The Minoan Pompeii
Before the fall of Troy, before the fall of the Minoan people, and before historians knew it existed, came an eruption of large scale.
Before the fall of Troy, before the
fall of the Minoan people, and before historians knew it existed, came an eruption of large scale. This eruption is actually considered the second largest
eruption in history. Much earlier than the eruption of Pompeii in 79 A.D., came
the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, on the small volcanic island of Thera in 1629 B.C.
Thera was home to one of the many Minoan colonies known as Akrotiri, before it
was buried by ash. This eruption is often called the Minoan Pompeii, due to the
preservation of the city, as well as the destruction the eruption caused.
This eruption may not have been as devastating
as that of Pompeii’s, but was approximately 100 times larger. Scientists’
suggest it may be the connected to the decline of the Minoan people. This
civilization was found by complete accident in 1860, when construction of the
Suez Canal was halted, due to the discovery of a city so well preserved that
even the wall paintings were still intact. Although this is a great discovery, it wasn’t
so great for the people of Akrotiri at the time. Their fields were buried in
ash and crops destroyed. This most likely caused feminine and social
instability for the people.
What archeologists’ found was
evidence that the colony of Akrotiri was a prosperous place filled with
opportunity and high status. Frescoes, which are paintings done rapidly in
watercolor on wet plaster on a wall or ceiling, depict busy harbors, complex
and rather large buildings, many people, and even bulls, which were part of
their religion and mythology. Also found were many ceramic pots, beds, bathtubs
and even toilets.
The reason Akrotiri wasn’t as devastating
as Pompeii is simple, the people clearly evacuated before the eruption.
Archeologists’ proved this due to the lack of human remains that were found. Although
there’s a lack of remains, it is possible that as many as 20,000 people were
killed. They also discovered many damaged buildings that were determined
unrelated to the “final” eruption. The damage of the buildings was most likely
caused from the constant earthquakes that struck the area, and still do to this
day. It is also believed that an earthquake is associated with the eruption of
Mount Vesuvius and caused huge damage to Crete, a nearby neighbor.
So what happened to the people? Evidence
suggests that the people of Akrotiri took a “hint” so to speak, on how unstable
the island truly is, after dealing with earthquakes for many years. There was a
lack of materially valuable goods found on site, meaning the people most likely
evacuated with their things shortly before the eruption. The only precious metal
found was that of a gold ibex.
This blast was not only the second
largest in history, but was termed, “the single most famous Aegean event before
the fall of Troy”. The reason this ancient city-state went unnoticed for
decades, may be because the eruption caused a tsunami. Giant waves from
the blast would have devastated once thriving ports and costal areas, making
them disappear. Akrotiri is now the modern day island of Santorini and the ruins were rebuilt. Attached is a youtube video that show what the city once looked like.
Sources:
http://www.greece-is.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Φωτογραφία-8.jpg
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