The Bronze Age (c. 3000-1000 BCE) is the period when cultures were either using, producing, or trading bronze. Several cultures flourished around the Aegean Sea during this period: the Minoan civilization on Crete, the Mycenaean civilization on mainland Greece, and the Cycladic culture on the Cyclades Islands. These three cultures developed independently and at different times whilst being in contact with each other, as well as with other regions including Egypt, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, and the Levant.
More about: Bronze Age AegeanDefinition
Timeline
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c. 3200 BCE - 1100 BCEThe Cycladic Civilization in Greece.
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3000 BCE - 2000 BCEFirst inhabitation of Mycenae area.
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2000 BCE - 1450 BCEMinoan civilization in Crete and the Aegean.
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2000 BCE - 1650 BCEAkrotiri on Thera reaches its peak of prosperity and becomes a flourishing Mediterranean trading centre.
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c. 1850 BCE - c. 1450 BCEThe Linear A script of the Minoan civilization is in use.
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1700 BCE - 1400 BCEThe culture in the Cyclades is increasingly influenced by Minoan Crete.
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1700 BCE - 1100 BCEThe Mycenaean civilization dominates Greece.
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1650 BCE - 1550 BCEEruption of Thera and consequent tidal waves, destruction of Akrotiri and other Aegean centres.
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c. 1500 BCE - c. 1200 BCEThe Linear B script of the Mycenaean civilization is in use.
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c. 1450 BCE - c. 1400 BCEMinoan Palatial period superseded by Mycenaean.
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1400 BCE - 1100 BCECulture in the Cyclades is increasingly influenced by the Mycenaean civilization of mainland Greece.
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c. 1250 BCE - c. 1150 BCEBronze Age Collapse during which the major civilizations of the Mediterranean declined or fell.
