Introduction
The Cretan-Mycenaean period of the development of Greek civilization is the prehistory of Antiquity. It is characterized by the development of two civilizations - Minoan (on the island of Crete) and Mycenaean (in Balkan Greece). The chronology of the development of these two civilizations is usually kept separately, it is difficult to combine them into one. Mainland Greece in the II millennium BC was strongly influenced by the Cretan civilization, which was more developed in spiritual and intellectual relations, after the death of which it took a lot from its heritage. The Achaeans, due to their greater limitations compared to the Cretans, did not have time to fully use the spiritual treasury of Crete provided to them during the brief period of the heyday of their own society.
Two parallel chronological scales have been developed for both civilizations based on archaeological material. The history of Crete is divided into Minoan periods by the name of the legendary king Minos, who ruled on this island, and the history of Mycenaean society is divided into Helladic periods by the name of the mythical ancestor of the Greeks, Hellenes.
- Early Minoan (XXX-XXIII centuries BC) = Early Helladic (XXX-XXI).
- Middle Latin (XXII-XVIII) = Middle Helladic (XX-XVII).
- Late Latin (XVII-XII) = Late Helladic (XVI-XII).