Minimalist wrote:
[...] Without actually saying it I got the implication that the "Sea People" arose as a rebellion against the palace system which was everywhere in ruins.
So what if the "Sea People" means exactly that: the sea people! The people that make a living off the sea. Fishermen and sailors/traders. What would be farmers in the Nile valley, would be fishermen and sailors/traders in the Aegean! The manual labour of the epoch. The people.
That would make the Sea People's devastation of civilisations a socio-political revolt that lasted centuries.
How long did the Viking Age actually last? A couple of centuries?
Something is wrong here. War, disease, death, destruction, hunger, filth, poverty, torture, crime, corruption, and the Ice Capades. Something is definitely wrong. This is not good work. If this is the best God can do, I am not impressed.
Despite such massive destruction, a tsunami only partially explains the disappearance of the Minoans.
Dated artifacts prove conclusively that the ancient culture survived for at least a generation or two after the Thera eruption.
“And the palace at Knossos, an 11-acre complex, was far too inland to be affected by the wave,” Mr. Hadingham said.
He theorizes that what happened next was a society struggling with the devastating loss of hundreds or thousands of its own people, shaken to its core and looking for answers.
Mr. Hadingham described an intricate ivory sculpture of a male figure, “a stunning masterwork of Minoan art,” that had been reconstructed from hundreds of fragments found outside a burned shrine in Palaikastro.
“Because of the exotic material and the exquisite craftsmanship, the statue perhaps represented a deity or cult figure,” he explained.
“Careful study of the fire-damaged legs of the sculpture suggests they had been tossed into the shrine while it was a raging inferno, blazing at temperatures of around 1,600 degrees Fahrenheit,” Mr. Hadingham continued.
“It seems likely that the fire was deliberately stoked, the figure smashed against the wall and then tossed into the fire. The heat caused the shrine to explode like a bomb, sending the walls tumbling outward.”
Some archaeologists believe that a religious crisis after the tsunami may have led to an Egyptian-influenced cult-like worship.
“Maybe the Egyptians sent help to the devastated island and influenced a change in religious beliefs,” he said. “The fiery destruction of Palaikastro and other Minoan sites may have been a reaction by the locals rejecting the new cult, or some other kind of social upheaval.”
“They are losing their values, and this is a reaction against it. The culture is shattered, and eventually the neighboring Myceneans from mainland Greece exploit this weakness and take over,” he continued. “Their arrival marks the end of this first great European civilization.”
The Egyptians were in a civil war of their own at the time. Ahmose's family leading a revolt/attack from Upper Egypt against the Hyksos in Lower Egypt. Since any international trade would have involved the northern Hyksos ports and as they were hard pressed by Upper Egypt it seems unlikely that they would have been in any position to go adventuring to Crete or anywhere else.
Further, that same wave would have caused extensive damage in Canaan which was a hell of a lot closer to Egypt and traditionally in its sphere of influence....not to mention the homeland of the Hyksos to begin with.
Something is wrong here. War, disease, death, destruction, hunger, filth, poverty, torture, crime, corruption, and the Ice Capades. Something is definitely wrong. This is not good work. If this is the best God can do, I am not impressed.
Okay....although towards the end of that period it seems that the "traditional" (for want of a better word) Viking raid had given way to large fleets of Vikings under central authority as kings established themselves throughout Scandinavia. They do seem to have been less successful when employed in this manner but that is beside the point now.
The reasons given for Viking expansion, overpopulation and/or civil unrest could easily be adapted to the Sea People....who seem to have had a similar modus operandi to the Vikings. I'm still not sure how to factor the Phoenecians into the equation, though. That has all the trappings of someone making "a deal."
Something is wrong here. War, disease, death, destruction, hunger, filth, poverty, torture, crime, corruption, and the Ice Capades. Something is definitely wrong. This is not good work. If this is the best God can do, I am not impressed.
Okay....although towards the end of that period it seems that the "traditional" (for want of a better word) Viking raid had given way to large fleets of Vikings under central authority as kings established themselves throughout Scandinavia. They do seem to have been less successful when employed in this manner but that is beside the point now.
The reasons given for Viking expansion, overpopulation and/or civil unrest could easily be adapted to the Sea People....who seem to have had a similar modus operandi to the Vikings. I'm still not sure how to factor the Phoenecians into the equation, though. That has all the trappings of someone making "a deal."
Certainly the Vikings became more organized over time. After about 50 years or so they began attacking major cities.
The Sea Peoples were much like the Vikings at the beginning of their era with the exception of the huge contingent moving south on land in addition to piracy by sea. Those land migrations indicate central authority collapse and famine.
The Phoenicians had boats and seafaring knowledge, but no army. Along comes a series of armies looking for piracy transportation. This is a lucrative business if run right. Especially, when you know where all the rich ports are located. Remember, the Vikings always traded first before coming back at a later date to kill and plunder.
Last edited by Cognito on Wed Oct 31, 2007 5:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Remember, the Vikings always traded first before coming back at a later date to kill and plunder.
They sound like Republicans!
Something is wrong here. War, disease, death, destruction, hunger, filth, poverty, torture, crime, corruption, and the Ice Capades. Something is definitely wrong. This is not good work. If this is the best God can do, I am not impressed.
