GCSE Classical Civilisation · The Homeric World · 2.4 · Revision
Chariots, Clothing and Trade
The wider picture of everyday Mycenaean life: how people travelled, dressed and traded across the sea.
Chariots, Clothing and Trade
At a glance
At a glance
beyond the palace and the battlefield, the evidence lets us reconstruct transport, dress and the economy
it comes mainly from art and from the Linear B records, so much has to be inferred
cloth, wood and food rarely survive, so this is the part of Mycenaean life we know least directly
Chariots, clothing and trade
Transport, dress and the wider economy
Chariots
in war a chariot carried a warrior to the fighting, where he dismounted to fight on foot; warriors rarely fought from the chariot itself, and the driver collected him afterwards
chariots were also raced in funeral games, like the famous chariot race in Iliad Book 23
the earliest image is on a stele from Grave Circle A: a simple two-wheeled box chariot, the wheels usually with four spokes
frescoes from Tiryns and Pylos show heavier, covered chariots used for transport, so they were not only machines of war
Clothing
no actual clothing survives, since cloth decays, so the evidence is art, especially frescoes
most garments were wool or linen (from flax), dyed with natural products and fixed with a substance such as vinegar or urine; silk was rare
men wore a short-sleeved tunic with a robe, sometimes a kilt (especially soldiers) and a loincloth, with leather boots like those on the Warrior Vase, though people may often have gone barefoot
the frescoes show elaborate hairstyles, long plaited hair for women tied with ribbons and beads, and carefully arranged hair for men
Limit: frescoes are idealised, so they may show the finest dress rather than everyday wear
Trade
the cities built strong trade links across the Mediterranean and beyond, essential because Greece lacked the metals and resources they needed
most trade went by sea, since land travel was slow (mountains and bandits) and the roads were basic; ships were rowed and “island-hopped”, dropping off and picking up cargo
sailing was hazardous and only safe for about half the year, from spring to early autumn
the evidence comes from imported objects, Linear B records and shipwrecks
most trade was eastward (the Aegean islands, Egypt and the Middle East), some with Italy, and some historians think amber and tin reached Greece from as far as Britain
there was no money: goods were bartered, exchanged for other goods
Other evidence
More on transport, dress and trade
the Uluburun shipwreck off Turkey, loaded with copper, tin, glass and luxury goods, shows the scale of Bronze Age sea trade
imported objects in the graves (Egyptian and Near Eastern items, and Baltic amber) and Mycenaean pottery found abroad map the trade routes
dress and chariots also survive in frescoes from Tiryns and Pylos, and the Linear B tablets even record cloth and chariot parts
Significance & interpretation
An outward-looking world
What it shows
a wealthy, outward-looking world, connected across the sea and dependent on trade for its metals and luxuries
Limits: much rests on idealised art and on chance survivals like shipwrecks, so the picture is patchy
Link to Homer
Homer's chariots work just as the evidence suggests: heroes ride to battle and dismount to fight on foot, and race chariots at Patroclus' funeral games (Iliad 23)
the Trojan War is, at root, a fight over a city that guarded a trade route — which makes sense for a world this dependent on the sea
but Homer's heroes are richer and grander than most Mycenaeans can have been, so the poems still exaggerate everyday life
The Mycenaeans were not isolated. Their gold, amber and tin came by sea from across the known world, which is why a war for a trade route like Troy makes sense.
Exam focus
Practice questions
Short answer & explain
Describe how the Mycenaeans used chariots. [short answer]
Explain why most Mycenaean trade was carried out by sea. [explain]
Extended response · how far do you agree
“We can know very little about everyday Mycenaean life.” How far do you agree? [extended response]
Flashcards
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