As far as fortified
cities go, this is typical of ancient citadels in a handful of ways: It’s built
on a hilltop with tall, thick walls encircling a palace or command
center (a megaron in this case). It was not developed to most "mature" state (approximately
1250 bc) in a single burst of construction; like Stonehenge there were at least three major
additions or overhauls. There are a couple of details that may differentiate it from
“typical” citadels. The size of the blocks used to build the walls are
unusually massive. In addition, a grave site is located within the city-proper,
instead of beyond its walls.
The site is developed on a distorted grid system with circular constructs embedded within. Internal divisions and access spaces appear consistent in width. The term “citadel”, which applies in this case, references the defensive consideration in this town’s development. With militarism so embedded in these living spaces and the local culture, there still seems to be reasonable space diffused throughout, providing at least some of the room people require. During it’s time, the palace/megaron complex must’ve dominated the view of this town both within and outside its walls.
These ruins reference the pre-Greek period of mainland dominance by Mycenaean culture as the island-based Minoan declined. One trait the Mycenaeans held in common with the Egyptians was a strong respect for the passage of life to the next, at least in their funerary complexes if not conceptually. The development of grave sites into fully-integrated beehive corbel vaults was an achievement only of the Mycenaeans during this time. In fact, the single-largest space spanning construct in the whole of Europe was a Mycenaean beehive tomb (the so-called treasury of Atreus) until Hadrian completed the Pantheon in the second century ad.
The site is developed on a distorted grid system with circular constructs embedded within. Internal divisions and access spaces appear consistent in width. The term “citadel”, which applies in this case, references the defensive consideration in this town’s development. With militarism so embedded in these living spaces and the local culture, there still seems to be reasonable space diffused throughout, providing at least some of the room people require. During it’s time, the palace/megaron complex must’ve dominated the view of this town both within and outside its walls.
These ruins reference the pre-Greek period of mainland dominance by Mycenaean culture as the island-based Minoan declined. One trait the Mycenaeans held in common with the Egyptians was a strong respect for the passage of life to the next, at least in their funerary complexes if not conceptually. The development of grave sites into fully-integrated beehive corbel vaults was an achievement only of the Mycenaeans during this time. In fact, the single-largest space spanning construct in the whole of Europe was a Mycenaean beehive tomb (the so-called treasury of Atreus) until Hadrian completed the Pantheon in the second century ad.
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