Product Description

Mycenaean society was constantly geared for battle and invasion. Their ‘cities’ were heavy fortresses with unimaginably thick perimeter walls. Legendary sites such as Mycenae, Tiryns, Argos, Krisa, the Athenian Acropolis and Gla are all representative of their fortified citadels that dominated the Greek countryside for some 300 years until their sudden decline and abandonment around 1100 BC. This title describes the golden age of these fortifications; it details how these formidable structures were constructed and extended, as well as revealing the elaborate palace complexes built by the great Mycenaean warlords immortalised in the verses of Homer’s Iliad.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #639333 in Books
• Published on: 2004-07-25
• Released on: 2004-07-25
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 64 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781841767628
• Condition: USED - VERY GOOD
• Notes:
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

About the Author
Dr Nic Fields started his career as a biochemist before joining the Royal Marines. Having left the Navy, he went back to University and completed a BA and PhD in Ancient History at the University of Newcastle. He was Assistant Director at the British School of Archaeology, Athens, and is now a lecturer in Ancient History and Archaeology at the University of Edinburgh.

Customer Reviews

A good, short overview
This is a short, 60-page book that offers great information with original artwork. There are many reconstructions in this book of how the palaces probably looked back then. I didn't give it 5 stars because I wish they had moe reconstructions of how the palaces looked inside the rooms. They focused mainly on the outside. I also didn't give it 5 stars becuase some of the sections are very short and rather vague, leaving me wondering what exactly the author meant. For example, they devote a section to talking about how expensive it was to maintain horses, ending the section with "To find the two-horsed war chariot depicted in Mycenean art need occasion no surprise." I am left wondering why. Becuase they were so expensive, it's no wonder they're made a big deal of in art? It just seems like it could have been better explained.

The information seems accurate, in accordance with other books I've read. There is also information on the armour, along with some pictures. On the whole, a good, short source of additional information with helpful reconstructions that show people in ancient dress walking about.

Reconstructions include:
Lion Gate
Mycenae
The Secret Cistern of Mycenae
Tiryns - the entire palace
Tiryns - section of the palace
Gla
Pylos - section of palace

A window on to Ancient Greece
"Mycenaean Citadels, c.1350-1200BC" is an excellent companion to "Troy, c.1700-1250 BC", also written by Nic Fields and illustrated by Donato Spedaliere, also published by Osprey as part of their "Fortress" series of books. Besides surveying the citadels built by the Mycenaeans, it also serves as a good general introduction to the Mycenaean world, although of course the focus is primarily on military matters. This slim volume is well illustrated with photographs of modern ruins and detailed paintings of what the citadels and palace complexes looked like 3300 years ago.