The Bronze Age collapse is avoided

Yes, but this also shows them having Central Ionia and The land around Troy, which was not theirs at this time. That was a raid when they destroyed it; they did not occupy it.

I remember Miletus, But I wasn't completely sure if it was accurate.

I agree that the area shown on the map is not really accurate at this period, if we're talking political control. However, if we are talking areas where trade and influence were going on, then it might be. Although obviously the area should extend farther south to encompass the region around Miletus as well.
 
I agree that the area shown on the map is not really accurate at this period, if we're talking political control. However, if we are talking areas where trade and influence were going on, then it might be. Although obviously the area should extend farther south to encompass the region around Miletus as well.

I think it does, but the map doesn't really show it well.
 

archaeogeek

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Shouldn't the Cycladians be a separate civilization (and maybe the Cypriots) during this time period? I mean... yeah, I know, the Cyclades are tiny but maybe a few dots here and there + Rhodos >.>
 
Yeah, and I imagine the sea-people as being something much cooler than simple pirates, 1500 BC vikings! :cool:

One vote for this; let the "sea people" whoever they are, be something like ancient Vikings. :D

I cannot wait for the update since this ATL also covers the Far East :cool:

Good job !
 
Here is a summary of the Sea Peoples as far as known:

Mentioned in all sources:
- Shardana or Sherden (possibly the Sardinians)

Mentioned in at least three sources:
- Luka (Amarna, Merenptah and Ramses II) - possibly Lycians?
- Danu or Denyen (Ramses II, Merenptah and Ramses III) - possibly the Danaans (Achaeans)

Mentioned in at least two sources (Merenptah and Ramses III):
- Shekelesh (Merenptah and Ramses III) - possibly Sicels (Sicilians)?
- Turisha (Merenptah and Ramses III)

Mentioned in only one source:
- Aqi-washa (Merenptah)
- Peleset (Ramses III), possibly a cognate with "Philistines"
- Tjeker (Ramses III)
- Washash (Ramses III)

If the interpretations are correct, then the Sea Peoples were indeed a wild mix of ethnic groups.
 
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I actually like this timeline, please continue it. The Philistines are, I believe, generally accepted as being some of the Sea Peoples. And did somebody mention the Hebrews, because according to The Bible Unearthed, they were descendants of pastoral nomads driven to take up farming after the collapse of Canaanite city-state culture. Eliminate the Bronze Age Collapse, and you've just butterflied away the Hebrews. HTH.
 
on the Hebrews if you start at Solomon and go back instead of from 1bc you get the exodus around Thera time iirc. you might have eliminated the exodus:p i will find sources tomorrow.
 
I thought those dark ages of the Bronze Age Near East was caused by that island in the Aegean blowing up... can't spell the name, but when that volcano blew, it would have sent a nasty tsunami across the region.
 

Typo

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I thought those dark ages of the Bronze Age Near East was caused by that island in the Aegean blowing up... can't spell the name, but when that volcano blew, it would have sent a nasty tsunami across the region.
You are thinking of Crete
 
brought about the end of the minoan civilization

And the Minoans were followed by the Myceneans, I recall.

Anyways I hope for an update. It's certainly something that's unique and most people don't bother (ie too lazy) to do a time-line in this era.
 
Yeah, and I imagine the sea-people as being something much cooler than simple pirates, 1500 BC vikings! :cool:
It would be nice to have a cause for the Bronze Age Collapse that accounted for the Sea Peoples. If they were a mixture of many groups speaking different languages and coming from many different coastal regions, we need a mechanism for setting them into motion. One possibility is that their various home lands are being invaded by other groups who have moved towards the Mediterranean. A possible problem with that sort of pressure is that places such as Crete, which the Bible suggests was the original home land of the Philistines, could only be invaded by sea. Thus we may be forced to postulate a domino effect amongst the Sea Peoples themselves.

Another possibility would be a sudden but widespread crop failure. Faced with famine, any group having ships and adequate military skills might be tempted to try to seize food or wealth to buy food from other lands. The initial poster assumed that climate change was the driving force which is possible. However, it is not the only possibility.

Several years ago I noticed that the suggested mechanisms proposed for causing the Bronze Age Collapse depended on the expertise of the proposer. Thus ex-soldiers proposed military innovations while geologists proposed earthquakes etc. As I was a biochemist, I felt inclined to propose a disease of wheat and barley causing widespread famine. The case of Egypt may or may not help. Before the collapse, grain is exported to the Hittites. Later we have graffiti from the Valley of the Kings complaining that the workers had not received their barley. However, the Egyptian collapse occurs later than the collapse of the Aegean Civilizations. It could be that we are seeing simply the success of Ramesses III in repelling the Sea Peoples. However, it might also fit a crop disease that did not arrive in Egypt until after it had caused famine to the north.

What is striking about the collapse is that the size and number of settlements around the Mediterranean falls and remains low for several hundred years. We are not just seeing a collapse of political structures or of literacy. This seems to fit explanations such as climate change rather than explanations involving military technology or migrations.
 
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