MEDIDAS DE MITIGACIÓN

There are traces of LMII habitation at the Minoan Unexplored Mansion and at the Stratigraphical Museum Extension at Knossos, and at Maison E at Mallia. A study of the period between Linear A (LMIB) and Linear B (LMIIIA),

i.e. LMII needs to consider both the possible epigraphical and archaeological evidence which dates from this crucial p e r i od .

The Minoan Unexplored Mansion has now been explored, excavated and published, giving a detailed account of an LMII building at Knossos (Popham et al. 1984). The Mansion

has signs of burning, and also produced evidence of metal­ working and weapon manufacture in the LMII period, which concurs with the other evidence of military activity in this period i.e. the warrior-graves of Knossos(3). Popham (1984 p . 264) also stated "But, the major event in the history of the Mansion was its destruction by fire in LMII. Whether this event has more general implications is the main question which the excavation has raised." This is an

important matter, which will be further discussed below. The Stratigraphical Museum Extension excavations are also of importance for the LMII period (Warren 1983 and 1991). This excavation is 350m. west of the Palace of Knossos along the continuation of the Royal Road, which runs south of the Mansion. The main features of the Museum Extension excavations, which have revealed an urban area west of the Palace, are a road, houses and circular platforms with inscribed signs. The earliest traces of building on the site are MMIA, and there are also building traces and pottery of the MMIII-LMIA period. From the LMIB period are numerous vases including two which have designs of a possible b o a r ’s tusk helmet and figure of eight shields(4). This area of Knossos also has signs of burning in the LMIB period and may not have escaped the wave of destructions by burning which characterized the end of the LMIB period. The LMII evidence from the Stratigraphical Museum Extension excavations is from the Gypsum House and South house, north and south of the Royal Road which runs north-west from the Palace. Warren states that "Much of the

area was occupied in LMII, with evidence of destruction in several places." The LMII excavations show that the southern building continued in use from LMl, which is a noticeable exception to most LMIB sites which suffered destruction. The other house was constructed in the LMII period. In this period the city of Knossos extended well to the west, along the line of the Royal Road, and this area was finally destroyed by fire.

This has serious consequences for events at Knossos and on Crete in the LMll period. The conclusion reached by Popham is that there was a localized LMll destruction at Knossos before the LM111A2 destruction which preserved the main Linear B archive (Popham 1970, 1975 and 1989). Popham

(1975 p . 374) made an important observation when he mentioned other evidence for an earlier burning at Knossos.

"In his excavations near the Royal Road, Mr. Hood found a small deposit of LMll pottery, possibly a dump in a pit, which contained among its fine pottery a few sherds with clear signs of burning. Independently, my own studies of deposits from the Palace itself led me to suggest some time ago that in the West Magazines there was "evidence not only of a destruction in LMIIIA" (i.e. the final destruction) "but of considerable alteration in the same and preceding LMll phase": more immediately to the point, the considerable quantity of LMll sherds below the South Front suggested to me that "perhaps there was some local destruction of the Palace in LMll; certainly some remodelling of the West Wing had started at this time and

continued into LMIIIA. The LMII material could then be either destruction debris or merely a dump made during renovations." (Popham 1970p. 60 and 67) Straws in the wind, maybe, but the evidence is beginning to open the possibility (and I rate it no higher) of deliberate destructions in LMII, say some 30 years or so before the Palace finally fell."

The excavator of the Museum Extension excavations also concurred with this view of events (Warren 1983 p . 66). "Finally, the LMll destruction within the city clearly spread over this western area with fire the immediate agent. At this time the buildings were still serviced by the main east-west road running up westwards from the Palace." The wider implications of the LMll destructions along the line of the Royal Road will be considered below. It can be observed at Knossos that the area mostly escaped the Cretan-wide wave of destructions at the end of the LMIB period, that it suffered destructions in the western area in LMll, and finally suffered a catastrophic destruction in LM111A2.

The LMll material from Mallia is a well documented and stratified deposit from Maison E (Et. Cret XVI 1970). Popham (1975 p . 373) considers this deposit to be "practically identical ..." with the LMll material from the Minoan Unexplored Mansion, and he makes the "obvious assumption that the two deposits are the result of more or less contemporary events." The similarity of material from the LMll destructions caused by burning at Knossos and

Mallia means that disruption occurred on the north coat of Crete, it was not just confined to Knossos in this period. Whatever happened at Knossos in the LMII period also had an effect elsewhere in Crete.

Outside of Knossos, it is instructive to see which places were occupied in LMII. Popham (1980) listed 24 sites in addition to Knossos which were occupied in LMII and LMIIIA. Popham himself pointed out that the list was not complete and would be added to as excavations continue, but the list of 24 sites spans Crete from Zakros to Khania and from Mallia to Myrtos. The list was indeed added to by Driessen (1990) using the work of Popham (1980), Kanta (1980) and Bennet (1985), and he listed 19 LMII sites and 53 LMIIIAl sites. This reconfirms the view of LMII-IIIAl Crete recovering after the widespread LMIB destructions. The main LMII sites on Crete are clustered around Rethymno, Phaistos and Knossos with outlying settlements at Khania and Palaikastro.