Was the Minoan palace at Knossos the inspiration for myths about the Minotaur and its labyrinth lair? Delving into the archaeology of this monument and its environs reveals a reality every bit as remarkable as the ancient legends, as Andrew Shapland told Matthew Symonds.
In the first part of our special, Paul Rahe examines the background to the struggle between Athens and Sparta for control of the ancient Greek world.
In the second part of our special feature, Paul Rahe reveals how Sparta won the largest land battle fought within Greece during the Peloponnesian War.
REVIEW by MARC DeSANTIS The death of Alexander the Great in Babylon in 323 BC left the empire he had conquered without blood heirs ready to take up the heavy burden of governance. Thus, in the days following his passing,…
Ancient myths meet archaeological treasures in this new blockbuster at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. Carly Hilts went along to learn more about the great palace at Knossos, legendary location of the Minotaur-haunted labyrinth, and real-life repository of Minoan culture.
According to the catalogue for the new exhibition at Oxford’s Ashmolean Museum, Knossos is the place where ‘myth, archaeology and reinforced concrete come together’ – a neat encapsulation of some of the world famous site’s many complexities. Perched on a…
On which Greek island would you find the acropolis of Lindos?
Myth surrounds the famous Palace of Knossos, but there is much more to the Cretan site than the fabled Minotaur and King Minos. A new exhibition at the Ashmolean Museum delves into the archaeology of the Minoan site and the later work that is reshaping Arthur Evans’ controversial interpretations, as Maev Kennedy finds out.
Water may separate the Mediterranean islands from the mainland, but the sea also offers a vital link. Anastasia Christophilopoulou considers how objects from Crete, Cyprus, and Sardinia reveal aspects of shifting island identities over time, and stories of their connections.
The mountains and forests of Epirus offer a dramatic backdrop for a tour through the theatres of the Greek region’s ancient cities. Diana Bentley finds stories of a famed oracle and a celebrated victory along the way.
A glance at some of the latest exciting archaeological stories from across the globe.
He is one of the most famous figures in human history, the subject of countless legends, and a commander regularly claimed as the greatest of all time. But who was Alexander the Great really? We know that he was born…
Alexander the Great: the making of a myth is at the British Library in London until 19 February 2023.
Gilbert was one of the first Americans – of any ethnicity – to undertake archaeological work in Greece. There, he is likely to have met Heinrich Schliemann, rediscoverer of Troy, and certainly he did groundbreaking excavation work on the neighbourhoods of Athens
Bronze Age sites across the Aegean and Mediterranean have yielded a wealth of small, spherical stone artefacts, which for years have puzzled archaeologists. Now, using artificial intelligence (AI), a research team from the University of Bristol has presented new evidence that the stones were used as counters in an ancient board game.
A significant discovery comes in the form of the marble head of a bearded man, which researchers believe belongs to the headless Herakles in Athens' National Archaeological Museum .
Review by Robin Osborne. Thirty-three years ago, I attempted to push 7th-century BC Athens and Attica into the limelight. I managed to stimulate critical engagement from Anna-Maria D’Onofrio and James Whitley, but failed to convince the wider world that this…
These days, the term ‘philhellenism’ (literally, the love of all things Greek) is perhaps most often associated with the Romantic poets and thinkers of the late 18th and 19th centuries – a period during which a ‘new cult of the…
At which battle in 490 BC did an Athenian army repulse the first Persian invasion of Greece?
Ancient Rome’s enthusiasm for all things Greek is well known, and archaeological echoes of these influences can be found across the Empire. Looking in the other direction, though, what traces did the Romans leave in Athens, the city at the heart of their idealised view? Carly Hilts reports.
Michael Ventris' decipherment of a mysterious ancient script, Minoan Linear B, was dubbed by The Times as ‘the Everest of Greek archaeology’…
It is a question that has been debated by archaeologists and historians for decades: to what extent can one of the worst disasters in human history, the catastrophic volcanic eruption in c.1600 BC that devastated the ancient Aegean island of Thera (now known as Santorini), be linked to the mysterious collapse of one of the first European cultures, the once-dominant Minoan civilisation centred on the nearby island of Crete?
The daring German capture of Crete in May-June 1941 is not often mentioned alongside more celebrated military upsets. But still, there were many levels on which Operation Merkur (Mercury) – as it was codenamed – was a victory against the odds.
Neil Faulkner introduces an elite Nazi strike-force and sets the scene for the epic Battle of Crete in May 1941.
Neil Faulkner analyses one of the Second World War’s most curiously asymmetrical battles.
As fans of the world's most celebrated sporting contest know, the modern Olympic Games are no stranger to accusations of cheating. Things were no better, however, at the Ancient Olympics, the four-yearly panhellenic Games, which were first recorded in 776 BC and held at Olympia in the northwestern Peloponnese.
One of the most celebrated works of ancient Greek sculpture, Phidias’ statue of Zeus, was once housed in a temple at Olympia. Though this lost wonder was much admired by ancient visitors, it was not the only attraction at the site, for centuries the home of great panhellenic games. A new book by Judith Barringer explores the many transformations Olympia experienced, even before the creation of Phidias’ masterpiece, as David Stuttard reports.
In honour of which god were the Ancient Olympics held?
The difference between a historian and a poet is not that one uses prose and the other verse. After all, you could take the History of Herodotus and turn it into verse, but it would still be history, not poetry.
Review by David Stuttard. On an August morning just over two and a half millennia ago in 490 BC, a numerically inferior army of democratic Athenians, their liberated slaves, and Plataean allies won an overwhelming victory over Persian invaders on…
Review by Lucia Marchini. The myth of Heracles, his heroic strength and ability to meet seemingly insurmountable challenges, has proven an enduringly popular one. Emperors and kings made use of his mighty image, and he was even the subject of…
Review by Paul Christesen Olympia is not an especially large archaeological site (the entire excavated area measures less than 1km on a side), but it is nonetheless a particularly complex one. Activity at the site began in the 4th millennium…
Zeus is the king of the gods. But who was his queen?
The Cretan site of Gortyn may be overshadowed by the palace-complex of Knossos, also on the island, but among its varied remains is an important legal document that offers insights into the ancient city. Diana Bentley is our guide.
New research is shedding light on the presence of early people around the world.
These days, John Craxton is perhaps best known for the vibrant, sun-drenched illustrations he produced as book jackets for his close friend, the travel writer Patrick Leigh Fermor. As a young painter in the 1940s, however, he was a leading figure in the post-war British art scene, alongside Graham Sutherland, John Piper and Lucian Freud.