Two ancient Mediterranean civilizations were uncovered over the last 200 years. Previously, they were unknown to archaeologists but were found to have been powerful civilizations of their day. These are Minoan Crete and Mycenaean Greece. 

Discovered in 1899 when the city of Knossos was excavated, Minoan Crete was named for King Minos, the mythical king of Crete and son of Zeus in Greek mythology. The Minoans are thought to have been prominent around 2000 BC. Writings have been unearthed of an untranslated language that archaeologists have dubbed “Linear A” and another dialect that was also found on mainland Greece called “Linear B,” which has been somewhat translated. 

In Knossos, evidence of commerce with mainland Greece and Egypt was found. Frescoes depicting people leaping over bulls were discovered on Crete as well as Egypt, suggesting that the Minoans were more of a trading people and not warlike. Additionally, royal palaces had religious significance and housed the center of the economy. Palace officials instructed people what to produce, then it would be delivered to the palace for the officials to distribute to the people. The officials kept records, which were later found, of what entered and exited the palace.

While there’s not much evidence of a Minoan military, it wasn’t all peaceful. Piles of underage bones were unearthed, suggesting that the Minoans engaged in child sacrifice. Sometime around 1425 BC, the civilization was destroyed by either a natural disaster or invasion by the Mycenaean Greeks. 

Named for the city of Mycenae, which is located on the Peloponnesus of Greece, Mycenaean Greece is thought to have started around 1600 BC. A German archaeologist named Henrich Schliemann (1822-1890) discovered the ancient civilization. Before him, it was believed that Greek civilization had begun around 800 BC, but after reading “The Iliad,” Schliemann thought it couldn’t possibly be a work of fiction, so he set out to find the city of Troy referenced throughout the book. Eventually, he found Troy in modern-day Turkey with possible evidence of a Trojan War, which was thought to be a fictional conflict. He believed that he had uncovered the grave of Agamemnon, who was also thought to have been a mythical character. Unlike the Minoans, the Mycenaeans were a warlike people, with many military relics unearthed during Schliemann’s excavation. The Mycenaeans are considered to be the people who invaded and subsequently ended the Minoan civilization in 1425 BC. 

Due to the relentless inquiry of modern archaeologists, the massive ancient civilizations were uncovered. Minoan Crete and Mycenaean Greece are now known to us as two of the most profound and prominent civilizations of their time. 

To understand Western Civilization, one must first comprehend its roots, which started with the Hebrews. The time between the lives of Abraham and Moses covers some of the most important events of ancient Hebrew history and is the seedbed of the first book of the Bible.

Abram, a descendant of Noah, and his wife Sarah wished to have a child but could not because of Sarah’s barrenness. Graciously, God granted the couple a child named Isaac. So great was his faith in God, that at one point God tested Abram by commanding him to sacrifice his only son. Without hesitation, Abram prepared his son for sacrifice. However, the moment before the act could be carried out, an angel of God appeared and saved Isaac. God rewarded his faithful servant by changing his name to Abraham, meaning “Father of Nations,” and stated that he would be the patriarch of his chosen people. 

Eventually, Isaac came of age and had two sons, Jacob and Esau. Esau was the firstborn son and therefore had the birthright. Covetously, Jacob tricked his brother into giving him the birthright and with the help of his mother, Rebecca, deceived his father. Understandably, Esau was upset, even going so far as to try to kill his brother. Eventually, Esau forgave his brother and they were reunited. 

When it came time for Jacob to marry a wife, he wished to have a woman named Rachel. Her father told Jacob that if he worked for him for seven years, he could have her. Therefore, he labored, but when the time of the marriage came, Jacob realized that Rachel’s father had tricked him into marrying Rachel’s sister, Leah, instead of Rachel herself. Since Leah was not the one he wanted, Jacob worked seven more years to marry Rachel too. Jacob had 10 sons with Leah and just 2 sons with Rachel, his favorite being Joseph, Rachel’s firstborn. The other 11 brothers came to hate Joseph because of the preferential treatment he received. One day, Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery in Egypt where he lived for many years, until there was a famine in Israel and Joseph’s family was forced to flee to Egypt. There, Joseph forgave his brothers and the family was brought back together. 

Years after the famine, the Israelites remained in Egypt where, since the time of Joseph, they had been enslaved by the Egyptians. Seeing the Israelites’ growing population and fearing a revolt, the Pharaoh made a decree that all the baby Israelite boys should be murdered and thrown into the Nile. This is where a mother, fearing for her son’s life, put him in a basket and sent him down the river. Downstream, Pharaoh’s daughter found the baby and raised him in the palace, giving him the name Moses. Once he grew up and saw how his people were being treated, God gave Moses the task of freeing the Israelites from Egyptian captivity. Acting as God’s messenger, Moses led the people of Israel out of captivity. Finally, outside of Egypt on top of Mount Sinai, God gave to Moses the Ten Commandments. These were laws that the Israelites must follow, if they wished to reach the “Promised Land” where God was leading them. 

This period of the Hebrews chronicles everything from the miraculous birth of Isaac to the Exodus out of Egypt led by Moses. This is the foundation the Old Testament forefathers placed and upon which the Christian West was built, so this history is critical to the study of later events. One must at least have a baseline understanding of ancient Hebrew history if they wish to learn about Western Civilization.