Figurine of goddess with upraised arms, 1375–1300 BCE, Knossos Palace: Shrine of the Double Axes, © Hellenic Ministry of Culture, Heraklion Archaeological Museum
Mythical Knossos was the location of the palace of King Minos and the Labyrinth where the Minotaur was imprisoned. After over a century of excavation at the site, archaeologists now regard it as the centre of the Bronze Age Minoan civilisation, the home of the earliest farmers in Europe and a thriving Greek and Roman city.
This talk by Dr Andrew Shapland, Curator of Bronze Age and Classical Greece at the Ashmolean and curator of the current exhibition Labyrinth: Knossos, Myth and Reality, traces the history of exploration of Knossos, beginning with the early travellers searching for the mythical Labyrinth and ending with more recent discoveries which include human sacrifice. It focuses on the excavations of Sir Arthur Evans, whose archive at the Ashmolean is the single most important resource for understanding the site of Knossos.
Labyrinth: Knossos, Myth and Reality is at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, from 10 February to 30 July 2023.
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This is an online event hosted on Zoom which can be watched live, or on-demand for three weeks afterwards. You will receive your link to access the event in your email confirmation and the on-demand link after the event ends.