Mycenaean Civilization

The advanced Aegean civilization that was centered in the city of Mykenae (Mycenae) on the Peloponnesian Peninsula and spread throughout the Mediterranean basin from circa 1400-1150 BCE.

After the fall of the ancient Minoan civilization, the Mykenaeans seemed to become the center of culture and commerce for the Balkan Peninsula and the islands of the Aegean Sea; the location of Mykenai was ideal for controlling commercial traffic between the Isthmus of Korinth (Corinth) and the Peloponnesian Peninsula; the city’s position on its bastion of mountain rock made it difficult, if not impossible, to assail.

The city of Tiryns was a rival of Mykenai but never achieved the same level of influence or prosperity that Mykenai ultimately commanded; the fact that the king of Mykenai, Agamemnon, was chosen to lead the Greek forces against the city of Troy (circa 1250 BCE) indicates the wealth and military power that the city possessed.