Getting to Know Knossos (Yνωριμία με την Κνωσό)

Having had a rather average education, I thought I had at least a working

On the way to Knossos

knowledge of Greek mythology and a smattering of Greek history. No, I didn’t. But that’s one of the reasons I travel: to learn things. Getting on a bus for a half-day tour of an archaeological site I knew very little about was excitement in and of itself. Going with a bunch of librarians, all talking about what we were going to see – not necessarily in any common language – was a very real treat. Hat, sunglasses, camera, and water bottle at the ready…let’s go!

Neolithic (10,200 – 2000 BC) remains are prolific in Crete, appearing in caves, rock shelters, houses, and colonies. Knossos has a thick Neolithic layer indicating the site was actually a sequence of settlements before the Palace Period. The earliest settlement was on bedrock, probably about 7000 BC. The site of Knossos was actually discovered in 1878 by Minos Kalokairinos, but Arthur Evans is the archeologist who is credited with first unearthing the Palace of Knossos in 1900. He postulated that

A part of the palace complex

Neolithic people arrived in the area, probably by boat, and established the first of a succession of wattle and daub villages. John Davies Evans (not a relative of Arthur’s) made further excavations: in the Aceramic Neolithic, a hamlet of 25 – 50 persons lived in wattle and daub huts, kept animals, grew crops, and buried their children, when they died, under the floor. By the Early Neolithic, 6000–5000 BC, a village of 200 – 600 persons occupied most of the area. They lived in one- or two-room houses with mud-brick walls set on blocks of stone; the roofs were composed of mud over branches. The residents dug hearths in the center of the main room. This village had an unusual feature: one house under the West Court contained eight rooms covering 540 ft² (50 m²). The walls were set at right angles, the door was centered, and large stones were used for support under stress points. The settlement further evolved in the Middle Neolithic, 5000–4000 BC, housing 500–1000 people in more substantial and presumably private homes. Construction was more substantial with a fixed, raised hearth in the center of the main room, and pilasters around the perimeter. There was also a Great House that contained five rooms with meter-thick walls indicating a second story could have been present. The Great House may have been the predecessor of a palace. In the Late or Final Neolithic (4000–3000 BC), the population increased dramatically, although there is no indication of why this increase occurred – possibly a time of peace and prosperity.

The first Cretan palaces may have been built in the early part of the Middle Minoan period (2600 – 1100 BC) at Knossos, Mallia, Phaestos,

Top L to R: Pithoi, Reconstruction of bull painting
Bottom L to R: Snake goddess, Dolphins in bathing area

and Zakro. These buildings suggest more affluence and the concentration of both political and religious authority. However, sometime before 1700 BC the early palaces were destroyed by earthquakes; they were rebuilt on a grander scale between 1650 - 1450 BC, marking the height of Minoan prosperity. Knossos is the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete and has been called Europe's oldest city. The Palace of Knossos is located just south of modern-day Heraklion near the north coast of Crete and was the largest, covering three acres with its main building alone. In Greek mythology, it was King Minos who lived in this palace, and in reality, most likely he did. However, mythology tells that the King’s son, the Minotaur (half man, half bull), was kept in a labyrinth under the palace. Daedalus, who had constructed the labyrinth, also built a dancing floor for Queen Ariadne, the King’s daughter, who also figures in the Minotaur tale. Our guide, on the other hand, told us that this was a story they told to children and the real labyrinth was only a series of hallways laid out in the same formation as the double axe, the Labrys. The palace was divided along the long side of this axe with one half used as a place of worship and the other half used as a place of government. A huge staircase lead to state rooms on an upper floor with a ritual cult center on the ground floor. The main storage areas contained pithoi, five foot high pottery jugs used to store oil, wool, wine and grain; these jugs filled 16 rooms in the palace. There were also bathrooms, toilets and a drainage system for fresh and used water. A 400-spectator theater was found at Knossos with the orchestral area rectangular suggesting that it was used for religious dances. The large rooms and hallways were decorated with frescoes with warfare being conspicuous by its absence. Women were shown with elaborately dressed hair and wearing long dresses with flounced skirts and puffed sleeves. Their dress bodices fit tightly to their waists and their breasts were exposed. These may be drawings of the Minoan Snake Goddess. We got to see these figurines at the Archeological Museum of Herakleion, and they are much like the drawings except that the women have a snake in each hand. From the Linear A text, the name of the goddess may be A-sa-sa-ra, which is usually accompanied by the inscription Hittite išhaššara, meaning ‘mistress’. The snake, since it sheds its skin, is associated with the renewal of life, but may also be the protector of the house, the signifier of wisdom, and/or the symbol of fertility. In any case, I liked the imagery of the fertile, wise woman protecting the household.

The prosperity of Knossos was primarily based upon the development of native Cretan resources such as oil, wine, and wool as well as the development of a sea empire by Minos, the legendary king of Knossos. Conquering the sea pirates increased the flow of trade and helped to colonize many Aegean islands. Minoan pottery is widespread, with

Top L to R: Honeybee pin, Greek statues
Bottom L to R: Bull head, Labrys

examples found in Egypt, Syria, Anatolia, Rhodes, the Cyclades, Sicily, and mainland Greece. During the early Iron Age, Knossos was not only rich in imports, but was nearly three times larger than indicated by earlier excavations. Although archaeologists had previously believed that the Knossos survived until about 1370 BC when it may have been occupied by war-like Greeks, suggested by emphasis on weapons and warfare in their art and burial customs, recent study indicates that city had prospered instead, with its final abandonment coming later. Knossus was repopulated around 1000 BC and remained one of the most important centers of Crete. Of course, since it had two ports and plenty of wealth, it became a target for invasions and wars which occurred at rather regular intervals for hundreds of years.

Next week I’ll write about our trip around the island, more history, and provide reviews of food, accommodations, and activities.

Pottery examples from Knossos

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