May 28, 1954
LINEAR B – VENTRIS: The distinguished British archaeologist and architect Mr Michael Ventris gave a lecture yesterday afternoon at the British Archaeological School of Athens before a crowd of Greek and foreign experts. He was speaking of the results to date of efforts being made by himself and other researchers to interpret texts of the Mycenaean period excavated so far in Crete and the Peloponnese. Mr Ventris originally thought that the Linear B script of Minoan Crete had no relationship to the Greek language and that it was related to Etruscan. He has since changed his mind and is now convinced that the Linear B script of Knossos – similar to the script found recently in inscriptions in Pylos – was a recording of the Greek language, after studying the second volume, published in 1952, of Minoan inscriptions that Sir Arthur Evans found at Knossos. (…) Therefore, as Linear B script represents the period 1400-1200 BC, we must accept the old hypothesis that at that time the Greek Mycenaeans of the Peloponnese had extended their sovereignty to Crete, where the Greek language was also in use.
