Book Description

(Black and white edition). Many lies and false accusations have been told through the ages about King Minos of Crete, his wife Queen Pasiphae, his daughter Ariadne and his son Minotaur. This, according to the author, is the true story about the royal family of Crete, only this time told from a Cretan perspective. The author refutes the erroneous information that comes from classical Greek sources, read: the Athenians from about 500 BC. Remind yourself that Ariadne and her family lived a thousand years earlier though, around 1.500 BC, among the high cultured Minoans. With this historical novel, Henk Ruis explains how the essentially fake news about Minos and Ariadne could have been spread, and with the hitherto unexplained demise of Minoan culture, that simply vanished around 1.200 BC, could be firmly anchored in Greek mythology. A Queen having intercourse with a bull, and giving birth to a ferocious creature, half man, half bull: this is of course bullshit. King Minos is portrayed by the Athenians as a cruel tyrant, who each year has seven young men and seven young women from Athens sacrificed to the man-eating Minotaur. Ariadne is portrayed as the silly girl who becomes so infatuated with the Greek hero Theseus that she betrays her own father, lets her own brother be killed by Theseus, who escapes using her famous thread, and then elopes with the Greek hero: only to be left for trash on the Greek island of Dia (Naxos). The author thinks that all these are evil and malicious stories, and in this book he wants to let the world know what really happened 3.500 years ago on Crete. The novel takes the form of a love story about Ariadne and her divine boyfriend Dionysus, who wants to make her his wife. Dionysus has never before seen such a witty, wise and funny girl. But also the sea God Poseidon and the Greek hero Theseus have an eye on the beautiful and seductive princess, with the stunning blonde curls (καλλιπλοκάμῳ), that Homer already mentioned in his Iliad 18:594 (appr. 800 BC). Ariadne initially prefers her own career at the Court of King Minos to the advances of the divine Dionysus. With a strongly developed sense of justice, she writes a law book that reflects equality between men and women. Crete becomes widely known for its balanced justice system. Ultimately, fate, from an unexpected side, is inevitable. En passant a whole number of pre-Greek myths, more than 30, are told. Some of these classic stories are told at length, others are briefly touched upon. The novel is very well presented in a beautiful and legible font (Minion Pro) and the layout is well thought out, which increases readability. The original book was executed in full colour with more than 40 reproductions of beautiful works of art, which have been reproduced in black and white in this edition to reduce printing costs. The author has added a 14-page note chapter with references to the works of the classical writers. With an epilogue by the editor on immortality and religion. Dalfsen, the Netherlands, October 2020.