Elite Minoan Architecture: Its Development at Knossos, Phaistos, and Malia

Joseph W. Shaw

City: Philadelphia

Year: 2015

Publisher: INSTAP Academic Press

Series: Prehistory Monographs 49

Description: Hardback, 224 p., 178 figures and 5 tables in the text, 29,7x21 cm

Abstract

The goal of this book is to trace the development of elite Minoan architectural forms that arose during the late Protopalatial (Middle Minoan II) and early Neopalatial periods (Middle Minoan III). The study of this architectual development concentrates on the older, larger sites of Knossos, Malia, and Phaistos where those very forms seem to have originated. Other Minoan towns and palaces in Crete are referenced when appropriate.

Contents

List of Tables in the Text [ix]
List of Figures in the Text [xi]
Introduction and Acknowledgments [xxi]
List of Abbreviations [xxv]

Chapter 1. Introduction to the Elite Style [1]

1.1. Elite Forms: Raised Walkways, the West Courts, and “Theatral” Areas [14]
1.2. Central Courts [17]
1.3. Domestic or Residential Quarters [25]
1.4. Grouped Storage Magazines [31]
1.5. Upper-Floor Reception Rooms [34]
1.6. Ascending and Parallel Stairways [38]
Chapter 1 Endnotes [41]

Chapter 2. Protopalatial Beginnings and Early Traditions [45]

2.1. Knossos [45]
2.2. Phaistos [49]
2.3. Malia [51]
2.4. Observations [58]
Chapter 2 Endnotes [61]

Chapter 3. Destruction at Knossos and the Rise of a New Architectural Order [63]

3.1. The East Wing at Knossos: Palatial Construction Explored [63]
3.2. Fallen Upper Floor Features at Minoan Sites [76]
3.3. Architectural Preservation at Knossos [77]
3.4. Aspects of Elite Style at Knossos and Phaistos [81]
3.5. Evans’s Excavation Architects at Knossos [88]
Chapter 3 Endnotes [92]

Chapter 4. A Typology of Elite Architectural Forms: Genesis and Development (MM I-III) [97]

4.1. Extensive Wooden Frameworks [97]
4.2. Wall-Ends, Doorways, and Pier-and-Door Partitions, Phase 1 (EM II-MM II) [101]
4.3. Wall-Ends, Doorways, and Pier-and-Door Partitions, Phase 2 (MM III) [105]
4.4. Columnar Structures [110]
4.5. Multiple Windows, or Polyparathyra [117]
4.6. Lustral Basins [119]
4.7. Wall Building [122]
4.8. Freestanding Supports [128]
4.9. Attached or Embedded Piers as Wall Supports [133]
4.10. Gypsum Dadoes, Floors, and Pavements [135]
4.11. “Triglyph” Benches [139]
Chapter 4 Endnotes [140]

Chapter 5. Ancestry, Development, and Spread of the Minoan Elite Architectural Style [149]

5.1. Residence in the Palaces? [149]
5.2. Ancestry and Development of the Minoan Hall [152]
5.3. The Spread of Elite Styles [163]
5.4. Comparative Development of Significant Elite Forms [169]
Chapter 5 Endnotes [173]

References [179]
Index [193]