Identifier: palacesofcreteth00moss (find matches)
Title: The palaces of Crete and their builders
Year: 1907 (1900s)
Authors: Mosso, A. (Angelo), 1846-1910
Subjects: Palaces
Publisher: London, Unwin
Contributing Library: Robarts - University of Toronto
Digitizing Sponsor: University of Toronto

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otle that inHellenic times the Cretan State fed at the public cost men,women, and children. Some of these magazines are shown in Fig. 3, others whichserved as store-rooms for provisions are illustrated in Fig. 21.The huge blocks of stone impress us as part of a giganticstructure. I will explain later why the architects built thesemagazines with specially solid walls. The magazines of the second palace are located on the right-hand side near the grand staircase, the propylasum, and thereception-hall. They consist of twelve chambers with doors opening ona corridor, in the middle ot which stands the base of a pillarmade of great cubes of stone. Within the cells were huge vasesof oblong or spherical form with decoration in colour andreliefs made while the clay was still ductile. This fashionof working clay with the stecca was the most general formof ornamentation. Serpentine bands of sott clav were appliedto the body and neck of the jars, and they were then decorated ■• Politica, vii.
Text Appearing After Image:
THE PALACE OF P HALS TO S 6i with an incised design imitating fringe, or a pattern was im-pressed by a stamp, IX. The palaces of Phasstos and Knossos are the result of along period of development which had crystallised the experienceof many centuries into a complete system of rules, appliedon the two opposite sides of the island in the most minutedetails. The uniformity of the Minoan palaces proves that Minoanand Egyptian civilisation developed contemporaneously, andthis development was parallel but independent. This is shownin the dimensions of the courts, which are here far moreextensive than in the edifices of ancient Egypt. No Egyptianarchitect ever thought of building the house either of aking or of a private citizen with blocks 3 metres long, i metrehigh, and 70 centimetres broad, such as we find in these palaces. The builders of Crete had their own modules, and toprevent the buildings from appearing too plain and monotonousthey improved the effect by the use of various projecti

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