A Quick Ramble about Bronze Age Fishes and Worldbuilding
This is a minoan larnax, aka a "bathtub" sarcophagus. I had the privilege of seeing it along with many others while I was in Crete. Many of these sarcophagi, like the one below, had lids. However, this particular example (above) was not displayed with a lid, though it was presumably meant to have one.
What caught my attention about this particular larnax were those three fish. Many of these vessels have marine scenery (marine life, ships, water-like patterns, etc.). It is theorized that this imagery may be indicative of the Minoan afterlife, which was innately linked with the sea, or perhaps waited beyond it. But that is a whole different issue.
Why I found those fish so interesting is because they were located not on the outside of the larnax, but inside, meaning that when the deceased was interned and the lid placed, they would have only been "visible" to the dead, keeping them company in a way.
I wonder if the person who this coffin was intended for had a part in its design or, if not, what the loved ones who commissioned it were thinking. Maybe it was a bit of flair from the artisan that was never explicitly requested.
Regardless, I find something charming about those strange, seemingly inconsequential little human details that appear on ancient artifacts. They're not images of deities, and nothing indicates to me any deep explicit cutic or ritualistic meaning. They seem to just be fish. I hope those three little fishes were able to help the occupant on their journey.
I think when it comes to world building or just imagining the past, an important aspect is remembering little quirks like this. It's easy to use generalities, particularly about the material and physical aspects of a culture, but I think occasionally sprinkling in these little quirks helps to make your world feel more alive.
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