Mycenaean Citadels Essay

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Mycenaean Citadels The Mycenaean period was between (circa) 1600 till 1050 BC. Its civilisation is considered as being the first advanced civilisation. From the architectural remains found in Crete and especially mainland Greece, the Mycenaean had palaces, fortification systems and urban organization. Mycenaean culture had been influenced and developed from the Minoan culture. The Minoan civilisation lived on the island of Crete by the end of the Bronze Age era, before the Mycenaean. The latter grew and developed after the collapse of the Minoan civilisation. Theories suggest that the fall of the Minoans was either due to a series of catastrophes by earthquakes circa 1625 BC in Crete or the Minoans were invaded by the Dorian. Mycenaean used to build citadels in order to command and control. Its society was at all times well geared for any battles and invasions. To build such citadels, few simple logical basics were required and applied by the Mycenaean architects to select a site to fortify and function well. Such citadels were well fortified with thick perimeter walls. The fortified walls were erected upon the contours of the hill to protect well its rulers and residents. Hills with very sharp change in elevation were selected so that the fortified walls, made from masonry, would be well combined with the natural contours of the site. This will be of a greater advantage against the enemies. Methods of Walling: The Mycenaean used to build in masonry using different methods of walling. The Cyclopean is one of the methods of wall construction and was normally applied to the masonry used in Mycenaean fortification systems. Large limestone boulders were roughly fitted together with little clearance between the adjacent stone. No mortar was applied on such method, and small pieces of limestone were used to fill the gaps. The Polygonal method is another method of

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