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Sights of Interest in Greece
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Minoan Palace of Knossos in Crete
16-02-2013 17:04Knossos was the capital city of the Minoan civilization which developed mainly in Crete. This civilization of the Bronze Age is the oldest organised and evolved society in Europe and influenced major trade centres of the Aegean Sea, like Santorini. The Palace of Knossos was the administrative centre of Minoans and now it is one of the most important archaeological sites in the world.
Minoan civilization thrived on Crete around 2200–1450 BC and controlled a naval empire in the Aegean Sea. Knossos was the capital city of the island of Crete for most of antiquity. It is located in the north-central part of the island, about 5km inland, south to the modern seaport and capital city of Heraklion.
The Palace of Knossos was first erected in around 1950 BC reaching its existing form in around 1700 BC, during the Minoan golden age. As the archaeological finds indicate, Cnossus Palace was destroyed twice by earthquake in about 1730 and 1570 BC. Knosos suffered the cataclysmic volcanic eruption of the island of Santorini which is one of the main reasons of the decline of the Minoan civilization. The Palace was then rebuilt and enlarged and since was located on high ground, Knossos survived from the natural disasters that damaged the coastal regions of Crete. However, the palace was completely destroyed by fire in around 1400 BC and was never rebuilt. At the same time, every other Minoan site on Crete was destroyed and the cause may have been an invasion by warlike Mycenaeans from the Greek mainland.
Knosos was pinpointed as an important archaeological site by the great Heinrich Schliemann and unearthed by the British archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans in 1900. The excavations have brought to light some of the finest Minoan artworks as the Bull’s Head Rhyton and the Toreador Fresco, that now are exhibited among other findings in the Archaeological Museum in Irakleion.
The size and the complexity of the buildings of Knossos Palace were unequalled in 1700 BC outside the glorious constructions of Egypt and Mesopotamia and probably inspired the legendary myths of the Cretan Labyrinth built by Daedalus, Minotaur and Theseus and the birth of mighty god Zeus.
The buildings of Knossos Palace are built mainly of large blocks of Cretan limestone and today survive mostly as a network of foundations and wall remnants covering an area of about 22 sq. km. The building confirms the myth of labyrinth as it had hundreds of rooms and storage chambers in a mazelike configuration, pillared hallways and staircases decorated with the emblem of the Minoans, the double axes. There were two or even three upper floors, now partly reconstructed, supported by series of red coloured columns and the walls were covered with splendid frescoes. The Knossos palace boasted also a clay-piped plumbing and a system of air wells to bring light and ventilation to interior rooms. The centrepiece of Knossos palace is the Throne Room, with frescoes decorated with two griffins facing the throne, one at each side.
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