Knossos Palace
The archaeological site of Knossos is situated about 5klm southeast of the city of Heraklion. Knossos early history begins c. 7000 B.C. when the first Neolithic settlement dates and it continued to be an important part of the Venetian and Byzantine town of Heraklion. Since the Roman period, Knossos has been associated with the myth of the Labyrinth, an elaborate mazelike structure constructed for King Minos of Crete and designed by the legendary artificer Daedalus to hold the Minotaur, a creature that was half man and half bull and was eventually killed by the Athenian hero Theseus.
The site is however mostly famous as one of the largest Bronze Age archaeological sites of Crete and amongst the most important archaeological sites of the world. It is considered as the ceremonial and political center of the Minoan civilization which is widely acknowledged as the place where European civilization first emerged.
The ruins of Knossos were first discovered by Minos Kalokairinos a Cretan merchant and antiquarian in 1878 but it was not until March 16, 1900 that archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans, an English gentleman of independent means, was able to purchase the entire site and conduct massive excavations. Knossos was an intricate collection of over 1000 interlocking rooms, some of which served as artisans' workrooms and food processing centers (e.g. wine presses) and it served as a central storage point. During the 'Old Palace' and the succeeding 'Neo-palatial' periods, the settlement possessed a monumental administrative and religious center and the surrounding population is estimated to have been of 5,000-8,000 people.
In around 1600 B.C., Crete and consequently Knossos was devastated by a massive earthquake and it is associated with the eruption of the volcano in Thira which caused a tsunami. The final destruction of Knossos is conventionally dated to 1375 B.C and it has been interpreted as the result of a Minoan rebellion against Mycenaean Knossian overlordship
Phaistos Palace
Phaistos is second in importance only to Knossos, from the archaeological point of view. It is built on a hill (at an altitude of 100 m., approximately, above sea level), and commands the fertile plain of Kato Messara, which is surrounded by impressive mountains (Psiloritis, Asteroussia, the Lasithi mountains far away in the background). To the south lies the Libyan sea. Phaistos, owing to its importance, is mentioned in the texts of ancients writers (Diodorus, Strabo, Pausanias), but also by Homer. According to mythology, the dynasty which ruled Phaistos was that of Rhadamanthys, son of Zeus and brother of Minos. It was a very strong, rich, populous and independent city. The state of Phaistos also disposed of two strong ports, Matala and Kommos to the southwest. The area had been inhabited since Neolithic times (3000 BC approximately). The first palace was built in approximately 1900 BC and together with the other structures around, covered an area of 18.000 sq.m. (slightly less than that of the palace of Knossos). The great earthquake which occurred around 1700 BC was the cause of its destruction, as it was of that of Knossos. In its place a new, more impressive palace was built, to which belong the greatest part of the ruins which have been restored, while several parts of the first palace have also been excavated, mainly those lying to the southwest.
