The discoveries in Crete, Greece, and the Aegean islands that began a century ago were nothing less than stunning, and seemed to give shape and substance to tales of the Minotaur and the Labyrinth, of Theseus and Ariadne, of Minos and Icarus. Ancient Aegean Art is the first comprehensive historical introduction to the art and architecture Crete, mainland Greece, and the Cycladic islands in the Aegean, beginning with the Neolithic period, before 3000 BCE, and ending at the dose of the Bronze Age and the transition to the Iron Age of Hellenic Greece (c.1000 BCE).

• 1: Introduction: Aegean Art and Architecture


• The environment; Discovering the Aegean World; Art and art history; Objectives; Organization.


• 2: The Neolithic Period and the Prepalatial Early Bronze Age


• Settlements; Burial practices.


• 3: The First Palace Period


• Middle Bronze Age palaces and villas; The vernacular tradition in Greece and Crete; Ritual practices; Summary.


• 4: The Second Palace Period


• Public art, private art, and the palatial architectural style; The Second Palaces: Knossos, Phaistos, Gournia, and Kato Zakro; Minoan villas: function and design; The terminology and typology of Minoan palatial buildings; The Minoan and Mycenaean spheres of influence; Religious practices; Burial practices.


• 5: Mycenaean Domination and the Minoan Tradition


• The Mycenaean palace at Pylos; The Mycenaean palace at Knossos; Haghia Triadha and Kommos; The continuation of Minoan building techniques in the Third Palace Period; Burial practices; The Mycenaean shrine at Phylakopi; The circuit walls at Mycenae and Tiryns.


• 6: Conclusion: Disruptions, (Dis)Continuities, and the Bronze Age


• The eastward migration of Aegean traditions; The international style; Cyprus, Palestine, and the Peoples of the Sea; Tradition and transformation; What goes around comes around: Daedalus returns to Crete.


• Notes; List of Illustrations; Bibliographic Essay; Timeline; Index

Donald Preziosi is Professor of Art History, UCLA, where he developed and directs the art history critical theory programme, as well as the UCLA museum studies programme.
Dr Louise Hitchcock is a Research Associate of the Institute of Archaeology at UCLA. She received the prestigious Edward A. Dickson Fellowship on several occasions prior to completing her Ph.D., and was a Fellow of the American School of Classical Studies, Athens.