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PROFESSOR: SOLVING MYSTERY MAY CAUSE REWRITE OF MINOAN HISTORY

JAMESTOWN - Brent Brackett, an adjunct instructor at GTCC and museum consultant for Tannenbaum Historic Park in Greensboro, will explore the history of Minoan civilization in a 1 p.m. talk Friday (Feb. 24).

The talk, which is open to students and the public free of charge, will be held in the auditorium of the Sears Applied Technologies Center on GTCC's Jamestown campus.

The event is sponsored by the GTCC History Club.
Brackett not only will talk about "Minoan," but also "Atlantis Lost." Could it be the Minoan civilization which disappeared in the 15th Century also was the lost Atlantis civilization?

History professor Jeff Kinard, who is History Club advisor, said,"Before the Rosetta Stone was deciphered we could not understand ancient Egyptian writing. After its mystery was solved the long dead language began to speak to us from pyramids and papyrus and tell the story of the past. We had unraveled one language but many others remain to be decoded."

Kinard added, "The ancient Minoan civilization on and around the island of Crete disappeared 3500 years ago. We've found tens of thousands of artifacts, temples, ritual sites, seats of governmental power and incredible art, but we don't understand the language. They left behind dozens of tablets, filled with a written language, Linear A, which we've been trying to decipher for more than a century. When we finally decode this mystery our entire understanding of Minoan civilization may be re-written."

Brackett earned a master's degree in American history from UNCG and worked as a museum educator for eight years. "As a curator I focused on historical transcription, research and writing. I have a passion for sharing historical knowledge with the public," Brackett said.

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Contact: ROBurchette@GTCC.edu                                                       Released: 2/22/12