Master the Minoans!
Review time of Crete
Dear Classical Wisdom Kids,
We took the ferry very early in the morning...Having traveled to Heraklion, Matala and Sitia (along with our previous trip to Chania and Phaistos), we’ve seen a bit of Crete.
What an amazing island! So much rich history...
We thought today we would do a quick quiz and some fun facts about Crete and the Minoans...
Did you know that:
Crete is the largest Greek island? And that people may have been there as early as 130,000 years ago… though permanent structures go back to the Neolithic, around 7,000 BC.
In Ancient Greek, the name Crete (Κρήτη) first appears in Homer's epic poem, The Odyssey.
The name "Minoan" comes from the mythical King Minos.
The term was coined by the archeologist, Sir Arthur Evans, who found the Palace of Knossos.
The Minoans primarily wrote in the Linear A script and also in Cretan hieroglyphs.
The famous Mysterious Phaistos Disk is an example of Cretan Hieroglyphs (though no one is certain what is says).
No one knows how to read Linear A still!
What do you think it means? See if any of your kiddos want to try decoding!
Now, for a quick review of the Greek mythology about Crete:
Who was King Minos?
What did his wife give birth to?
Who built a famous maze and why?
Who killed the Minotaur?
How did Theseus do it? Who helped him?
What did Ariadne tell Theseus to do?
Why were Daedalus and his son put in a tower?
How did they escape?
What happened to Icarus? What can we learn from his story?
If you didn’t get a chance, you can review the stories as well as enjoy the mazes, puzzles, crafts and more:
You can review Theseus, Ariadne and the Minotaur here
The Story of Icarus and Daedalus here
We’ve arrived in the island of Rhodes yesterday... there is so much to discover in this amazing place... and so much history to tell you! So keep a look out for Frida’s postcard from Rhodes, coming soon!
All the best,
Anya Leonard
Founder and Director
Classical Wisdom and Classical Wisdom Kids