Minoan fresco painting was a central part of Minoan art. It was a form of ancient art that focused on the divine and the secular, preserving details of religious ceremonies and beliefs — and what Minoan architecture looked like and scenes from daily Minoan life. Its art techniques were sophisticated and spread across the Greek world.

Archaeology of Minoan Frescos

Most Minoan frescos have been found in palaces or high-status villas. Usually, only fragments survive, either under spoil or later floors. Very few frescos remain in situ on surviving walls.

Archaeologists have restored many Minoan pictures from these fragments — but results rely heavily on the archaeologist’s imagination, supplemented by examples from elsewhere across the Minoan world. Many scenes have been recreated using only one or two fragments of the original fresco. Generally, because of their regular nature, it is easier to restore reoccurring motifs and patterns.

Minoan Fresco Painting Techniques

Initially, a layer of rough plaster was applied to the wall, composed of clay mixed with straw. This initial layer was overlaid by several thin layers of more refined plaster made from lime and animal hair. The final layer of plaster was a layer of undiluted lime. It was to this that the paint was applied.

The main parts of the fresco were applied to wet plaster. Compositions were initially outlined in orange or yellow — or engraved into the wall. String was used to mark out borders in straight lines and compasses were used to perfect circles. It is even possible that Minoan artists used pre-prepared patterns.

Next, colour was applied. Sponges were used for backgrounds and colour blocks, with brushes for more detailed work. These fine details were added after the plaster had dried.

Once the painting was completed, it was preserved with a glaze of egg tempera, which was allowed to dry before being rubbed to a high gloss.

Minoan Paints

The earliest background colours were usually plain red or red and white. In the later Minoan period, an Egyptian inspired bright blue became popular. In figures, artists always used white paints for female flesh tones, whereas red-brown was used for men.

Paints were generally made from natural ingredients. Artists made white paint from lime, using ferrous oxide or haematite for reds. Yellow ochre was commonly used for yellow paint and argillaceous schist or charred bones for black. Green was achieved by mixing blue and yellow or from malachite.

Blue was the only non-naturally occurring colour. This was produced by mixing silicon, copper oxide and calcium oxide, according to an Egyptian formula.

Fresco Designs

Different types of frescos could be found in different parts of a room. For example, wall paintings such as landscapes were usually central, level with the top of doors and windows with the bottom about a metre above the floor. This lower areas area was usually left as plain stone or marble or painted to resemble marble. Narrow friezes ran along the tops of walls and ceilings were often covered with patterns such as spirals.

All paintings generally had borders along their tops and bottoms that acted as a frame for the composition. Generally, these consisted of two colours: black and white or blue and black.

Frescos were not just applied to walls and ceilings. They were also added to plastered cult objects such as altars.

Themes of Minoan Frescos

The themes of Minoan frescos fall into four main categories:

• Religious. Minoan art celebrated the divine in nature rather than preserving the deeds of Minoan rulers. Scenes in murals show rituals, sacred processions, cult activity, festivals, worship of the gods and priesthood, sacred contests such as bull-leaping and religious symbols.
• Everyday life. Many frescos showed scenes from everyday life. Examples from Knossos have helped in the recreation of the palace’s architecture as well as revealing details of Minoan sporting contests and scenes from court life. Details of dress, hairstyles and the ideal Minoan physique are also preserved in these wall paintings.
• Nature. As mentioned above, nature was closely affiliated with the divine and Minoan frescos celebrate flora and fauna of Crete and were filled with flowers such as lilies, crocuses, roses, and sacred animals as the bull and the gryphon and Cretan marine life such as dolphins and octopuses.
• Patterns. Used to fill borders and cover ceilings, common patterns included rosettes in rows, spiral patterns, borders of garlands.

The Spread and Influence of Minoan Art

Knossos was the centre of Minoan art, with its innovations spreading not only across Crete but to the islands of Thera and Milos and beyond.

Sources

Logiadou-Platonos, Sossos. Knossos: The Palace of Minos. A Survey of the Minoan Civilisation. Athens

Vasilakis, Andonis (1999) Minoan Crete: From Myth to History. Adam Editions: Athens