Hermahai Profile picture
Oct 21, 2023 7 tweets 3 min read Read on X
1/ The Linear B' tablets of Pylos testify that lawagetas was a very important figure for the local Mycenaean palatial administration, as he is shown to own important lands and dependent personnel. He probably held the most important office after the wanax. Image
2/ Although the etymology of the word lawagetas indicates a military character according to Homeric standards (leader of the army), it could be assumed that he was also involved in other non-military affairs, modeled on the archon polemarch of Ancient Athens. 👉 Image
👉 An additional role of lawagetas may have been that of main coordinator of some working groups (KN As 1516). In PY Un 718 a future payment is shown to be imposed on him, either as an offering to Poseidon, or by the holding of some feast. Image
3/ Probably the seat of his activities was in Halls 64 and 65 of the palace of Pylos, the walls of which seem to have been decorated with frescoes depicting war scenes and ships. 👉 Image
👉 In PY Na 245, it is suggested that the dependent personnel of the lawagetas included mariners (ma-ra-te-we = μαλατῆρες) and charioteers (a-mo-te-wo = ἀρμοτείς). Image
4/ The palatial elite of Pylos shortly before the destruction (1190s BC) seems to be strongly militarist, participating in sea raids in various parts of the Aegean where they obtained slaves and had developed a strong military force to guard the western coasts of Messinia. Image
5/ The lawagetas certainly had a crucial role in these activities, as well as in the external affairs of the state. Although he came from a warlike courtly elite, his soldiers and mariners seem to have come from the common people (damos) rather than from a specific warrior class. Image

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More from @hermahai

Oct 20
1/ The Citadel of Dymaean Wall at the NW end of the Peloponnese has a special place in Aegean prehistoric studies, as it was previously believed to be proof (along with the Isthmus Wall) of the existence of a northern threat (Dorians) to the core of the Mycenaean palatial world. Image
2/ Recent field study has placed its presence on a more realistic basis. First of all, the human presence on the Hill of Kalogria where the Citadel is built bears evidence of human presence, residential remains and pottery, dating back to the end of the 4th millennium BC. Image
3/ The choice of location is due to its great strategic importance, at the intersection of the land and the sea, constituting a significant defensive stronghold and an ideal point of surveillance of the sea routes of the Ionian Sea, already since the end of the 3rd millennium BC. Image
Read 16 tweets
Oct 9
1/ The Trojan War, as presented to us by the Homeric Iliad, is nothing more than a literary text with an epic-mythological character that captures in a single narrative various memories of events of the Mycenaean past, altered by time.
#Ahhiyawa #Homer #Troy Image
2/The main body of the myth of Trojan War - the gathering of the Achaean warlords under the leadership of the strongest of them, the king of Mycenae, and the naval campaign in the Troad - constitutes the only connection between the historical background and the Homeric narrative. Image
3/ During the palatial period, the Mycenaean world was structured into powerful local houses that recognized the supremacy of the Great King of the Achaeans, who had his throne in Mycenae and was equal to the powerful rulers of the Eastern Mediterranean (Hatti, Egypt etc). Image
Read 10 tweets
Aug 25
1/ One of the biggest questions of Minoan archaeology is the existence of two scripts, which accur simultaneously in the same palatial centers (Old Palaces) or even in the same rooms: Cretan Hieroglyphics (2100-1700 BC) and Linear A' (1800-1450 BC).
#Minoan_Scripts Image
2/ This fact is not an unusual occurrence for the Eastern Mediterranean, as in Egypt and Anatolia two or more languages were used to serve different purposes. However, in Minoan Crete the coexistence of the two scripts for a period of about a century served the same purpose: 👉 Image
👉 the recording of administrative texts, mainly of a financial - accounting nature. What is the reason for this simultaneous presence of two different scripts in Crete? Does this fact conceal some linguistic differentiation between groups of the local population? Image
Read 11 tweets
Jun 7
1/ Referring to the Mycenaean era, we emphasize the archaeological imprint left to this day by the local palatial elites: wanaktes, aristocracy and priests, who were living and acting in imposing palaces and were buried in rich burial complexes.
#Mycenaeans #commoners Image
Image
2/ However, what was the daily life of commoners? What was their status within the Mycenaean palatial society? As in the other kingdoms of the Eastern Mediterranean during the LBA, there was a clear social stratification with political, economic and ideological characteristics. Image
3/ At the top was the palatial ruling class, followed by members of the aristocracy who had a crucial military role and then by the bureaucracy, an important factor in the functioning of the palatial system. All of them resided within the fortified palatial sites 👉 Image
Read 23 tweets
May 13
1/ All the time, the search for the historical background of the Trojan War has been a very popular issue. The Homeric narrative, despite its numerous mythological and poetic elements, is likely based on a historical core of events that took place during the Mycenaean era. Image
2/ Recent archaeological surveys has identified two time points of destruction of Troy that may be related to the Trojan War. The first event took place before the middle of the 13th century BC, had the character of a violent enemy attack and marked the destruction of Troy VIh.👉 Image
👉 It was preceded by a prolonged seismic disturbance that appears to have weakened the city walls, while in the thick layer of destruction, slings, bronze arrowheads and spears, some of which were wedged against the walls, and mutilated human skeletons were found. 👉 Image
Read 42 tweets
Apr 10
1/ An opportune way to understand the unstable and often dangerous conditions of everyday life of the Aegean populations during the Late Bronze Age Collapse is to look back at recorded archaeological incidents that took place in other turbulent periods of Antiquity. Image
2/ SW Argolid - Late 6th century AD: A group of about 50 people, consisting of young women, teenage boys and children, are hurrying towards the foothills of Mount Zavitsa. They are terrified but they know very well where they are going. They arrive at the Andritsa cave, 👉 Image
👉 carefully descend into a vertical cave-gorge approximately 14 meters long and enter the large hall of the cave, which measures 65 x 75 meters. It is the perfect refuge to escape the wrath of the invaders. It wasn't the first time they'd been hiding here. 👉 Image
Image
Read 9 tweets

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