The Palace of KNOSSOS

KNOSSOS is Crete's most famous archeological site. The Minoan civilization grew up and prospered around the Palace at Knossos being described as the first Greek city-state. The name “Minoan” derives from the mythical King Minos, designating the Bronze Age civilization of Crete (3000-1000 B.C.). Knossos has had extensive reconstructions. The site was excavated by Sir Arthur Evans between 1900 and 1930; So, there are two important things to keep in mind as you walk through the ruins: (I) at least 75% of what you see has been partially reconstructed, much of it to conform with Evans’ theories of Minoan history, theories that have recently come under heavy criticism; (2) the Minoans, although they greatly influenced the first Greeks (the Myceneans) in art and architecture were not Greek; their impact on historical Greece seems to have consisted mostly of certain religious traditions and practices (e.g., the Elefsinian religion). These reconstructions are controversial since they were made based on the original archeologist's interpretations on how the Palace probably looked originally. On the one hand, damage was inflicted on the original ruins in order to match his expectations while, on the other hand, it does help you visualize what it probably looked like. It was here that King Minos had his labyrinth and kept the Minotaur.

The first palace of Knossos was built around 1900 BC. In 1700 BC it was destroyed by an earthquake and rebuilt in a grander and more sophisticated design. The city of Knossos consisted of an immense palace, residences of officials and priests, the homes of ordinary people, and burial grounds. The Palace, which covered an area of 22 000 sq m (8456 sq miles), consisted of royal domestic quarters, public reception rooms, shrines, workshops, treasures and storerooms around a central court. One can see the remnants of this golden Minoan period with its wonderful theatrical staircase, the throne room, many impressive frescoes (including the famous “Lily Prince”), as well as the first flush toilets in Europe, dating back to the 14th century BC.
The Heraklion Archaeological Museum houses many of the unearthed pieces of pottery, jewellery, figurines, as well as fantastic frescoes from Knossos.

THE TRIP TO KNOSSOS
Using the public bus (10 min.) visit the Palace of Minos at Knossos. This was the largest and most important of the Minoan palaces in Crete.
Although Knossos was inhabited far back into Neolithic times, the first palaces were built around 2200 BC. The Minoan civilization was extremely advanced, the first “high culture” in Europe, and rivaled the contemporary cultures of Babylon and Egypt. Sometime around 1750 the first palaces were destroyed, perhaps by earthquake, and new palaces (the “Second Palaces”) were built; these in turn were destroyed during the first half of the 15th century (or more than a century earlier, if the destruction resulted from the volcanic eruptions at Santorini. The best Minoan pottery (especially Kamares Ware, beautifully-shaped polychrome cups and vases with eggshell, thin walls) was made during the First Palace period, while the best jewelry, engravings, and frescoes are from the Second Palace period. The Minoans also had writing systems, both hieroglyphic and linear (“Linear A”), but these have not yet been deciphered. Later Linear A was adapted by the Myceneans to write Greek; this script, called Linear B, is a syllabary (each symbol represents a syllable) and has been found on more than 4000 tablets from mainland Greece and Crete.

The entrance is near two large round holes, perhaps cisterns. The main entrances were at the north and south ends, and led into the central court: on the east and west sides of the court there were complexes of rooms and apartments, several stories high, ventilated and lit by light wells. At the northwest corner of the court is a throne room with nice griffin frescoes (restored); on the floor above, around a light well, are replicas of many of the frescoes found at Knossos (the originals are in the Heraklion Museum). All along the west side are storehouses; in the southwest corner, at the end of a processional corridor, are a propylaion and great staircase. On the east side of the court is another staircase, called by Evans the “Grand Staircase,” because he thought it led to the royal living quarters; this staircase leads down through three levels around a light well into a maze of rooms, one of which is called the Throne Room and another the Queen’s Bedroom. Outside these rooms, alongside a narrow stairs, there is a storehouse of giant pithoi, 6-foot high storage vases; beneath a metal grill nearby is a good example of the terra cotta plumbing which brought running water to the palace; in the room of the Medallion Vases a small section of floor is cut away around a column base. Northwest of the palace is a paved road, perhaps the oldest in Europe, which widens as it ends at shallow stairs leading to the north entrance.