#mycenae

[sgiandubh]

But first, time to say good-bye

It was to be a late departure (bureaucracy will someday kill us all...) from Athens, an endlessly diverted way North through a very early summer and some fitful sleep near the border, where poppies were already in bloom and elusive to the camera:

I promised to share with you my story with Mycenae the day I would leave Greece for good. Yesterday was the day, so here goes.

I first went to Mycenae on a horrendously rainy day, in November 2018. The place struck me as a haphazard settlement of sorts in the wake of some ancient apocalypse, which was absolutely correct. We stayed in my colleague from Culture and Press' car, munched on some horribly stale koulouria as all hell broke loose outside, when she finally told me: ' you know what, I am happy we made it here: in Mycenae, you can only hear and tell the truth, you know'.

I have to say I ogled in suspicion. I was wet, hungry and completely unused to the Greek way of dressing everything up in mythology. She spoke Greek as I speak French and knew perfectly well what she was doing. She was casting a spell - an unbreakable one, for which I will forever be grateful. Oh, and as all myths would have it, the Lion Gate was closed, by the time we arrived.

It took me almost two years to go back there, during the pandemic, scared summer of 2020, when everything was empty and glorious to fully take in, like a big gulp of colors and sounds and life. My digs were to be always the same: unassuming Petite Planète, the last B&B in town, a stone throw away from Agamemnon's treasury, owned by the Dassis clan of archaeologists.

Their story begins in Constantinople, around 1875, when Konstantinos, a young orphan, begged Heinrich Schliemann to take him along to wherever he was traveling. He quickly became indispensable and helped with the first digs in Mycenae. He was the one who found Agamemnon's mask:

When the digging was over, Schliemann bought him a tiny house for two pence and a half and told him to stay there. 'Many people will come to visit and they will need food and a roof. Make sure you do your best and it will make you a rich man.'

And they came. In droves. If you ask nicely, V. will show you their reception rosters, safely tucked away in a bank vault, in Argos. I had the privilege to see Virginia Woolf's signature and I was stunned. Schliemann's two pence house is now doubled by a garish modern addition you can see from the main road as La Belle Hélène B&B ('my cousin Agamemnon is a greedy idiot', says V), but Schliemann's room is piously kept as it was when the strange German gentleman left them to their fate. As is, they did not become rich, but that does not matter. You will always find a place at their wonderful table, where Mamma Dassis cooks the same food they ate back in Constantinople and they would not have it otherwise. The new, bigger and better B&B is called Petite Planète because of V's father undying passion for Saint Exupéry's Little Prince. It permeates everything without being obtrusive, because sometimes 'the essential is invisible to the eye'.

Back in 2020, they were worried. Very worried. The Lion Gate was open again, but the 'cretins at Google' wouldn't have it and kept on listing it as closed, on their maps. People were canceling their bookings. The village stood unusually quiet and forlorn.

I made no promises. But I did phone some people at the Greek Ministry of Culture. The least person I expected to be of any help, H, a transparent, mousey freeloader, who was always the last to leave all of our events in the hope we'd take her to dinner in town, happened to be some sort of underling at the Archaeological Sites Department. She immediately understood what I wanted her to do.

Three days after I left Mycenae, on my road trip to the Mani peninsula, I received this message in my Booking inbox:

This started it all. And from that moment, all my Greek roads will lead there. It's also been a long time since I have trouble forcefully paying them for my monthly stays (booking and paying in advance helps, though), something they adamantly refused last time I went there:

'G., the girl wants to pay.'

'This is ridiculous, of course. This girl is family.'

Someday, I just know I will be back. For good.

After five years and a half, many more fabulous stories (Mycenean potter and poet, anyone? mad postman? Kyria Stamatoula and her goats? Kyrios Pandelis and his jams?) the only thing I know about Greece is that, for all its (many) misgivings, this land is about two things:

Friends and Heroes.

[illustratus]

The Tomb of Agamemnon by Louis Jean Desprez

[simugeuge]

I just crossed paths with these illustrations by Peter Connolly and I must share 🙊.

Look at Athena and Hera and Odypen at the top, all rocking mycenian garments I'm screaming crying doing the worm.

(then in the back there's Aphrodite, Apolo, Poseidon, Ares and others who are not named).

Book: The Legend of Odysseus, Peter Connolly

[memories-of-ancients]

Gold inlaid bronze dagger, Mycenaean Greece, 15th century BC

from The National Archaeological Museum, Athens

[clepysdra]

Amymone's Diadem

A Mycenaean diadem. There are 3 versions, each a different height from the sim's head.

Hat category

4 swatches

Base game compatible

LOW HEIGHT HAT DOWNLOAD - Dropbox (no ads)

MEDIUM HEIGHT HAT DOWNLOAD - Dropbox (no ads)

HIGH HEIGHT HAT DOWNLOAD - Dropbox (no ads)

---

MERGED DOWNLOAD - Dropbox (no ads)

[persephoneist]

Blood in the bath (alt.)

[too-cool-for-facebook]

[travelella]

Mycenae (Archaeological Site), Mykines, Argolis, Peloponnese, Greece

Victor Malyushev

[artifacts-archive]

Stirrup Jar with Geometric Decoration

Mycenaean, 14th century BCE (Late Helladic IIIA2)

This jar is named for its handle, which resembles a stirrup. Originally created in Crete in the 16th century BC, the stirrup jar was extremely popular throughout the Aegean region for both storage and transport and became the most characteristic Mycenaean vessel type. The simple decoration looks forward to the Geometric style, which began in 10th-century BC Greece.

[doob-or-something]

Mighty Agamemnon, King of kings

[luciuscaelus]

So basically, ἄναξ (anax), or ϝάναξ (wanax), is a very Mycenaean word, being a title for the kings of Mycenae (higher than basileus), and it means “lord, king”.

That is why in the Iliad Agamemnon is always referred to as “ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν” (the lord of men), since he was the high king of Mycenae, and the leader of other kings.

There is another person who has an “anax” in his name. One that was born in a city hostile to Mycenae because of the war, one that was of a people who probably didn’t speak Greek in their times, one that was a victim of the conquest of his city (by the Greeks led by a Mycenaean Wanax), one that never had a chance to become a leader.

One that was named as “lord of the city”—Astyanax.

How ironic.

[gemsofgreece]

Help me choose: Meteora/Metsovo/Ioannina or Mycenae/Nafplio/Epidavros? Thank you!

Those are seriously good options! I believe you would love either destination, so I will just give you what each place is ideal for.

Meteora - Metsovo - Ioannina

This is an itinerary that is ideal for nature lovers and people who love urban and provincial areas with strong traditional character in gorgeous natural settings.

Pros:

Meteora is hands down the best natural wonder of Greece.

It is also one of the two most important destinations for Christian Orthodox and post-Byzantine heritage monuments.

Metsovo is a town built in a high altitude, surrounded by beautiful mountains.

It has a strong traditional mountain Vlach Greek character and great cuisine.

Ioannina is the 6th largest city in Greece. It is vibrant, it is a university city, however it retains its own traditional character.

Ioannina is a lake city (which also features a must-visit inhabited lake island) built close to a lot of natural beauty and is the starting point for a lot of nature-oriented destinations, including two national woodland parks.

Ioannina is very significant for Ottoman Greek and Modern Greek history and has a lot of museums and cultural places to visit. Metsovo does too.

Ideal for a lush green spring or a cool summer.

Cons:

No access to the sea.

Farther from Athens than the other itinerary plan.

Probability of adverse weather if visited in cold months.

Tip: For Ancient Greek culture buffs, the archaeological site of Dodona is about 22km from Ioannina.

Mycenae - Nafplio - Epidaurus

This itinerary is ideal for history buffs of all kinds.

Pros:

Mycenae is the best destination for the Mycenaean civilization.

Epidaurus has the best preserved ancient Greek theatre in Modern Greek territory and is in general one of the best destinations regarding Classical Greece. The theatre is functioning. (If you go at the right time during summer, you can watch a theatrical play there as well.)

Nafplio is the first capital of the Modern Greek state, it is coastal and has many points of interest regarding Modern Greek history.

Nafplio is also a good place to explore Venetian / Latin presence in Greece in the late Byzantine and post-Byzantine era.

Nafplio is much smaller than Ioannina but it is one of the prettiest cities in Greece. Both these cities are beautiful though.

Driving distances here are smaller as all destinations are in the same one administrative region (Argolis) and they are closer to Athens.

It might not have the wow factor of the other itinerary nature-wise, but that doesn't mean it does not have beautiful natural surroundings, and coastal ones too.

Ideal for early spring and a mild winter.

Cons:

If history and museum visiting get old for you after a point, the other itinerary might be better.

Pretty hot in summer months.

Touristy.

[girlcatilina]

mycenae!!!!!

[sarafangirlart]

Do you have any specific takes on Hera and Perseus's dynamic

In the early days she ignored him, (she ignored most of Zeus’s bastards surprisingly).

Thetis and Doris (whom in some sources rescued Danae and Perseus) checked up on Perseus as he was growing up and told Hera he was a good kid, she was still indifferent.

Athena and Hermes started speaking favorably of him after helping his quest and she decided y’know what he should take back his birthright and becomes king of Argos.

Then he became king of Argos and founded Mycenae and she started favoring him, helping him in battles and such (tho Athena handles that too). Not to mention he never cheated on Andromeda which I know she appreciated. I guess they have a rather… professional? Kinda relationship, he does good king/hero stuff and Hera helps him out and protects him, he’s still wary of her bc if circumstances were different she’d harm him and his mom but he still respects her bc she’s a goddess what is he supposed to do? Also I imagine they bonded over their disdain for Dionysus lol

[clepysdra]

Aegean Set 2.0

Revisiting Ariadne and Phaedra to give them some clothes! And also a tunic for Theseus. The outfits are based off of ancient Minoan and Mycenaean clothing (with huge inspiration taken from the reconstructions by Dr. Bernice Jones; I don’t think I’d be able to visualize their shapes from the ancient frescos alone), although some swatches are more historically accurate than others.

~You can find the first half of the Aegean set here.~

Ariadne Dress (UPDATED 1/2/24)

Long dress category

15 swatches

Base game compatible

Feminine

Theseus Tunic

Short dress category

17 swatches

Base game compatible

Masculine

DRESS DOWNLOAD - Dropbox (no ads)

TUNIC DOWNLOAD - Dropbox (no ads)

~Also, the Manthos sword on Theseus’ hip is by the amazing @kyriat-sims~

[the-puffinry]

little bit in love with the design of this vessel in the shape of a duck or swan, made from a single piece of rock crystal(!).

Mycenae, 16 century BCE.

National Archaeological Museum of Athens, N 8638.