From the arrival of the Neolithic farmers through the spectacular Minoan civilization of the Bronze Age to the Roman conquest of the first century B.C., this is the story of ancient Crete, as told by an esteemed professor, packaged with an attractive new cover. This fascinating history offers analyses and interpretations of Crete's social and political structures, as well as its art and religion, and discusses both the invention of writing and the establishment of legal codes there. The author emphasizes throughout what persists in Cretan civilization: the importance of community, the stability of institutions, and the island's genius for absorbing and transforming outside influences.