Oil on canvas (48x48”)©Eugene G Maurakis, Ph.D. 2020. Adaptation of 1,600 BCE Xeste 3 fresco at Akrotiri, Thera depicting the generation of life, growth, and continuance of life cycles derived from the sun disc, allomorph of the Minoan Great Mother Goddess, source of all of life (Marinatos, 2018; Papaodysseus et al., 2006). Minoan and other ancient cultures across the globe celebrated and revered the lifegiving energy of the sun and the interconnectedness of all life for eons, a fact of the natural world ecologists have labeled “interdependence of all life forms via interconnected food webs” – vis-a-vis “web of life.”
To me, this fractured and disintegrating fresco eroded by natural forces over millennia is a fitting metaphor for the current loss of biodiversity on Earth by human activities (i.e., climate change, habitat loss, introduction of exotic species, pollution, population growth, and over-consumption). Over a 40+year period (1970-2016), population levels of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fishes have dropped an average of 68 percent – the most alarming is the 94 percent decline of populations in tropical American subregions (Almond et al., 2020). Embrace the concept of Half-Earth by Dr. E. O. Wilson (2016) to “protect half the land and sea in order to manage habitat to reverse species extinction and ensure the long-term health of our planet.” It is not too late to fully accept the fundamental axiom of the life-giving forces of the natural world and act accordingly. #minoan #minoanart #crete #minoancivilization #biodiversity2020 #nature #conservation #environment #conservation #wildlife #biologia #natura #savetheplanet
Almond, R.E.A., M. Grooten, and T. Petersen, (Eds). 2020. Living Planet Report 2020: Bending the Curve on Biodiversity Loss. World Wildlife Fund, Gland, Switzerland. 159 p. Marinatos, N. 2018. The Waz-Spirals of Xeste 3, Thera: Regeneration and Solar Symbolism (pp. 77-85). In A. G. Vlachopoulos (Ed.). 2018. Paintbrushes: Wall-painting and Vase-Painting of the Second Millennium BC in Dialogue. Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports – Archaeological Receipts Fund. 605 p. Papaodysseus, C., T. Panagopoulos, M. Exarhos, D. Fragoulis, G. Roussopoulos, P. Rousopoulos, G. Galanopoulos And C. Triantafillou, A. Vlachopoulos And C. Doumas. 2006. Distinct, Late Bronze Age (c. 1650 BC) Wall-Paintings from Akrotiri, Thera, Comprising Advanced Geometrical Patterns. Archaeometry 48(1):97-114. Wilson, E. O. 2016. Half-Earth: Our Planet’s Fight for Life. W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. 258 p.
