A Marinescape Floor from the Palace at Knossos

Abstract

A fragmentary red porphyry limestone slab carved in the form of a Marine Style rock pattern was found by Evans in the Palace at Knossos, but has yet to be satisfactorily interpreted. It is suggested here that the slab is from the corner of an LM IIIA inlaid pavement of a continuous rock pattern that surrounded a painted marinescape. A re-examination of the Dolphin Fresco, as well as its dating and reconstruction by Evans, leads to the suggestion that the fresco was originally painted on the floor of the "Treasury" and was surrounded by the inlaid limestone rockwork frame. It is further suggested that the "Treasury" was actually a private shrine for the Domestic Quarter, and the sottoscala of the "Wooden Stairs" to the north was the repository for the shrine's cult equipment.