PREHISTORIC MAN. 77 



brought into line, which was practically ignored by the 

 Anatolian and Phoenician theories, and which was in fact 

 for the most part not yet available at the time when these 

 were formulated. 



65. Dr. Schliemann's brilliant results at Mykenae and 

 Tiryns of course gave the impression that the centre, of 

 gravity of the Mykenaean world lay on the western side of 

 the JEgean basin, and within the area of the " Kalaurian 

 league" of maritime towns recognised in Hellenic tradition. 

 The settlement in Rhodes being regarded as probably an 

 early colony from Argolis ; again in accordance with the 

 legend. Dr. Milchhoefer was the first to direct attention 

 to the importance of the first instalments of very fragmentary 

 Cretan evidence, and the magnificent series of discoveries 

 of Mr. Evans in 1894-6 fully established the view that not 

 only in the decadence and in the culminating period, but also 

 throughout the earlier " Cycladic " stages, Crete exercised 

 an influence more sustained and more dominant than 

 any other section of the yE-gean area : and in particular 

 that, as has been noted already, it was in Crete that the 

 pictographic means of written communication which pre- 

 vailed was mainly elaborated and employed ; while it is 

 here too that, thanks to this island's comparative immunity 

 from political and ethnic disturbances, the same script is 

 most nearly approached by the earliest forms of the local 

 Hellenic alphabets. 



66. The question of the attribution of Mykenaean art 

 cannot be said to be decisively settled by the evidence 

 hitherto available ; though the new material accumulated in 

 the last four or five years -in particular has been almost 

 wholly in favour of regarding the Mykenaean objects known 

 to us as products of JEgean industry (the only exception 

 being the discovery in Cyprus of first-class Mykenaean 

 sites whose relations it is not yet possible to estimate with 

 certainty) ; and very largely also in favour of the theory last 

 mentioned, that the civilisation itself, though undoubtedly 

 affected by its mainly active and not passive contact with 

 Egyptian, and to a less degree with Chaldaean civilisation, 

 assimilated in a remarkable manner the motives and modes 



