The Palace of Knossos

Archaeology gives the modern world a window into the past. One of Greece’s major dig sites is the palace of Knossos. The palace of Knossos stood on the island of Crete near the modern town of Heraklion at the co-ordinates 35° 17’ 52.66”N, 25° 9’ 47.36”E. It was the home of King Minos and his queen. The Palace is the setting for a myth where the queen gave birth to a being that was half man, half bull, the Minotaurs, which was kept in the labyrinth of the palace; He was eventually slayed by the Athenian Thesus.

The Palace of Knossos was destroyed in the later classical era and remained rubble until an archaeologist named Arthur Evans uncovered it in 1900. Since discovering the site Evans has substantially restored the palace back to its former glory. In an ancient tablet found in the palace it describes an earthquake destroying the palace. Where it had to be rebuilt there were heated arguments between the architects because one side wanted it to be more stable and last longer while the other side wanted it to be more decorative and nicer to live in. Both sides agreed that the Minotaur was the most likely cause of the earthquake so it is thought that they employed Thesus to kill the beast. Although he remodelled the palace, it is said to be much like the original and a good insight.

The Palace of Knossos was one of the first palaces to be uncovered. Being a palace meant that everything was good quality like the pottery and architecture. The palace was built between 1700 and 1400BC with rebuilding after the destruction and it is on top of Kephala Hill. Because of it being on a hill a degree of liquid management was needed. In this case there were three; one for supply, one for drainage and run-off, and one for waste water. Aquedu...

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..., the harvest and the underworld plus many others. Some argued that these are all the same goddess. Although Crete is not part of the physical it is still in many ways a part of the spiritual mainland.

To the Minoan society the palace of Knossos was very important as it was the largest palace and the focus point of the island as it housed the royal family and decision making power. It was also the biggest town on Crete close to a port. It had mythical and religious sentiment because of its role in myths and the worship of deities. The excavation of the site has also given good insight into the day to day and the values and beliefs of the Ancient Minoans. If it had not been for Arthur Evans this insight would not have been possible and the modern world would not know about the myth of the Minotaur, the frescos, the trading and the first evidence a flushing toilet.