Thera

1
Thera

• A volcanic eruption about 1500 BCE crippled the
  Minoan civilization and may have been recorded in
  Exodus

2
The Aegean
3
Crete
4
The Minoans

• 2600-1450 BCE
• Major earthquake and palace destruction about
  1700 BCE (or invasion?)
• Thera eruption about 1500 BCE weakened Minoan
  culture
• Widespread palace destruction about 1450 BCE
• Supplanted by Mycenaeans from mainland about 1420
  BCE

5
Minoan Culture

• Maritime trading civilization
• Weapons and fortifications relatively few
• Non-Greek Language
• Script Linear A not yet deciphered
• Later adapted to Mycenean Greek (Linear B)
• Creative Art
• Sea themes abound
• Female figures predominate over male

6
Minoan Vase, Heraklion
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Minoan Vase, Heraklion
8
Minoan Vase, Heraklion
9
Woman on a Swing, Heraklion
10
Knossos, Crete
11
Knossos, Crete
12
Knossos, Crete
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Axe Emblems, Heraklion
14
The Mysterious Phaestos Disk
15
Mediterranean Volcanoes
16
Thera (Santoroni)
17
Eruption of Thera

• 1500 BCE according to artifact evidence
• 1600-1620 BCE by radiocarbon, ice core,
  dendrochronology, possible Chinese record
• Minoan civilization survived but probably
  crippled by coastal damage
• Must have been warning no bodies on Thera

18
A Chinese Record?

• yellow fog, a dim sun, then three suns, frost in
  July, famine, and the withering of all five
  cereals.
• Bamboo Chronicles about 1618 BCE

19
Volcanic Explosivity Index
VEI Classification Description Ejecta volume Global Frequency
0 Hawaiian non-explosive gt 1000 m³ daily
1 Strombolian gentle gt 10,000 m³ daily
2 Vulcanian explosive gt 1,000,000 m³ weekly
3 Pelean severe gt 10,000,000 m³ yearly
4 Pelean/Plinian cataclysmic gt 0.1 km³ 10 yrs
5 Plinian paroxysmal gt 1 km³ 50 yrs
6 Ultra-Plinian colossal gt 10 km³ 100 yrs
7 Ultra-Plinian super-colossal gt 100 km³ 1000 yrs
8 Ultra-Plinian mega-colossal gt 1000 km³ 10,000 yrs
20
Pre-Eruption
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Pre-Eruption Cutaway
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Plinian Eruption
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Collapse of Plinian Cloud
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Caldera Collapse Begins
25
Caldera Collapse
26
Caldera Collapse
27
Caldera Collapse
28
Caldera Flooding
29
Caldera Flooding
30
Phreatic Explosion and Tsunami
31
Rebuilding
32
The Plagues of Egypt

1. Rivers turn to blood
2. Frogs
3. Gnats
4. Flies
5. Death of Livestock
6. Boils
7. Hail
8. Locusts
9. Three days of darkness
10. Death of the Firstborn

33
The Plagues of Modern Times

1. Nothing good on cable
2. RIAA Lawsuits
3. Telemarketers
4. Cell phones in public
5. Middle seats on airliners
6. Cellulite
7. Spam e-mail
8. Nigerian money scams
9. Three dollars a gallon for gas
10. Firstborn come back home to live