Minoan
The Minoan civilization flourished in the island of Crete during the Bronze Age between 3500-1100 BCE. The name “Minoan” was assigned during the 19th century but we do not know what the inhabitants of Crete called themselves in ancient times.
The Minoans were a significant naval power in the Aegean Sea, and for many centuries lived in contact with all the major civilizations of the time. Their commercial contact with ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia undeniably influenced their own culture, and the Minoan civilization in turn appeared as the forerunner of the Greek civilization. The Minoans are credited as the first European civilization.
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Sitia Archaeological Museum
Read more: Sitia Archaeological MuseumThe Archaeological Museum of Sitia (Σητεία, Siteia) houses a large number of Paleolithic, Minoan, Classical, Hellenistic, and Roman artifacts from excavations in Lasithi, Eastern Crete. Generally, the most important ancient finds from Crete are exhibited at the Heraklion…
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Theseus and the Minotaur
Read more: Theseus and the MinotaurThe Minotaur The Minotaur was a terrible monster with the body of a man, and the head of a bull, born from the union of Pasiphae and the bull offered as a gift to Minos by Poseidon. His lair…
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Zakros
Read more: ZakrosThe Minoan palace of Zakros (Ζάρκος, also known as Zakro, or Kato Zakros) is located on the east coast of Crete, in the slopes of a rugged hill near a sheltered harbor suitable to accommodating a large fleet…