kingdom · Greece and the Aegean

Kingdom of Mycenae

1650 BCE – 1100 BCE (approx.) · capital Mycenae

The leading Bronze Age Greek kingdom in the Argolid, whose shaft graves, Lion Gate and tholos tombs gave its name to the Mycenaean civilisation.

Origins

Mycenae occupies a hill in the north-east Argolid controlling routes to Corinth. Its rise is shown by Grave Circles A and B, used c. 1650 to 1500 BCE, with gold masks and weapons. In the 14th and 13th centuries BCE a palace, Cyclopean walls and great tholos tombs such as the Treasury of Atreus were built.

Rule and society

Mycenae was ruled by a wanax from a palace with a central megaron and frescoes, and was probably the most powerful of several Argolid centres including Tiryns. Linear B tablets record perfumed oil and other goods. Its pottery spread across the Mediterranean, and some scholars link it to the Ahhiyawa known from Hittite texts. The Lion Gate dates to c. 1250 BCE.

Decline and legacy

The citadel suffered destructions c. 1200 BCE and the palace system collapsed, though occupation continued until c. 1100 BCE. Later the small town was destroyed by Argos c. 468 BCE. Homer made it the seat of Agamemnon, and Schliemann's excavations from 1876 made it famous.

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Kingdom of Mycenae. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-mycenae
MLA
“Kingdom of Mycenae.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-mycenae. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Kingdom of Mycenae.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-mycenae.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Kingdom of Mycenae’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kingdom-of-mycenae (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻