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How much do you actually know about the Phaistos Disc?

The best known Minoan inscription is the Phaistos Disc.

It is commonly accepted that this can be read spirally, i.e., from the rim inwards. The disk’s  sides bear a total of 242 signs which can be divided into 61 groups.

Scientists have been trying to decipher the mysterious 4000-year-old Phaistos Disc since it was discovered on the Greek Island of Crete.

It goes without saying that the language of the Disk is unknown, and thus the text remains beyond our reach. Nevertheless, this has not deterred many potential decipherers from offering their own interpretations.

If you have read a bit about the famous Phaistos Disc or if you have become curious and would like to know more, click and play the quiz.

We are looking forward for your scores and comments below.

Enjoy!

Created by Cretan Transfer Services.

  • Question of

    1. Phaistos Disc was discovered in the palace of

    • Knossos
    • Phaistos
  • Question of

    The Disc of Phaistos is thought to date back to

    • 1700 BC
    • 1600 BC
  • Question of

    The material from which the disc is made is

    • Fired Clay
    • Iron
  • Question of

    The diameter of Phaistos Disc is

    • 15 cm (5.9 in)
    • 35 cm (14 in.)
  • Question of

    The Phaistos Disc is covered with a spiral of stamped symbols

    • On the front side
    • On both sides
  • Question of

    Phaistos Disc was discovered in the Minoan Palace Site of Phaistos

    • In July 1908
    • In June 1928
  • Question of

    According to Gareth Owens of the Technological Educational Institute of Crete (TEI), the message on the disc is a

    • A document in an archaic form of Greek
    • Prayer to Mother, goddess of fertility
  • Question of

    There are many different signs on the disc, too many to constitute an alphabet and too few for them to constitue an ideographic script. How many signs are depicted on the disc?

    • 45
    • 54
  • Question of

    The Disc of Phaistos is exhibited at:

    • The Historical Museum of Crete
    • The Archaeological Museum in Heraklion

Report

What do you think?

13 Points

Written by CretanTransfers

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17 Comments

  1. Well I got 5 out of 9 right – not too bad 🙂
    While I’m no expert in the field, I’m a bit surprised that 45 symbols would be seen as “too many” for an alphabet, as there are a number of existing alphabets with more, such as Khmer (Cambodian) which has over 70 🙂

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