archaeological study is conducted methodically and systematically. The Greek Antiquities Law No. 3028/2002, on the "Conservation of Antiquities and Cultural Heritage in General," governs the preservation and protection of the sites. Ministerial Decree No. 2160 of 1964 created and safeguarded the limits of Mycenae in addition to the sites themselves. The Acropolis and the larger surrounding surroundings are also covered by this ministerial decree's extension of protection. Ministerial Decrees No. 102098/4753 of 1956 and 12613/696 of 1991 both provide protection for the Tiryns archaeological site. Etymology The name Mukanai is thought not to be Greek but rather one of the many pre-Greek place names inherited by later Greek speakers. Legend has it that the name was connected to the Greek word mykēs (μύκης, "mushroom"). Thus, Pausanias ascribes the name to the legendary founder Perseus, who was said to have named it either after the cap (mykēs) of the sheath of his sword, or after a mushroom he had plucked on the site. Homer connected the name to the nymph Mycene the daughter of the river god Inachos of Argos (Odyssey 2.120). In the Iliad, the name of the city spelled is (Μυκήνη). The later form (Μυκῆναι) was the result of a well-known sound change in Attic-Ionic which shifts some instances of ā to ē. History Neolithic Age Mycenae, an acropolis site, was built on a hill above sea level, some inland from the Gulf of Argolis. Situated in the north-east corner of the Argive plain, it easily overlooked the whole area and was ideally positioned to be a centre of power, especially as it commanded all easy routes to the Isthmus of Corinth. Besides its strong defensive and strategic position, it had good farmland and an adequate water supply. There are only faint traces of Neolithic settlement on the site although it was continuously occupied from the Early Neolithic (EN; c. 5000–c. 4000 BC) through the Early Helladic (EH; c. 3200–c. 2000 BC) and Middle Helladic (MH; c. 2000–c. 1550 BC) periods. EN Rainbow Ware constitutes the earliest ceramic evidence discovered so far. Early and Middle Bronze Age The population had grown considerably by the Middle Helladic. As elsewhere, a dominant Cretan influence prevailed from c. 1600 BC, the first evidence of this coming from the shaft graves discovered in 1876 by Heinrich Schliemann. Schliemann's shaft graves came to be known as Circle A to distinguish them from the Circle