Talos-The guardian robot of Minoan Crete

reply to post by Astyanax

I often wondered at the time whether Renault was the nom de plume of a gay man. In this internet age, of course, there's no need to wonder, and following your reminder, I thought to check. It turns out she was a gay woman.

I had almost the same experience, sort of, anyhow. I had read Steven Pressfield's Gates of Fire and thereafter went loco for historical fiction for a time. A straight friend introduced me to the books and I loved them right away. I also wondered in quick time if she were a man as well and queried the buddy that suggested the books; he knew she was not a he and thought he had heard she was gay. I checked online and sure enough. It all fell into place for me then and made sense, how she 'did that'.

It's weird, Son of Hector, I really like Willa Cather, too. I wonder if I could pull a reverse Renault? Or a double-reverse-Renault with a full gainer?



X.

Oh, to stay somewhat on topic, for those that will not get the chance to read The King Must Die...

Renault's Minos sits at the center of a labyrinth, blind and impotent, wishing for Theseus to kill him and giving him the axe Labrys with which to do so.

Originally posted by Char-Lee
reply to post by Phantom traveller

 

If they could make that then, and they are returning creators...what could they do today! I think beyond our comprehension.

A lot of ancient knowledge which would probably change our world dramatically, was lost when the great library in Alexandria was destroyed by fire.

Well, some say it was all lost. Some believe that the knowledge still remains, but has been hidden by the powers that be and kept from the general population.

I will say this...the ancient civilizations you've been taught, are a fraction of what they really were. And I'm not talking about no conspiracy theories now either.
A lot has been lost. But small pieces have been discovered. Like part of a mechanical device which scientists/archaeologists have called a computer that is thousands of years old from ancient Greece.

Now imagine if it was possible to scour the entire planet from top to bottom, to deep under ground and deep under the oceans...what they would discover about our forefathers and past civilizations.

reply to post by Phantom traveller


This reminds me of a documentary I once seen on something called The Goblin Man of Norway. Here is the link.

The Goblin Man of Norway

It is pretty profound.

reply to post by Phantom traveller


Interesting.

The Ancient Indian (Hindu) Vimanas (Flying craft) were also said to run via a mercury engine.

Coincidence???

Originally posted by darkendecho
reply to post by Phantom traveller

 

This reminds me of a documentary I once seen on something called The Goblin Man of Norway. Here is the link.

The Goblin Man of Norway

It is pretty profound.

I just done a little background on this and it seems as though it is fake, the documentary was apparently created as viral marketing to promote the release of a movie (?) called 'too human'.

Had me going for a few minutes though.

There's always the chance that the 'hoax' story is a cover, but thats a level of complexity that would burden the claiment with the need to provide some compelling proof.

reply to post by sonnny1


Yes...I was going to go on a tangent headed in that direction. I just think that machinery (steam and gravity powered) was just coming on the scene back during that time. There were a lot of technical advancements in autonomous machinery during this time in Ancient Greece, whether you've heard about them or not. Why it took so long to develop a car from that point is beyond me...the antikythera mechanism is only one of many wonders engineered back then...it's amazing what technology we had so long ago.

So, my point is...why not wonder about autonomous beings if other machinery made things possible? As far as the giant robot...just a case of good storytelling...maybe the first work of science fiction perhaps?

Originally posted by AFewGoodWomen
reply to post by sonnny1

 

Yes...I was going to go on a tangent headed in that direction. I just think that machinery (steam and gravity powered) was just coming on the scene back during that time. There were a lot of technical advancements in autonomous machinery during this time in Ancient Greece, whether you've heard about them or not. Why it took so long to develop a car from that point is beyond me...the antikythera mechanism is only one of many wonders engineered back then...it's amazing what technology we had so long ago.

So, my point is...why not wonder about autonomous beings if other machinery made things possible? As far as the giant robot...just a case of good storytelling...maybe the first work of science fiction perhaps?

edit on 1-8-2012 by AFewGoodWomen because: (no reason given)

It should be noted that tech like the things you mentioned would not have been mass produced for general consumption but rather it was more likely a novel curiosity of kings and probably only ever made in limited numbers. the antikythera mechanism was probably a one-off or produced in very limited quantities other wise there would be literature and numerous artifacts.

reply to posts by Phantom traveller and LightAssassin

Originally posted by Phantom traveller
The guardians of the maze (were) golden, moving statues in human size that were using mercury to operate.

Originally posted by LightAssassin
The Ancient Indian (Hindu) Vimanas (Flying craft) were also said to run via a mercury engine. Coincidence???

Unlikely to be mere coincidence. Both legends probably spring from the fact that elemental mercury has such unique properties under normal terrestrial conditions. It's a metal, but it's a liquid. It's a liquid, but it doesn't mix or spread. And of course, it is rather difficult to produce in large quantities.

All this made mercury rather special and wonderful to people who had not yet developed a science of chemistry. People, that is to say, like the ancient Greeks and the ancient Indians.

By the way, mercury is heavier than gold. Hardly the ideal aviation fuel.

And, OP,

One of the most enigmatic points of Cretan myths is the existence of a giant, bronze android

I'm sure the Minoans had myths, but they are unknown to us. The story of Talos is a Greek myth.

reply to post by Astyanax

I'm sure the Minoans had myths, but they are unknown to us. The story of Talos is a Greek myth.

Crete is part of Greece.At the time of the Minoan civilazation,Greece wasn't one country(at least not how we mean it today).They had a sense of national identity,they shared same/similar language,the same gods,but each city was independant(with their own king,laws etc) and that continued for a very long time.

For anyone that is interested:


This cave is in a southern village of Crete called Tsoutsouros and according to some it's the entrance to King Minos tomb.

There is a lot of lore surrounding the area.Unexplained phenomena,legends of hidden treasures,the gate to Hades and other weird stories.

One of my favourite places in Crete.

Is it wrong, that one of the few times I log in, is to see who else thought of Mighty Talos, God-Man of Tamriel?

reply to post by Phantom traveller

Crete is part of Greece.

Crete is an island in the Mediterranean. During the times we are discussing, it had a civilization that was completely different from (and more advanced than) the Greeks'. That civilization was destroyed by a volcanic eruption in the fifteenth century BC. By historical times Crete had become part of the pan-Hellenic world of warring city-states.

At the time of the Minoan civilazation, Greece wasn't one country (at least not how we mean it today).

Ancient Greece was composed of many city-states, each of which was independent, but Greece – the people and the country – shared a common identity and language that went back to prehistory, to a time when they weren't even called Greeks. The inhabitants of Crete in historical (and even Homeric) times shared this identity, but they were not Minoans. The Minoans were long gone by then.

They were never a part of pan-Hellenic culture. They did not speak Greek; we have yet to decipher their language, but we know it was different. They worshipped different gods – mostly female deities, as far as we can tell from the remains we have found – whereas the Greek pantheon was as patriarchal as Greek society itself. And that, too, is a difference between the Greeks and the Minoans: the Greeks kept their women at home and treated them as chattels, while Minoan society seems to have awarded women far more status.

The Greeks – who, apart from archaeological remains, are our only source of knowledge about the Minoans – most certainly did not regard them as Greek. Homer has a Cretan contingent take part in the attack on Troy in the Iliad, but they are not Minoan.

Take a look at the Wikipedia entry on Minoan civilization; it's very informative and interesting, and it makes the difference between Greeks and Minoans very clear.

reply to post by Astyanax


One note

The Egyptians also had contact with the Minoans as did the Cypriotes, Phoenicians, and various other groups in Asia minor and greater Syria, this is demonstrated by cultural exchanges and trade between them which shows up in the archaeological record.

You might find looking at the Royal Tomb of Isopata which had materials in them which are Egyptian influenced or from Egypt itself

reply to post by Hanslune

One note

The Egyptians also had contact with the Minoans as did the Cypriotes, Phoenicians, and various other groups in Asia minor and greater Syria, this is demonstrated by cultural exchanges and trade between them which shows up in the archaeological record.

Thanks, Hans. I'm not disputing that; merely pointing out that the only literary sources on the Minoans are Greek. Unless someone's dug up an interesting papyrus or clay tablet I haven't heard about.