That one time an entire civilization collapsed
And no one truly knows why
Mystery Mob!
Here at Mystery Nibbles, we’ve covered all sorts of disappearances… but never the disappearance of an ENTIRE civilization! Just before the Greek Dark Ages, civilization suffered a violent and sudden collapse. This was a society that had the technology to build massive palaces, had financial records, and detailed histories of their military exploits… yet in just a matter of decades the sweeping downfall led to centuries of “dark” times.
And yet there are competing and even some downright incompatible theories for why it all happened?
But before we dive too deep, let’s answer this week’s Whodunit:
The geography teacher was found dead on the very first day of their school. The gardener was busy fixing the new saplings, the science teacher was taking a mid-semester test, the coach was playing basketball, and the principal was in the office. Who killed the geography teacher?
Answer: The science teacher. His alibi was false -- can’t take a mid-year test on the first day of school.
Now that’s all settled, grab your makeup kit because we’re about to get a little bronzer...
Too Good to be True
The Bronze Age was a good time for civilization. We had:
The growth of multiple vast, sweeping empires (Egypt, Cyprus, Assyria, Bablyonia)
New religions, new cultures, new technology
Farming Revolutions gave way to food surpluses
The food surpluses allowed the population to explode
And because of all the above, bustling, dynamic cities created a system of international trade unlike anything that had been seen
“We’re talking about a region that today would stretch from Italy in the West to Afghanistan in the East, and from Turkey in the North to Egypt in the South. That whole area was completely interconnected,” says Cline, a professor of ancient Near East studies & anthropology at George Washington University.
But within a generation, all of this was gone… What the heck happened?
The Rise of the Sea Peoples
The first mystery of the collapse was the arrival of unnamed invaders known collectively as “the Sea Peoples.” While the Egyptians were able to fight them off, the entire Mediterranean and Near East are littered with the archaeological remains of cities burned to the ground at this time.
The origins of these invaders are still unknown- main theories think these people came from the Western Mediterranean, possibly the Iberian Peninsula. There is reason to suspect some of these attacks from the Sea Peoples gave rise to the mythology of the Battle of Troy.
Aside from their mysterious origins, there is evidence that the Sea Peoples invaded bringing their women and children in tow meaning they might be both raiders and refugees. But refugees from what?
“The Sea Peoples are the big boogeymen of the Bronze Age collapse,” says Cline. “I do think they're part of it, but not the sole reason. I believe they're as much a symptom of the collapse as they were a cause.”
A Perfect Storm
The first theory is Mother nature herself. Researchers analyzed core samples from the Sea of Galilee and discovered that this period of the collapse was the “driest of the entire Bronze Age.” The Egyptians and Babylonians were spared the worst of this as they had access to the mighty rivers of the Nile & the Tigris. But, of course, other empires were not so lucky.
There’s also evidence of major (multiple) earthquakes rocking the area around this time. And finally, the possible rise of disease (most likely smallpox, bubonic plague, or tularemia) would bring these civilizations to their knees.
The second theory is the rise of iron-working and changes in warfare. The superior metals, along with advanced tactics would allow a smaller army to destabilize the militaries of old.
The final theory is one of “general systems collapse.” This theory proposes that societal collapse can come from the increase of social complexity beyond its sustainable level, leading people to regress to simpler ways of life. Specifically for the Bronze Age, the political, social, and economical complexity was too intricate once disrupted by invasion or nature or even breaks in supply chains.
But what did we learn?
The reality is that the collapse could have been caused by a combination of reasons. Society is fragile (apparently) and needs a little TLC to stay together. If you’re concerned about history repeating itself, take a little deeper dive:
A fantastic YouTube Historia Civilis did an episode on this
A verrry deep scholarly dive
The Good ole History Channel
As always,
Stay ‘spicious
-Andy & Mark
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