points and provide colour.
a fab additional bonus is an appendix of brief articles/papers/extracts at the back that takes some unexpected (yet fascinating) detours through less covered ideas and aspects about the themes still awaiting resolution (this field is still extremely young and uncharted, relatively speaking, compared to Classical Greece).
one of these 'mini essays' that i enjoyed particularly concerned the friezes, and how various experts throughout the last century have contested (still contest) how some famous frieze images we know are not so much 'set in stone' as conceived, but in many cases only one 'chosen' potential configuration of jigsaw pieces of stone found at the scene, assembled according to fashion/fantasy/necessity (to sell a dream to contemporary early dig-sponsors and funding media) by those experts on hand at the time.
imagining these classic images as re-fragmented into their component bits and then re-combined as new images genuinely tickled my curiosity, because it was a necessary reminder of how much we (as viewers/consumers of these images and histories) get habituated to taking so much on trust, when ultimately so much is undefined beyond educated guesses. for me, that essay was worth the ticket price alone for 'breaking the forth wall'.
anyway, the TL:DR. a small format gem that teases way above its size and price, and much recommended for that.
May 03, 2024
great toothbrushes and well worth the money. make my teeth feel super clean and shiny. my last one of these lasted a decade (used every day). this loo
great toothbrushes and well worth the money. make my teeth feel super clean and shiny. my last one of these lasted a decade (used every day). this looks exactly the same so i would expect the same standard reliability. sent fast and safely packed by a reliable seller A+
Aug 16, 2021
What's not to love about the Minoans? They were adorable!
The Thames & Hudson 'world or art's never let you down. I've got the lot covering the 3000bce to 1000ce and they are all in constant reference.
If you only want a4 a few size full colour glossy pics, then any decent coffee table book on the theme will do. but if you want to really dig into the culture and try understand (and enter into) that time and place and spirit, you need the context; historical, social, artistic.
Specific to this volume (and by way of disclosure), I will admit to nursing a a profound pash and admiration for the Minoans, so by all means please factor that into your views on my objectivity.
Why my pash for the Minoans, ahead of the Mycenaeans and Greeks?
The Mycenaeans were a halfway house (Minoan art/culture with proto Greek Empirical tendencies). But it seems to me to essentially be the case that all/most of what was sublime and rich about their art was Minoan in origin (imported or copied), and what was clumsy and heavy-handed was their own (apologies in advance to any Mycenaeans reading this sweeping generalization).
The Ancient/Classical Greeks were what we widely understand them to be, (the cradle of Western Civilization, no less), with all the beautiful and ugly things that go with Empire building (never forget Imperialism cuts both ways, good and bad, depending on your position in the Hierarchy/Hegemony). And history and archeology testifies that they refined the best (and worst) of both worlds.
But the Minoans have always seemed to me so deliciously apart. And happily apart, not aloof. Self-contained but not isolated. Confident but not arrogant. The joy of a peace-loving small island going through the best of times.
Fundamentally a matriarchal society, with motherhood and community at its core. Considering military engagement an undesirable event, to employ only when strictly necessary (eg when attacked). Quite different to viewing it, as great and desirable sport, as the Greeks (more so, the Romans) did. At least until the day they finally found themselves on the losing side.
But as a creative culture (the core theme of this book), it's hard to argue (I say undeniable) that they were anything less than the artistic and creative epicentre of the Agean World circa 2000bce-1400bce. So much so in fact, that one wonders if they were ultimately 'chosen' to be allowed to be left alone to do their creative and cultural thing in peace (by potentially dominating surrounding island powers), far more so than many other small islands of that time, precisely because they were the artistic Goose that laid the Golden cultural eggs for the region.
And not only in their own time and place, but for millennia to come. The ground zero for the Greek and Roman creative cultures (art/craft, myth, theatre) of Classical Antiquity, if you like.
Anyway, I could go on but won't (this review is already overlong).
But I will finish by saying, very earnestly, that I was excited by this book. It pressed all my geek Aegaean Art buttons (and will continue to do so, within my little library). So if you feel yourself to be of a similar persuasion and interest (and are lingering on the threshold of buying) my advice to you is get in. 10/10