Heraklion Attractions

Venue: Palace of Knossos    When: Daily

The Palace of Knossos is the oldest settlement yet found which belonged to the Minoan civilisation and was excavated in the early 20th century. It is the place where the fabled minotaur of Ancient Greek myth is said to have lived, in a labyrinth in the gardens of King Minos, and one of the must-see ancient sites in Greece.

The Knossos archaeological site covers 20,000 square metres and consists of several constituent parts - the Palace of Knossos, the Minoan houses, the "Little Palace", the "Royal Villa", the villa "Dionysos" with its famous Roman mosaics, the south Royal Temple and Tomb and the "Caravanserai". Only the Palace and the Minoan houses are open to the public.

Knossos was an enormous palace - perhaps the 1500 rooms, spread over five stories, were responsible for the myths of the Knossos labyrinth - although the living quarters themselves were fairly small. The central court was the focus of the building, while the west wing was largely used for cult purposes. The throne room, off the central court, was probably a later addition. What has survived particularly well are the massive storage areas, where vast jars (pithoi) were used to store olive oil. This implies that Knossos served as a warehouse for the commodities it traded with other peoples of the Aegean.

The walls and floors were often painted and red was the primary colour. Simple geometric designs were used until around 1700BC, when frescoes of sport, temple practices and marine life began to decorate the palace walls. Some precious examples remain in situ and also in the Archaeological Museum.

Arthur Evans was responsible for the initial excavation and took it upon himself to rebuild some parts of the palace so that visitors would have a better idea of what originally stood there. A debate has been raging ever since as to whether or not his practices have obscured or helped to elucidate the archaeological site. You decide!