Knossos Palace Minoan Civilization Antiquities
Knossos antiquities
Knossos Palace
An Ancient City
Do you like ancient cities? Well Heraklion is one of them! Discover Knossos Palace & the Minoan Civilization.
It is strongly suggested to visit both the archaeological museum in Heraklion city center, and Knossos Palace antiquities.
An Ancient Civilization
One of the most ancient civilizations, the Minoan civilization, flourished through 3200 – 1200 B.C. in Crete island. The King of Knossos, Minoas, was was the wiser and most righteous king, and for that reason, this specific time era was named "Minoan".
The Palace was built during the stone season, as well as other important palaces on the island, like Festos, Malia and Gortys. But the prince of Knossos was the most powerful and respected. He was in charge of the naval fleet and actually took care of the island so that it would be in peace and prosperity.
Around 2000 B.C. the first written symbols appear. They were consisted of animal shapes or heads, plus tools and human representations (hieroglyphic writing). The most representative sample of this writing is Phaistos's Disc, which dates back to 1700 BC and has not yet been read. During that period, a strong and deadly earthquake completely destroyed the city of Knossos.
The Minoans were excellent painters. They used to draw on walls and other antiquities.
They had the best and most advanced water-based drainage system. On the picture above, you can see King Minoas throne.
The Myth of Minotaur
King Minoas was also the father of Minotaur. According to the myth, Minotaur was half man and half bull. He had human body, but his head and tail were like a bull's. He lived under the palace, inside a very complicated complex of rooms, the famous Labirynth. Many tried to kill the beast, but only Theseus managed to do so, and to also find his way back outside of the Labirynth. He did that with the help od Ariadne and her famous mitos (tangle thread).
