We are, unfortunately, without any evidence as to the appearance
of the great palaces in their finished state. The inner plan can
be traced, but it is difficult to arrive at any idea of what these
huge buildings must have looked like from the outside. It is fairly
evident, however, that there cannot have been any symmetrical balancing
of the different architectural features. The palaces were more
like small towns than simple residences, and the impression made
upon the eye must have been due more to the great mass and extent
of the building than to any symmetry of plan. Probably we must
conceive of them as great complex blocks of solid building, rising
in terrace above terrace, the flat roofs giving an appearance of
squareness and solidity to the whole. On a closer approach the eye
would be impressed by the wide and spacious courts, the stately
porticoes, the noble stairways, and the wealth of colour everywhere
displayed; but, on the whole, so far as can be judged, it was only
from within that the splendour of the Minoan palaces could be fairly
estimated.
A palace such as that of Knossos sheltered an extraordinary variety
and complexity of life. An abundance of humbler rooms served for
the accommodation of the artists and artisans who were needed for
the service and adornment of the palace, and of whom whole companies
must have lived within the walls, 'dwelling with the king for his
work,' like the potters and foresters mentioned in Scripture.
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