Gournia, Crete

"I know a place where there are a lot of old things." This is what a Greek peasant named George Perakis said to a visiting group of archaeologists anxious to log their first big find on the island of Crete. The "things" they were shown by Perakis in 1901 changed the way the world interpreted Greek history. In this image, you can see ruins of the Minoan town of Gournia, in eastern Crete. Prior to the famous city-states Athens and Sparta, several early civilizations lived on mainland Greece, and on the Greek island of Crete. In terms of archaeological discovery, the revelations of Minoan and Mycenaean sites are relatively young; there is still much to reveal. In this topic, you will learn about the history and government of the Minoan and Mycenaean city-states. You will then discover how these earlier city-states compared to the larger ones of Athens and Sparta.

Essential Questions

• What were the characteristics of early Greek communities?
• What were the differences and similarities between the ancient Greek city-states?

 

Warm-Up

Throughout this course and in this topic, you will learn about several different forms of government. In this interactivity, you will check to see how much you already know about governments. Click the player button to get started.