Linear A Texts, Part 2
Stuart Harris BS, MS, MBA
USA
Summary: This is the third of four articles on Minoan Linear A.
1) Linear A Syllabary, Numbers, Measures and Proofs.
2) Linear A Texts, Part 1; translates texts prior to the eruption of Thera in 1628 BC.
3) Linear A Texts, Part 2; translates half of texts from Haghia Triada, sorted by code number.
4) Linear A Texts, Part 3; translates the remaining texts from Haghia Triada, Khania and Zakros.
Most texts inPart 2 have a dialect. In order to translate, the dialect is first converted back into classic Finnish. Conversion is simple - the last vowel of two - or three-syllable words changes in a regular manner. The most common change switches A with E and O with U, leaving I alone.
Tablet HT 15 sorts stamped coins a thousand years earlier than on the mainland. Tablet HT 89, an estimate of the cost of a wedding, defines the standard unit of currency as the drachma, worth $70. Tablet HT 95 names the equipment that a baking apprentice needs.