25.05.2016 Views

Crete-Discover the Unknown Crete

Ένας πλούσια εικονογραφημένος, πρακτικός οδηγός που αναδεικνύει περισσότερο ή λιγότερο άγνωστα σημεία και αξιοθέατα της ανατολικής Κρήτης. Με το βιβλίο αυτό ανά χείρας, ο επισκέπτης έχει την ευκαιρία να επισκεφθεί αρχαιολογικούς χώρους, μοναστήρια, χωριά και φαράγγια και να πάρει μια πιο αυθεντική γεύση της σχετικά ανεξερεύνητης αυτής πλευράς της Κρήτης. Κείμενα: Judith Lange Φωτογραφία: Judith Lange, Μαρία Στέφωση Σχεδιασμός και καλλιτεχνική επιμέλεια: Μαρία Στέφωση Μετάφραση: Julia MacGibbon Επιμέλεια δοκιμίων: John o'Shea Εκτύπωση και βιβλιοδεσία: Γραφικές Τέχνες Δετοράκης ΑΕΒΕ ISBN: 978-960-98384-3-6

Ένας πλούσια εικονογραφημένος, πρακτικός οδηγός που αναδεικνύει περισσότερο ή λιγότερο άγνωστα σημεία και αξιοθέατα της ανατολικής Κρήτης. Με το βιβλίο αυτό ανά χείρας, ο επισκέπτης έχει την ευκαιρία να επισκεφθεί αρχαιολογικούς χώρους, μοναστήρια, χωριά και φαράγγια και να πάρει μια πιο αυθεντική γεύση της σχετικά ανεξερεύνητης αυτής πλευράς της Κρήτης.


Κείμενα: Judith Lange

Φωτογραφία: Judith Lange, Μαρία Στέφωση

Σχεδιασμός και καλλιτεχνική επιμέλεια: Μαρία Στέφωση

Μετάφραση: Julia MacGibbon

Επιμέλεια δοκιμίων: John o'Shea

Εκτύπωση και βιβλιοδεσία: Γραφικές Τέχνες Δετοράκης ΑΕΒΕ

ISBN: 978-960-98384-3-6

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.

The G. & A. Mamidakis Foundation, has for two decades<br />

now made ongoing efforts to present to <strong>the</strong> public major<br />

cultural events, always directly related to Tourism.<br />

Taking as our point of departure our native island of <strong>Crete</strong>,<br />

a crossroads of cultures from East and West, we have<br />

sought to propose seminal exhibitions of Greek and<br />

international Contemporary Art for art lovers.<br />

Perhaps unique for <strong>the</strong> 48 sculptures on display in its<br />

gardens, <strong>the</strong> MINOS BEACH ART HOTEL boasts of a<br />

substantial collection of works by leading Greek and<br />

international artists.<br />

Continuing our cultural activities today, we have<br />

established, illustrated, documented and explored<br />

untrodden paths of Eastern <strong>Crete</strong> in a tasty 144-page<br />

catalogue titled:<br />

Awake your Senses<br />

<strong>Discover</strong> <strong>the</strong> unknown <strong>Crete</strong><br />

Eastern <strong>Crete</strong> - book one<br />

We trust that <strong>the</strong> publication of <strong>the</strong>se practical catalogues,<br />

which also provide information about o<strong>the</strong>r unknown<br />

destinations-monasteries, archaeological sites-will enable<br />

modern-day travellers to experience ano<strong>the</strong>r side of <strong>Crete</strong>,<br />

<strong>the</strong> au<strong>the</strong>ntic, unexplored inland regions of <strong>the</strong> island, just<br />

like <strong>the</strong> international travellers who discovered and<br />

recorded <strong>the</strong> charms of our land in <strong>the</strong> 17th and 18th<br />

centuries.<br />

Gina Mamidakis<br />

President<br />

G. & A. Mamidakis Foundation


JUDITH LANGE MARIA STEFOSSI<br />

awake your senses<br />

DISCOVER THE UNKNOWN CRETE<br />

Eastern <strong>Crete</strong> - Book One<br />

Publication of this book has been made possible thanks to Gina<br />

Mamidakis, President of <strong>the</strong> G.& A. Foundation and bluegr Mamidakis<br />

Hotels group, and long-time patron of culture and <strong>the</strong> arts. The book is<br />

dedicated to those ever-curious travellers who wish to learn more of<br />

<strong>the</strong> beautiful region of eastern <strong>Crete</strong>.<br />

© copyright text and photographs by Judith Lange - Maria Stefossi<br />

© copyright edition by <strong>the</strong> G.& A. Foundation and bluegr Mamidakis hotels group.<br />

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written<br />

permission from <strong>the</strong> authors.


4


<strong>Crete</strong> is <strong>the</strong> island of which Homer sang, "Along <strong>the</strong> winedark<br />

sea, by water ringed, <strong>the</strong>re lies a land both fair and<br />

fertile", a mysterious and magical land, source of <strong>the</strong> myths<br />

of <strong>the</strong> Greek world. Zeus, king of <strong>the</strong> gods of <strong>the</strong> ancient<br />

Greeks, was born in a grotto here, and it was here too that<br />

he died and came back to life.<br />

This book tells of <strong>the</strong> beauty of eastern <strong>Crete</strong>, of <strong>the</strong><br />

Prefecture of Lasithi, with its mountain ranges, vast<br />

plateaus, fertile valleys, arid plains, magnificent beaches<br />

and its ancient memories. To discover <strong>the</strong> au<strong>the</strong>ntic <strong>Crete</strong><br />

one must travel slowly, drawn by curiosity not only to <strong>the</strong><br />

great archaeological sites and monuments, but also to <strong>the</strong><br />

landscape and <strong>the</strong> sky, <strong>the</strong> houses and <strong>the</strong> rocks, because<br />

on <strong>Crete</strong> everything is myth, legend and history: <strong>the</strong><br />

mountains, <strong>the</strong> grottoes, <strong>the</strong> gorges, <strong>the</strong> trees, <strong>the</strong> stones<br />

and even <strong>the</strong> scent of <strong>the</strong> shrubs in bloom.<br />

5


MINOS BEACH art hotel<br />

Escape in style<br />

Experience <strong>the</strong> wonder of Cretan luxury with aromatic gardens<br />

and distinctive architecture.<br />

Located on <strong>the</strong> waterfront in <strong>the</strong> magical area of Ayios Nikolaos,<br />

in <strong>the</strong> eastern part of <strong>Crete</strong>, <strong>the</strong> town centre is a mere ten minute<br />

walk away.<br />

Set within a serene landscape and unique environs thus ensuring<br />

an unforgettable experience in one of <strong>the</strong> 129 beautifully and<br />

spaciously appointed bungalows. All are equipped with balconies<br />

or private terrace with unique views of <strong>the</strong> azure sea and<br />

extensive gardens, air-condition, direct dial telephone, mini bar,<br />

TV, in room safe, hairdryer and bathroom. Our Executive and<br />

Presidential suites are spacious and offer a private swimming<br />

pool.<br />

6


MINOS BEACH art hotel<br />

You can awaken your senses at Minos Beach Art hotel, with its<br />

unique artistic environment of 45 works of Greek and foreign<br />

artists. A local and international culinary choice of traditional<br />

Cretan cuisine and unique gourmet tastes for exquisite dining in<br />

our restaurants or enjoy an array of thirst-quenching cocktails in<br />

our two bars.<br />

An abundance of<br />

recreational activities<br />

and leisure facilities will<br />

ensure fun and<br />

entertainment<br />

throughout your stay<br />

in an environment of<br />

tranquillity and luxury.<br />

7


CANDIA PARK VILLAGE<br />

Experience a world of fun<br />

and recreation<br />

Candia Park Village is an ideal place for<br />

families and couples<br />

of all ages. Modelled on a traditional Cretan<br />

village, all 222 apartments are spaciously equipped and offer a<br />

magnificent waterfront location overlooking <strong>the</strong> turquoise<br />

waters of Mirabello Bay.<br />

Set in <strong>the</strong> environs of a traditional Cretan Village with extensive<br />

gardens, <strong>the</strong> clock square, <strong>the</strong> Greek coffee house, all add to <strong>the</strong><br />

charm of this picturesque village of traditional hospitality.<br />

All apartments are spacious of 40 m2 and 60 m2 offering private<br />

balconies or terrace. Each can accommodate from 2 to 6 persons<br />

and are fully equipped with airconditioning, bathroom, direct<br />

dial telephone and a kitchenette to prepare afternoon coffee or<br />

tea or perhaps a light meal.<br />

A variety of restaurants with a wide choice of a la carte items,<br />

sunny bars for thirst-quenching drinks and light snacks provide a<br />

unique ambience with panoramic views of Mirabello bay. A mini<br />

market is available.<br />

8


CANDIA PARK VILLAGE<br />

The Candia Park Village is a complete holiday village making it<br />

<strong>the</strong> ideal place for relaxation and amusement. Facilities include<br />

sea water and fresh water swimming pools, Jacuzzi, tennis<br />

courts, private beach, water sports and recreational areas for all<br />

tastes and age groups. The highlight is our mini club for our<br />

young friends from 4 to 12 years of age that offers stimulating<br />

activities, competitions and games.<br />

9


CHAPTER 1<br />

SACRED AND PROFANE<br />

IN THE SHADOW<br />

OF MOUNT DIKTI


AYIOS NIKOLAOS<br />

KRITSA<br />

PANAYIA Y KERA<br />

LATO<br />

KATHARO<br />

LASSITHI<br />

KARPHI


C H A P T E R 1<br />

Ayios Nikolaos<br />

An engraving<br />

representing <strong>the</strong><br />

Venetian castle of<br />

Ayios Nikolaos:<br />

today nothing<br />

remains of this<br />

fortress<br />

The excavations of<br />

<strong>the</strong> ancient town in<br />

<strong>the</strong> city<br />

It is hard to imagine that a century and<br />

a half ago Ayios Nikolaos - one of <strong>Crete</strong>'s<br />

richest and liveliest cities - was, as an old<br />

document attests, only a tiny village of just<br />

95 souls. Ayios Nikolaos, capital of <strong>the</strong><br />

Prefecture of Lasithi, has <strong>the</strong> appearance of<br />

a relatively new city, but its history is very<br />

ancient, even if <strong>the</strong> evidence of its turbulent<br />

past is now buried under modern buildings.<br />

Thanks to its splendid position<br />

overlooking <strong>the</strong> gulf of Mirambelo (or as <strong>the</strong><br />

Venetian has it, Mirabello or "beautiful view")<br />

<strong>the</strong> site was chosen by <strong>the</strong> ancient Dorians<br />

(ninth to seventh centuries B.C.) for <strong>the</strong> port<br />

of Lato, an important fortified settlement<br />

between <strong>the</strong> mountains near Kritsa. The city<br />

was <strong>the</strong>n called Lato pros Kamara and was<br />

famous for its safe harbour. One of <strong>the</strong><br />

wonders of <strong>the</strong> place was considered to be<br />

<strong>the</strong> small lake of Voulismeni - today linked<br />

to <strong>the</strong> sea by a narrow canal and surrounded<br />

by restaurants and cafes - a lake of dark and<br />

unfathomable waters, also known as<br />

12


Xepatomeni (bottomless), sacred to A<strong>the</strong>na<br />

and Artemis who, as <strong>the</strong> legend goes,<br />

ba<strong>the</strong>d <strong>the</strong>ir divine bodies here.<br />

The city declined after <strong>the</strong> Roman<br />

conquest but acquired new importance<br />

during <strong>the</strong> Byzantine period, when it<br />

became <strong>the</strong> seat of <strong>the</strong> bishopric of Kamara:<br />

of that era <strong>the</strong>re remains <strong>the</strong> little church of<br />

Ayios Nikolaos of <strong>the</strong> tenth or eleventh<br />

century, with rare frescoes from <strong>the</strong><br />

iconoclast period when <strong>the</strong> ecclesiastical<br />

authorities forbad <strong>the</strong> physical<br />

representation of sacred images.<br />

At <strong>the</strong> beginning of <strong>the</strong> thirteenth<br />

century <strong>the</strong> Genoese and Venetians fought<br />

for possession of <strong>the</strong> coast and initially <strong>the</strong><br />

Genoese, led by <strong>the</strong> gentleman-pirate Enrico<br />

Pescatore, prevailed. Pescatore erected <strong>the</strong><br />

castle of Mirambelo, promptly destroyed by<br />

<strong>the</strong> Venetians to whom <strong>the</strong> island of <strong>Crete</strong><br />

was assigned by <strong>the</strong> treaty of Adrianoupoli<br />

in 1204.<br />

Hurriedly reconstructed, <strong>the</strong> castle was<br />

briefly occupied by <strong>the</strong> Turks in 1645, <strong>the</strong>n<br />

The small church of<br />

Ayios Nikolaos<br />

dating from <strong>the</strong><br />

tenth or eleventh<br />

century<br />

Lake Voulismeni<br />

13


C H A P T E R 1<br />

A medieval<br />

archer from <strong>the</strong><br />

region of Sfakia:<br />

during <strong>the</strong><br />

nineteenth<br />

century many<br />

sfakiotes arrived<br />

in Ayios Nikolaos<br />

taken back by <strong>the</strong> Venetians who, however,<br />

decided to destroy it once more <strong>the</strong>mselves<br />

for <strong>the</strong> sake of not leaving it in Turkish<br />

hands: not one stone remains of <strong>the</strong><br />

celebrated fort atop <strong>the</strong> highest<br />

hill of Ayios Nikolaos.<br />

The city was entirely<br />

abandoned when, during <strong>the</strong><br />

second half of <strong>the</strong> nineteenth<br />

century, groups of exiled<br />

sfakiotes arrived from <strong>the</strong><br />

mountains of western <strong>Crete</strong>,<br />

and <strong>the</strong> place slowly began to<br />

come to life again. From that<br />

moment onwards <strong>the</strong> reborn<br />

city would be called Ayios<br />

Nikolaos, taking its name from<br />

<strong>the</strong> little ninth-century<br />

Byzantine church which was <strong>the</strong><br />

only surviving testimony to<br />

have resisted all <strong>the</strong> turbulence<br />

of this history. Every 6th<br />

December <strong>the</strong>re is a great feast<br />

dedicated to St. Nicholas,<br />

patron saint of fishermen.<br />

One must is a visit to <strong>the</strong> city's<br />

Archaeological Museum which possesses<br />

beautiful finds from <strong>the</strong> past forty years of<br />

excavations in eastern <strong>Crete</strong>: ceramics, gold,<br />

idols (among which <strong>the</strong>re are a large number<br />

of votive offerings from <strong>the</strong> Minoan peak<br />

sanctuaries), sarcophagi and glass.<br />

14


ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM<br />

OF AYIOS NIKOLAOS<br />

Skull with a wreath of gold leaves<br />

from <strong>the</strong> Roman cemetery at<br />

Potamos, first century A.D. and<br />

Late Minoan clay sarcophagi or<br />

larnakes<br />

Late Minoan<br />

female<br />

worshipper<br />

from <strong>the</strong><br />

cemetery at<br />

Myrsini<br />

Pottery dating<br />

from <strong>the</strong> Late<br />

Minoan period<br />

Clay vessel<br />

from <strong>the</strong><br />

fourteenth<br />

century B.C.<br />

found in <strong>the</strong><br />

Palace of Malia<br />

and<br />

Daedalic<br />

figurines from<br />

<strong>the</strong> eighth and<br />

seventh<br />

centuries B.C.


C H A P T E R 1<br />

Kritsa and Panayia y Kera<br />

Kritsa stretches out like a white lizard<br />

above a sea of olive trees at <strong>the</strong> mouth of a<br />

dark gorge beneath <strong>the</strong> mountain heights of<br />

<strong>the</strong> Dikti that surround two high plains, <strong>the</strong><br />

immense Lasithi plateau and <strong>the</strong> more<br />

modest Katharo plateau.<br />

The white village<br />

of Kritsa above a<br />

green valley of<br />

olive trees<br />

Kritsa, with its narrow alleyways, <strong>the</strong> low<br />

houses jumbled one over ano<strong>the</strong>r, its very<br />

colourful traditional costumes, its numerous<br />

kafeneion and taverns, seems <strong>the</strong> archetypal<br />

"Cretan village", even if <strong>the</strong> definition<br />

"village" seems reductive for this fairly large,<br />

extended country town. It is so very "Cretan"<br />

that in 1957 <strong>the</strong> American film director Jules<br />

Dassin chose Kritsa and its inhabitants for<br />

<strong>the</strong> setting of <strong>the</strong> film He, who must die<br />

based on Nikos Kazantzakis' famous novel<br />

The Greek Passion which told a modern<br />

version of <strong>the</strong> passion of Christ. Every year<br />

on Good Friday <strong>the</strong>re is a sumptuous<br />

procession through Kritsa during which <strong>the</strong><br />

epitaphios, a catafalque covered with<br />

flowers, is carried through <strong>the</strong> town, amidst<br />

prayers, laments and song.<br />

However, before arriving at Kritsa one<br />

should pay a visit to one of <strong>the</strong> most<br />

beautiful and important Byzantine churches<br />

on <strong>Crete</strong>: <strong>the</strong> Panayia y Kera (<strong>the</strong> Madon-<br />

16


Among <strong>the</strong> narrow<br />

alleyways of Kritsa<br />

na of <strong>the</strong> Creation) dating from <strong>the</strong><br />

thirteenth or fourteenth century, with three<br />

naves and an unusual three-pointed facade,<br />

surrounded by tall cypresses.<br />

The arrangement of <strong>the</strong><br />

paintings that cover each of<br />

<strong>the</strong> internal walls observes <strong>the</strong><br />

rigid hierarchy required in that<br />

period: first God and <strong>the</strong><br />

angels, <strong>the</strong>n <strong>the</strong> life of Jesus<br />

and Mary, followed by<br />

representations of Paradise and <strong>the</strong> Last<br />

Judgement, biblical stories, saints and,<br />

finally, images of men known for <strong>the</strong>ir faith.<br />

The saturated colours (<strong>the</strong> dark red of ripe<br />

pomegranates, <strong>the</strong> green of <strong>the</strong> leaves of<br />

ancient olive trees, <strong>the</strong> ochre and dark<br />

brown of <strong>the</strong> earth) and <strong>the</strong> close-packed<br />

sequence of images, each different, each<br />

powerful and vigorous, immersed in <strong>the</strong><br />

semi-darkness, ra<strong>the</strong>r dizzy <strong>the</strong> viewer, and<br />

this was, perhaps, precisely what <strong>the</strong> artist<br />

intended.<br />

The Byzantine<br />

church of Panayia y<br />

Kera with its<br />

beautiful frescoes<br />

17


C H A P T E R 1<br />

Lato<br />

Lato, once an<br />

important Dorian<br />

city-state, amidst<br />

a beautiful<br />

mountainous<br />

landscape<br />

These small<br />

daedalic figurines<br />

are typical of <strong>the</strong><br />

Doric style of<br />

sculpture that<br />

flourished during<br />

<strong>the</strong> eighth and<br />

seventh centuries<br />

B.C.<br />

As everywhere in Greece, on <strong>Crete</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />

sacred and <strong>the</strong> profane live side-by-side, and<br />

if on one hand churches and monasteries<br />

record <strong>the</strong> profound religiousness of <strong>the</strong><br />

population, numerous ancient ruins evoke<br />

<strong>the</strong> foreign powers, wars and conflicts that<br />

have tormented <strong>the</strong> island over <strong>the</strong><br />

centuries. Some kilometres before arriving at<br />

Kritsa a turning off <strong>the</strong> main road leads to<br />

Lato, one of <strong>the</strong> island's best-preserved<br />

ancient cities, enclosed between two hills<br />

below Mount Thylakas. The city-state, which<br />

took its name from <strong>the</strong> goddess Leto,<br />

mo<strong>the</strong>r of Apollo and Artemis, was founded<br />

in <strong>the</strong> eighth century B.C. by Dorians hailing<br />

from <strong>the</strong> Greek mainland, who invaded<br />

<strong>Crete</strong> in around 1000 B.C., chasing <strong>the</strong> native<br />

inhabitants from <strong>the</strong>ir lands: <strong>the</strong>y spoke a<br />

dialect similar to Greek and proclaimed<br />

<strong>the</strong>mselves descendents of <strong>the</strong> offspring of<br />

Hercules. Streng<strong>the</strong>ned by <strong>the</strong>ir absolute<br />

authority over <strong>the</strong> island after <strong>the</strong> fall of <strong>the</strong><br />

Minoan and Mycenaean kingdoms, <strong>the</strong>y<br />

18


made new laws, minted coins with <strong>the</strong><br />

effigies of Artemis and Hermes and imposed<br />

a new social order on <strong>the</strong> population of <strong>the</strong><br />

area.<br />

Lato was born as a fortified city<br />

stretching across six terraces with a double<br />

acropolis, a vast agora and a prytaneion,<br />

which functioned as administrative centre<br />

and banqueting hall for <strong>the</strong> guests of<br />

honour who dined here sitting on <strong>the</strong> stone<br />

benches of <strong>the</strong> hestiatorion. A monumental<br />

stairway marks <strong>the</strong> entrance to <strong>the</strong><br />

prytaneion, while ano<strong>the</strong>r, not far from a<br />

large temple (perhaps dedicated to Apollo)<br />

has been identified as <strong>the</strong> "<strong>the</strong>atre space".<br />

The city flourished up until <strong>the</strong> Hellenistic<br />

period and <strong>the</strong> ancient writers affirm that<br />

this was <strong>the</strong> birthplace of Niarchos, valorous<br />

general and friend of Alexander <strong>the</strong> Great.<br />

A careful observation of <strong>the</strong> structure and<br />

<strong>the</strong> materials that form <strong>the</strong> buildings, <strong>the</strong><br />

roads and <strong>the</strong> doors is worthwhile: <strong>the</strong><br />

ancient system of construction has been<br />

handed down through <strong>the</strong> centuries, and<br />

some of <strong>the</strong> same architectural details can<br />

still be seen in <strong>the</strong> old stone-built country<br />

houses dotted among <strong>the</strong> mountains<br />

around Kritsa.<br />

With its strong<br />

walls and<br />

monumental<br />

buildings, Lato<br />

is <strong>the</strong> bestpreserved<br />

of <strong>the</strong><br />

Cretan cities of<br />

<strong>the</strong> Doric/ Classical<br />

period<br />

19


C H A P T E R 1<br />

The Katharo Plateau<br />

Less well-known, smaller and more hidden<br />

than Lasithi, <strong>the</strong> plateau of Katharo is<br />

reached via a road (all curves) that begins at<br />

<strong>the</strong> crest of <strong>the</strong> town of Kritsa. Climbing up<br />

amidst silver-grey rocks that glitter in <strong>the</strong><br />

sunlight in contrast with <strong>the</strong> red soil, and<br />

among low tough-leaved shrubs that form<br />

anthropomorphic and zoomorphic figures<br />

like little sculptures, one has <strong>the</strong> sensation of<br />

travelling through an archaic land, fixed and<br />

solid, as though it were petrified. The few<br />

trees have dark hat-shaped crowns that give<br />

shade to <strong>the</strong> roots and offer relief to sheep<br />

and goats in search of some cool.<br />

A dark grotto on<br />

<strong>the</strong> way to <strong>the</strong><br />

Katharo plateau<br />

Halfway along <strong>the</strong> route towards <strong>the</strong><br />

plateau (where <strong>the</strong>re is a magnificent view<br />

across <strong>the</strong> gulf of Mirambelo) a small road<br />

sign indicates <strong>the</strong> existence of a grotto<br />

which is to be found about three-hundred<br />

metres fur<strong>the</strong>r along <strong>the</strong> slope, not difficult<br />

to reach. The triangular mouth of <strong>the</strong> grotto<br />

allows a glimpse of a steep descent through<br />

two galleries into <strong>the</strong> dark bowels of <strong>the</strong><br />

earth amid grey and pink-ochre striped<br />

rocks.<br />

Continuing along <strong>the</strong> road and looking<br />

attentively towards <strong>the</strong> hills, one notes <strong>the</strong><br />

mitates - now in ruins and camouflaged in<br />

<strong>the</strong> landscape, but with a very interesting<br />

architectural structure: <strong>the</strong>se are <strong>the</strong><br />

20


small stone houses of <strong>the</strong> shepherds and<br />

peasants who took refuge here during <strong>the</strong><br />

months of mountain pasture. Almost always<br />

rectangular in form - but also, at times,<br />

circular like <strong>the</strong> tholos (beehive) tombs - <strong>the</strong><br />

building of <strong>the</strong> mitates involved choosing<br />

with care <strong>the</strong> individual stones, evaluating<br />

<strong>the</strong> shape and dimensions in order to lay<br />

<strong>the</strong>m expertly one on top of ano<strong>the</strong>r until a<br />

perfect wall was formed through which<br />

<strong>the</strong>re filtered nei<strong>the</strong>r sun, nor wind nor rain.<br />

At <strong>the</strong> centre of <strong>the</strong> single room a robust<br />

tree trunk with a forked top functions as a<br />

column, holding up <strong>the</strong> roof of branches and<br />

canes, whilst <strong>the</strong> entrance is marked by two<br />

vertical pilasters surmounted by a stone slab,<br />

a modest version of <strong>the</strong> monumental portals<br />

of <strong>the</strong> ancient cities or of megalithic houses.<br />

Now abandoned and used only<br />

sporadically, <strong>the</strong> mitates contain small signs<br />

of an austere life: a blackened hearth, <strong>the</strong><br />

occasional cooking pot with a hole in it,<br />

frayed ropes for tying up <strong>the</strong> animals, or<br />

troughs cut into <strong>the</strong> stone. Observing <strong>the</strong>se<br />

lifeless houses it is natural to wonder how<br />

much longer <strong>the</strong>y will resist sun, wind and<br />

rain before crumbling definitively.<br />

The remains of<br />

old stone houses<br />

or mitates are<br />

part of <strong>the</strong><br />

landscape as<br />

much as <strong>the</strong><br />

rocky hills and<br />

wi<strong>the</strong>red trees<br />

21


C H A P T E R 1<br />

Every season<br />

has its own<br />

colours at <strong>the</strong><br />

Kataharo<br />

plateau: green<br />

fields in<br />

springtime,<br />

yellow earth in<br />

summer<br />

Curve after curve, between oaks and<br />

carobs with <strong>the</strong>ir tormented outlines that<br />

seem born from <strong>the</strong> rock, <strong>the</strong> mountain<br />

suddenly opens out offering a spectacular<br />

view over <strong>the</strong> entire Katharo plateau,<br />

surrounded by <strong>the</strong> bare mountains of <strong>the</strong><br />

Dikti. Fields cultivated with grain and<br />

vegetables, fruit trees (in particular pears,<br />

apples, figs and pomegranates) and great<br />

stretches of meadows for pasture, few<br />

houses, few men and <strong>the</strong> odd little white<br />

church form a unified and compact pattern.<br />

The plateau, which in springtime is full of<br />

flowers and green grasses, in summer is<br />

coloured yellow with stubble and <strong>the</strong><br />

ploughed soil that becomes as fine and<br />

dusty as face-powder. Katharo is <strong>the</strong> summer<br />

reserve of <strong>the</strong> people of Kritsa and at given<br />

periods all <strong>the</strong> flocks of sheep in <strong>the</strong> zone<br />

converge here for shearing: imagine <strong>the</strong><br />

sound produced by <strong>the</strong> bleating of<br />

thousands of animals echoing through<br />

<strong>the</strong> mountains!<br />

22


From Katharo a stony trail (to follow<br />

only in a robust car or on foot) climbs back<br />

down towards <strong>the</strong> coast in <strong>the</strong> direction of<br />

Kroustas, initially crossing through desolate<br />

landscapes with strange cumuli of dark<br />

green stones that glitter in <strong>the</strong> sunlight like<br />

shards of glass. The road follows <strong>the</strong> course<br />

of an underground river, dry on <strong>the</strong> surface,<br />

which creates little oases of green amidst <strong>the</strong><br />

stones. Along <strong>the</strong> highest pass <strong>the</strong>re opens<br />

up extraordinary scenery: <strong>the</strong> simultaneous<br />

vista of <strong>the</strong> nor<strong>the</strong>rn coast of <strong>Crete</strong> looking<br />

towards Europe and of <strong>the</strong> sou<strong>the</strong>rn coast<br />

that looks towards Africa at <strong>the</strong> point at<br />

which <strong>the</strong> island is narrowest, on one side<br />

<strong>the</strong> gulf of Mirambelo and on <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong><br />

Libyan Sea. A panorama from which one<br />

understands <strong>the</strong> wonders of Cretan<br />

geography.<br />

From this point one can continue east<br />

along a road that is asphalted only in parts<br />

towards Kroustas and Kritsa or to Istron on<br />

<strong>the</strong> coast. Near Kritsa we encounter <strong>the</strong><br />

church of Ayios Ioannis Theologos with<br />

three apses and very beautiful iconostasis<br />

while near Kroustas one can visit <strong>the</strong> small<br />

white church of Ayios Ioannis, decorated<br />

with rare paintings dating from 1347, with<br />

images of severe saints and fa<strong>the</strong>rs of <strong>the</strong><br />

church.<br />

Ayios Ioannis<br />

and Ayios<br />

Ioannis<br />

Theologos: two<br />

churches with<br />

interesting<br />

frescoes and old<br />

icons<br />

23


C H A P T E R 1<br />

The Lasithi Plateau<br />

"Situated above <strong>the</strong> mountain summits,<br />

flat and very beautiful, and an almost<br />

miraculous work of nature," this is how<br />

a Venetian document of 1600 describes <strong>the</strong><br />

Lasithi plateau. The plain appears like an<br />

immense shell, not unlike a spent crater,<br />

amid <strong>the</strong> mountain crags of <strong>the</strong> Dikti, at<br />

a height of around 850 metres: patterned<br />

with <strong>the</strong> rigid and regular geometries of <strong>the</strong><br />

fields, its divisions recall <strong>the</strong> city plan of<br />

ancient Miletus. Here <strong>the</strong>re grow fruit trees<br />

of every kind, vegetables, potatoes, grain<br />

and walnuts, and in <strong>the</strong> spring millions of<br />

poppies blossom creating a red carpet that<br />

stretches out between <strong>the</strong> mountains.<br />

Isolated houses, small villages and <strong>the</strong><br />

monasteries of Vidianis and Kroustalenias<br />

crown <strong>the</strong> plateau which, although<br />

remaining essentially agricultural, has given<br />

over to an intense tourism.<br />

Monastery Vidianis<br />

and Monastery<br />

Kroustalenia:<br />

places of worship<br />

26


Not many years ago,<br />

when <strong>the</strong> place was<br />

still only accessible<br />

on mule-back,<br />

around 10,000<br />

windmills ornate<br />

with white canvas<br />

sails pumped up <strong>the</strong><br />

water that served for<br />

<strong>the</strong> crops, but now<br />

very few remain.<br />

27


C H A P T E R 1<br />

The grotto of<br />

Trapeza was a<br />

site of cult<br />

activity up to<br />

<strong>the</strong> Early<br />

Minoan period<br />

Once an inaccessible region, <strong>the</strong><br />

plateau has been inhabited since <strong>the</strong><br />

Neolithic period, around 7,000 years ago,<br />

as testified by <strong>the</strong> bone fragments and tools<br />

discovered in <strong>the</strong> grotto of Trapeza, which<br />

remained sacred for <strong>the</strong> Minoans, as a<br />

dwelling place of <strong>the</strong> gods of <strong>the</strong><br />

underworld. Because of its protected<br />

position amid <strong>the</strong> mountains, Lasithi<br />

became a place of refuge for <strong>the</strong> native<br />

populations from <strong>the</strong> period of <strong>the</strong> Dorian<br />

invasions to <strong>the</strong> Venetian and Turkish<br />

occupations, and even during <strong>the</strong> Second<br />

World War. For fear of <strong>the</strong> rebel groups, in<br />

1263 <strong>the</strong> Venetians deported all <strong>the</strong><br />

inhabitants of <strong>the</strong> plateau down towards <strong>the</strong><br />

valley, prohibiting any form of cultivation<br />

for 200 years. Without its fruits, this fertile<br />

land suffered terrible famine and in <strong>the</strong> mid<br />

1400 s it was decided to repopulate <strong>the</strong><br />

plain, which in <strong>the</strong> meantime had become a<br />

swampland requiring large-scale<br />

reclamation. During <strong>the</strong> Turkish dominion<br />

too, Lasithi was continuously besieged, but<br />

never completely taken.<br />

There are numerous grottos and<br />

caverns in <strong>the</strong> rocky walls around <strong>the</strong> plain,<br />

ideal hiding places from <strong>the</strong> most ancient<br />

of times. The most famous cave is Psychro<br />

or Diktaion Antron which contends with<br />

ano<strong>the</strong>r grotto (that on Mount Ida in<br />

28


The Diktaion<br />

Antron of<br />

Psychro is<br />

believed to have<br />

been <strong>the</strong><br />

birthplace of<br />

Zeus<br />

western <strong>Crete</strong>) <strong>the</strong> honour of being <strong>the</strong><br />

birthplace of <strong>the</strong> Greeks on supreme god,<br />

Zeus. In Hesiod's Theogony we read that<br />

Cronus, king of <strong>the</strong> Titans and husband of his<br />

own sister Rhea, devoured his children<br />

(among whom Demeter, Hades, Poseidon,<br />

Hestia and Hera) because a prophecy had<br />

foretold that one of <strong>the</strong>m would dethrone<br />

him. At <strong>the</strong> birth of Zeus, Rhea tricked<br />

Cronus, having him swallow a rock wrapped<br />

in swaddling bands in <strong>the</strong> place of <strong>the</strong> child,<br />

and immediately afterwards she escaped<br />

with <strong>the</strong> newborn into <strong>the</strong> grotto of Psychro.<br />

Fed on <strong>the</strong> honey of <strong>the</strong> bees and <strong>the</strong> milk of<br />

<strong>the</strong> goat Amal<strong>the</strong>a and defended by <strong>the</strong><br />

warlike Kouretes who beat <strong>the</strong>ir shields hard<br />

to cover <strong>the</strong> sound of <strong>the</strong> infant's cries, Zeus<br />

was saved. Once grown, he killed his cruel<br />

fa<strong>the</strong>r (not before having forced him to<br />

vomit up his siblings), taking on <strong>the</strong> role of<br />

chief divinity in <strong>the</strong> Greek pan<strong>the</strong>on.<br />

In 1900, to explore <strong>the</strong> immense cavern,<br />

as dark and humid as maternal placenta,<br />

filled with stalactites and stalagmites of <strong>the</strong><br />

most varied forms and colours, <strong>the</strong> English<br />

archaeologist David Hogarth even had to<br />

use dynamite to make a route for himself<br />

through <strong>the</strong> narrow underground<br />

passageways: <strong>the</strong>re he found idols, ceramics,<br />

cult objects, gold and ivory, seals and jewels,<br />

altars for sacrifices and a niche that was<br />

identified as <strong>the</strong> "crib of Zeus".<br />

For many centuries<br />

<strong>the</strong> grotto of<br />

Psychro was a place<br />

of worship, from<br />

<strong>the</strong> Middle Minoan<br />

period to Roman<br />

times, and rich<br />

votive offerings<br />

have been found by<br />

<strong>the</strong> archaeologists<br />

29


C H A P T E R 1<br />

The Diktaion Antron was also a sacred site<br />

for King Minos of Knossos, who every nine<br />

years descended into <strong>the</strong> cavern to receive<br />

laws directly from Zeus.<br />

All around <strong>the</strong> plateau, amid low<br />

vegetation and scented bushes of broom<br />

and thyme <strong>the</strong>re are to be found small<br />

villages, some inhabited, o<strong>the</strong>rs abandoned,<br />

lying beneath <strong>the</strong> slope of <strong>the</strong> mountains<br />

like birds' nests. An excursion on <strong>the</strong> Dikti,<br />

starting from <strong>the</strong> village of Katofigi, leaves<br />

one breathless: lunar landscapes of silver<br />

rocks, isolated trees with majestic crowns<br />

and rough, stony outcrops alternate with<br />

steppe-like terrain and low<br />

vegetation from which<br />

sheepfolds spring up. At times<br />

one's way is barred by fencing<br />

and gates tied shut with knotted<br />

ropes to keep in <strong>the</strong> livestock:<br />

<strong>the</strong>y can be opened on <strong>the</strong><br />

condition that one is scrupulous<br />

in closing <strong>the</strong>m again to prevent<br />

<strong>the</strong> animals from wandering.<br />

30


Karphi<br />

One particular attraction is an enormous<br />

rocky mass that rises above Lasithi to an<br />

altitude of 1,100 metres, visible from far off.<br />

The place came to be called Karphi (nail) for<br />

its strange cylindrical shape. Below <strong>the</strong><br />

ragged peaks of <strong>the</strong> mountain <strong>the</strong>re is<br />

hidden a Late Minoan settlement completely<br />

camouflaged amid <strong>the</strong> stone and inhabited<br />

from 1150 to 1000 B.C. by <strong>the</strong> last groups of<br />

Minoans - also known as Eteocretans (true<br />

Cretans) - in flight from <strong>the</strong> Dorian invaders.<br />

The city, which could hold up to 3500<br />

inhabitants, was regular in plan like Gournia,<br />

with <strong>the</strong> houses built one up against ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

Because of its<br />

particular shape,<br />

this mountain is<br />

called karphi,<br />

meaning nail<br />

and with steep streets and flights of steps<br />

among <strong>the</strong> rocky terracing. Explored<br />

between 1937 and 1939 by <strong>the</strong><br />

archaeologist J. D. S. Pendlebury, <strong>the</strong> site has<br />

yielded numerous cult objects (female idols<br />

with raised arms, bull horns, bird heads,<br />

rhytons) which testify to <strong>the</strong> survival of<br />

Minoan culture and religion even after <strong>the</strong><br />

fall of <strong>the</strong> palace kingdoms.<br />

The Eteocretan city<br />

was built on <strong>the</strong><br />

slope of <strong>the</strong> giant<br />

"nail"<br />

31


CHAPTER 2<br />

THE AUSTERITY OF STONE<br />

AND THE SPLENDOURS OF MALIA


OLOUS<br />

SPINALONGA<br />

DREROS<br />

KARYDI<br />

FOURNI<br />

MONI ARETIOU<br />

MILATOS<br />

MALIA<br />

NEAPOLI


C H A P T E R 2<br />

The austerity of stone and<br />

<strong>the</strong> splendours of Malia<br />

On <strong>Crete</strong> <strong>the</strong>re are apparently-forgotten<br />

lands, ignored by <strong>the</strong> normal tourist guides,<br />

but which never<strong>the</strong>less possess a particular<br />

beauty, "quieter" and hard to define. One of<br />

<strong>the</strong>se is <strong>the</strong> silent and almost uninhabited<br />

hinterland above Ayios Nikolaos, Neapoli<br />

and Malia, in complete contrast with <strong>the</strong><br />

overcrowded beaches that stretch out in<br />

front of Spinalonga. Following this itinerary,<br />

it is a good idea to travel without a precise<br />

destination, losing oneself in <strong>the</strong> hilly<br />

landscape, among small, partly-abandoned<br />

villages, mills and tumble-down houses,<br />

monasteries and white churches. The very<br />

stones of this place recall dramatic and<br />

painful stories, stories of sieges and of<br />

conquests, of <strong>the</strong> battle against hunger and<br />

illnesses of a population in continual revolt<br />

against foreign invaders - Dorians, Romans,<br />

Saracens, Venetians and Turks.<br />

36


37


C H A P T E R 2<br />

Spinalonga<br />

Linked to <strong>the</strong> mainland by a narrow<br />

isthmus, <strong>the</strong> Spinalonga peninsula<br />

extends as far as a small rocky islet, it too<br />

called Spinalonga. A natural harbour suitable<br />

for small boats, Spinalonga has been known<br />

since <strong>the</strong> time of <strong>the</strong> Minoans, and legend<br />

has it that Daedalus, <strong>the</strong> brilliant architect of<br />

Knossos, created for <strong>the</strong> inhabitants a very<br />

beautiful statue of Britomartis (<strong>the</strong> Cretan<br />

Artemis - protectress of hunters and<br />

fishermen). Documents from <strong>the</strong> fourth<br />

century B.C. attest to <strong>the</strong> existence of a city,<br />

Olous was a citystate<br />

in Classical<br />

Greek times and<br />

later became an<br />

important Christian<br />

cult centre. Of <strong>the</strong><br />

Basilica <strong>the</strong>re<br />

remains only <strong>the</strong><br />

floor with its black<br />

and white mosaic<br />

decoration<br />

Olous, which controlled <strong>the</strong> maritime traffic<br />

of ships coming from Rhodes and Cyprus<br />

and which honoured herself in <strong>the</strong> fight<br />

against <strong>the</strong> pirates who infested that stretch<br />

of coast. In <strong>the</strong> ninth century Olous was<br />

occupied by <strong>the</strong> Saracens, but not long<br />

afterwards <strong>the</strong> entire city crumbled thanks<br />

to a terrible earthquake which was followed<br />

by <strong>the</strong> sinking of <strong>the</strong> isthmus. There are few<br />

traces of Olous still visible on <strong>the</strong> surface:<br />

most of <strong>the</strong> city was swallowed by <strong>the</strong><br />

waters. On <strong>the</strong> partly-swampy terrain <strong>the</strong><br />

foundations of an early Christian basilica of<br />

<strong>the</strong> seventh century with precious mosaic<br />

paving, with floral and geometric motifs,<br />

dolphins and inscriptions in Greek have<br />

been discovered.<br />

38


The history of <strong>the</strong> island of Spinalonga<br />

is equally dramatic, famous for <strong>the</strong> imposing<br />

Venetian fort which was erected in 1579 and<br />

considered unassailable because equipped<br />

with one of <strong>the</strong> most powerful batteries of<br />

cannon in all<br />

<strong>Crete</strong>. Not even<br />

<strong>the</strong> Turks could<br />

succeed in taking<br />

it. Only during <strong>the</strong><br />

first half of <strong>the</strong><br />

eighteenth<br />

century, by which<br />

time Venice had<br />

lost all authority over <strong>Crete</strong>, did <strong>the</strong> Turks<br />

take possession of <strong>the</strong> little island which<br />

<strong>the</strong>n became a smugglers' haunt. In 1903,<br />

after Greece's liberation from foreign<br />

dominion, Spinalonga was transformed into<br />

a leper colony, and <strong>the</strong> bastions, <strong>the</strong><br />

storerooms and <strong>the</strong> military barracks were<br />

occupied by hundreds of sufferers and <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

families until 1953 when <strong>the</strong> sanatorium was<br />

closed and <strong>the</strong> island with its imposing walls<br />

and towers became a tourist attraction.<br />

Climbing up <strong>the</strong> hills behind Elounda one<br />

has a magnificent view across <strong>the</strong> red roofs<br />

of <strong>the</strong> villages of Epano Elounda and Pines,<br />

across <strong>the</strong> olive trees and <strong>the</strong> low stone<br />

walls, as far as <strong>the</strong> bay with its peninsula and<br />

<strong>the</strong> little rock of Spinalonga.<br />

The island of<br />

Spinalonga was<br />

fortified by <strong>the</strong><br />

Venetians in 1579<br />

and was handed<br />

over to <strong>the</strong><br />

Ottomans only in<br />

1715 - <strong>the</strong> last of<br />

Venice's territories<br />

on <strong>Crete</strong><br />

39


C H A P T E R 2<br />

Stone as art<br />

Far from <strong>the</strong><br />

beaches a<br />

completely<br />

different world<br />

appears with stony<br />

fields and old<br />

abandoned houses.<br />

After <strong>the</strong> seaside resort of Plaka<br />

we can abandon <strong>the</strong> beautiful<br />

beaches to search out <strong>the</strong> quiet of<br />

<strong>the</strong> hills, <strong>the</strong> villages and <strong>the</strong> great<br />

empty spaces where nature has reappropriated<br />

<strong>the</strong> land. Many people<br />

have abandoned living here, be it<br />

for poverty and hunger, be it for<br />

lack of natural resources or lack of<br />

work. Where once <strong>the</strong>re grew<br />

immense fields of corn and where<br />

olive trees were cultivated with<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir small green fruit, to be<br />

savoured with a few drops of lemon<br />

juice and raki, now <strong>the</strong>re often remain only<br />

stony outcrops and <strong>the</strong> outlines of<br />

windmills that have fallen in on <strong>the</strong>mselves:<br />

<strong>the</strong>y seem spectres, from <strong>the</strong> past, of a hard<br />

and laborious life, pierced by <strong>the</strong> lances of<br />

an invisible Cretan Don Quixote doing battle<br />

with time and nature. Great halo-like marks<br />

appear alongside <strong>the</strong> windmills, like magical<br />

circles from an archaic ritual; <strong>the</strong>se are level<br />

circles of stone raised slightly higher than<br />

<strong>the</strong> surrounding terrain that served for <strong>the</strong><br />

threshing of <strong>the</strong> grain with mules or oxen.<br />

Between Kato and Epano Loumas <strong>the</strong><br />

mills are made of an ochre-coloured stone,<br />

with <strong>the</strong> remains of steps that follow <strong>the</strong><br />

curve of <strong>the</strong> roofless circular buildings:<br />

40


<strong>the</strong> sail-arms are broken, <strong>the</strong> giant wheels<br />

are mute and <strong>the</strong> cogs rusty. Apart from <strong>the</strong><br />

windmills <strong>the</strong>re also survives <strong>the</strong> occasional<br />

old olive-mill, its huge rooms crowned with<br />

arches and <strong>the</strong> remains of antique<br />

machinery. Those restorations that have<br />

taken place regard only a few mills close to<br />

<strong>the</strong> areas frequented by tourists, while <strong>the</strong><br />

o<strong>the</strong>rs are all destined for slow destruction.<br />

In serried ranks like soldiers in arms,<br />

atop a hill <strong>the</strong>re appear <strong>the</strong> mills of<br />

Marnelides near Lakonia, with traces of<br />

plaster and well-bolted doors because <strong>the</strong>y<br />

are still used by <strong>the</strong> farmers as storerooms.<br />

Along <strong>the</strong> road between Petros and Dreros,<br />

two stone giants<br />

protrude among spiny<br />

thistles: <strong>the</strong>y are<br />

monumental mills, fairly<br />

well-preserved, each<br />

with an external<br />

staircase, a doorway<br />

framed with white<br />

blocks of stone and a<br />

small window. The<br />

facade is convex, <strong>the</strong><br />

stones are perfectly smooth and <strong>the</strong> overall<br />

aspect is one of robustness, but peering<br />

inside one notes only a pile of stones, iron<br />

and burnt wooden beams.<br />

Giant windmills are<br />

<strong>the</strong> silent guardians<br />

of this wild and<br />

archaic landscape<br />

41


C H A P T E R 2<br />

Statues from <strong>the</strong><br />

Roman era, when<br />

Dreros was still a<br />

living city, are<br />

conserved in <strong>the</strong><br />

Museum of Neapoli<br />

Similarly, ancient Dreros, a Dorian city<br />

of <strong>the</strong> eighth century B.C. that survived into<br />

<strong>the</strong> Roman era, is nothing but a mass<br />

of stones and low walls dotted amidst thick<br />

vegetation. One arrives at <strong>the</strong> site of Dreros<br />

via a path between two hills in an<br />

atmospheric landscape, but it takes a lot<br />

of imagination to believe that here <strong>the</strong>re<br />

once rose up an important archaic city with<br />

grand buildings, a vast agora and an<br />

important seventh-century B.C. temple<br />

dedicated to Apollo Delphinios, of whom<br />

a bronze effigy has been discovered<br />

toge<strong>the</strong>r with two statues representing<br />

Artemis and Leto.<br />

Stone walls<br />

crossing <strong>the</strong> hills<br />

and small, fertile<br />

plains: signs of<br />

<strong>the</strong> farmers' toil<br />

Wandering<br />

among<br />

streets and<br />

paths traced<br />

out by grey<br />

stone walls<br />

that snake<br />

up and<br />

down <strong>the</strong><br />

hills, one<br />

encounters<br />

numerous<br />

villages: <strong>the</strong><br />

white<br />

Fourni full<br />

of flowers<br />

that seem to<br />

42


grow out of <strong>the</strong> very mortar of <strong>the</strong> houses,<br />

or Dories, also white, with its beautiful<br />

church of Ayios Konstatinos, and also<br />

Karydi which has <strong>the</strong> charm of an au<strong>the</strong>ntic<br />

rural village with beautiful stone walling to<br />

protect <strong>the</strong> vegetable gardens and <strong>the</strong> sown<br />

fields from <strong>the</strong> herds of livestock.<br />

The villages are<br />

white and full of<br />

flowers<br />

43


C H A P T E R 2<br />

Not far from <strong>the</strong> main square of Karydi,<br />

climbing in <strong>the</strong> direction of <strong>the</strong> windmills,<br />

we find <strong>the</strong> ruins of <strong>the</strong> monastery of<br />

Chardemutsa, constructed like a fort in a<br />

perfect mixture of Venetian and traditional<br />

Cretan styles, with a great paved courtyard,<br />

a vestibule with pointed arches and large<br />

rooms containing old liturgical objects.<br />

The ruins of<br />

monasteries like<br />

Chardemutsa or<br />

Perambela testify<br />

to <strong>the</strong> religious<br />

devotion of <strong>the</strong><br />

population, and<br />

<strong>the</strong> noble<br />

architecture<br />

continues to<br />

remind us of <strong>the</strong><br />

richness of<br />

monastic life<br />

44


Many villages have<br />

been completely<br />

abandoned, like, for<br />

example, Hondrovolaki,<br />

which overlooks<br />

a gorge not far from<br />

Valtos: roofless houses,<br />

black doorways that<br />

look like toothless<br />

mouths, empty window<br />

casements like blind eyes and streets<br />

through which stray dogs run, are all that<br />

remains of a village which survives only in<br />

<strong>the</strong> memory of inhabitants who will never<br />

return. Just as no one will ever again inhabit<br />

<strong>the</strong> beautiful compound of a rural villa close<br />

by <strong>the</strong> village of Ayios Georgios: built of wellcut<br />

dry stone, with various rooms on several<br />

floors with arches, stone steps, oven and<br />

fireplaces and with a spectacular view of<br />

<strong>the</strong> coast, <strong>the</strong> house must have belonged<br />

to a fairly well-off family. The large grounds<br />

were terraced almost right down to <strong>the</strong> sea<br />

and almonds and olive trees still grow <strong>the</strong>re<br />

from which no one ga<strong>the</strong>rs <strong>the</strong> fruit. From<br />

above one sees <strong>the</strong> ragged coastline with<br />

few isolated houses, <strong>the</strong> monastery of Ayios<br />

Andreas and <strong>the</strong> cave church of Ayios<br />

Antonios: it is a strange scenery of ochre,<br />

pink and black rocks, corroded by <strong>the</strong> wind<br />

and by <strong>the</strong> tides which render difficult both<br />

landing and embarkation.<br />

Some farm houses<br />

were very big and<br />

inhabited by large<br />

family clans. This<br />

kind of rural<br />

complex was<br />

entirely selfsufficient<br />

and could<br />

provide food,<br />

water, tools and<br />

clo<strong>the</strong>s for<br />

everybody<br />

45


46<br />

C H A P T E R 2


Aretiou Monastery<br />

The religious heart of this little-frequented<br />

territory is <strong>the</strong> sixteenth-century Aretiou<br />

Monastery (or Monastery of <strong>the</strong> Holy<br />

Trinity) articulated in various buildings<br />

around an ample courtyard with <strong>the</strong><br />

katholikon, <strong>the</strong> monks' church, which still<br />

contains some precious seventeenthcentury<br />

icons. The founder, Marcos<br />

Papadopoulos, ga<strong>the</strong>red around him many<br />

of <strong>the</strong> famous artists and intellectuals of <strong>the</strong><br />

period, and on his death in 1603 he left<br />

generous donations to <strong>the</strong> monastery asking<br />

that <strong>the</strong>y be used to continue his charitable<br />

work for <strong>the</strong> poor, but also to support those<br />

artists of holy images who were worthy and<br />

talented, as was Kosmas Vartzagis, known as<br />

"<strong>the</strong> Master of Areti". Surrounded by high<br />

walls, <strong>the</strong> monastery defended itself well<br />

against <strong>the</strong> continual attacks by <strong>the</strong><br />

Ottomans, and survived. Nowadays Aretiou<br />

Monastery is <strong>the</strong> most important monastic<br />

complex on <strong>the</strong> Gulf of Mirambelo and is <strong>the</strong><br />

destination for many pilgrims and travellers<br />

in search of tranquillity and reflection.<br />

Aretiou<br />

Monastery<br />

is a fortified<br />

monastery and<br />

survived <strong>the</strong><br />

Turkish occupation<br />

with no<br />

great damage<br />

47


C H A P T E R 2<br />

The Cave of Milatos<br />

The grotto of<br />

Milatos is formed<br />

of a series of<br />

caverns and<br />

corridors stretching<br />

several miles<br />

Next page:<br />

Turning one's<br />

gaze towards <strong>the</strong><br />

mountains, one<br />

notes a low hill<br />

with <strong>the</strong> white<br />

church of Ayios<br />

Elias: this was <strong>the</strong><br />

peak sanctuary<br />

of Malia, in which<br />

<strong>the</strong> votive<br />

offerings to <strong>the</strong><br />

gods were<br />

deposited<br />

Journeying towards <strong>the</strong> coast one arrives<br />

at <strong>the</strong> village of Milatos built not far from <strong>the</strong><br />

ruins of <strong>the</strong> ancient Militos (or Miletus),<br />

already inhabited in <strong>the</strong> Late Minoan period<br />

and mentioned by Homer, Strabo and<br />

Pausanias. Myth tells that <strong>the</strong> local ruler,<br />

Pindareos, stole Zeus's favourite dog and<br />

gave it to Tantalus. For this impudence<br />

Pindareos and his wife were cruelly<br />

punished by <strong>the</strong> gods and condemned to<br />

death, while <strong>the</strong>ir daughters became slaves<br />

of <strong>the</strong> Furies. In <strong>the</strong> third century B.C. Miletus<br />

was destroyed by <strong>the</strong> inhabitants of<br />

Lyttos: only a few stones and some<br />

tombs carved out of <strong>the</strong> rock remain<br />

visible.<br />

Even more terrible is <strong>the</strong> story<br />

of <strong>the</strong> cave of Milatos, site of a<br />

ferocious massacre at <strong>the</strong> hands of<br />

<strong>the</strong> Ottomans. In <strong>the</strong> February of<br />

1823 around 3600 inhabitants of<br />

<strong>the</strong> area, men, women and children,<br />

rebels, priests and ordinary citizens, took<br />

refuge in <strong>the</strong> deep cavern of Milatos to<br />

escape <strong>the</strong> cruelties of General Hassan<br />

Pasha. Betrayed by a Turkish townsman, <strong>the</strong><br />

cave was besieged for a long period and<br />

many died of hunger and thirst. Deceived by<br />

<strong>the</strong> Turks' false promise that in <strong>the</strong> case of<br />

surrender <strong>the</strong>y would spare women and<br />

children, <strong>the</strong> men left <strong>the</strong> cavern, but to <strong>the</strong><br />

cry of "death to <strong>the</strong> infidels" <strong>the</strong> massacre of<br />

<strong>the</strong> fugitives began. Every last one of <strong>the</strong>m<br />

was killed. In a large space inside <strong>the</strong> grotto<br />

a catafalque has been laid out with<br />

commemorative stones and a small cave<br />

church dedicated to St. Thomas where each<br />

year <strong>the</strong> martyrs of Milatos are<br />

commemorated.<br />

48


49


C H A P T E R 2<br />

Malia<br />

Golden bee<br />

pendant from<br />

<strong>the</strong> Chryssolakos<br />

cemetery at Malia<br />

Right on <strong>the</strong> border between <strong>the</strong><br />

Prefectures of Lasithi and Heraklion <strong>the</strong> vast<br />

archaeological area of Malia stretches out,<br />

with its grand Minoan palace, second only<br />

to Knossos and Phaestos. Tradition has it<br />

that Malia was <strong>the</strong> residence of Sarpedon,<br />

<strong>the</strong> younger bro<strong>the</strong>r of Minos and<br />

Rhadamanthus, all born of <strong>the</strong> union of Zeus<br />

and Europa.<br />

Stone kernos for<br />

ritual offerings at<br />

<strong>the</strong> Palace of Malia<br />

The most ancient part of <strong>the</strong> palace<br />

dates back to <strong>the</strong> Middle Minoan period<br />

(circa 2000 B.C.) but of that era <strong>the</strong>re remain<br />

few traces because <strong>the</strong> site was destroyed by<br />

a violent earthquake and completely rebuilt<br />

in around 1650 B.C.. Smaller than Knossos<br />

and Phaestos, but for this no less interesting<br />

in its structure and functions - religious,<br />

political and economic - <strong>the</strong> palace complex<br />

ceased to "live" in 1450 B.C. after a<br />

devastating fire. The site was discovered<br />

in 1915 by <strong>the</strong> Greek archaeologist Joseph<br />

Hadjidakis, while from <strong>the</strong> 1950s onwards<br />

<strong>the</strong> excavations have continued with <strong>the</strong><br />

French Archaeological School of A<strong>the</strong>ns<br />

under <strong>the</strong> direction of Henri van Effenterre.<br />

Opening off <strong>the</strong> great Central Court,<br />

with an altar set into <strong>the</strong> paving, <strong>the</strong>re are<br />

a series of rooms essential to court life<br />

50


of <strong>the</strong> Minoans: <strong>the</strong> Throne Room with stairs<br />

that lead to <strong>the</strong> upper floor, <strong>the</strong> banqueting<br />

chamber and <strong>the</strong> crypt, a monumental<br />

stairway with beside it a kernos (a circular<br />

table with a central hollow and with 34<br />

smaller bowls along <strong>the</strong> edge for <strong>the</strong> ritual<br />

offering of <strong>the</strong> first fruits), <strong>the</strong> archive and<br />

a vast portico held up by columns alternated<br />

with pilasters which gave access to <strong>the</strong> great<br />

palace storerooms.<br />

O<strong>the</strong>r courtyards and numerous<br />

corridors lead to <strong>the</strong> wing reserved for<br />

habitation, to <strong>the</strong> guest apartments and<br />

to <strong>the</strong><br />

artisans'<br />

workshops.<br />

Almost all of<br />

<strong>the</strong> spaces are<br />

paved with<br />

<strong>the</strong> typical<br />

local stone, a<br />

bluish<br />

limestone,<br />

and a<br />

sandstone<br />

known as<br />

ammouda.<br />

The necropolis, also known as<br />

Chryssolakos ("<strong>the</strong> gold mine") for <strong>the</strong> great<br />

quantity of gold objects discovered in <strong>the</strong><br />

tombs, is to be found down by <strong>the</strong> sea and<br />

is laid out like <strong>the</strong> palace of <strong>the</strong> living with<br />

rooms and porticos. The excavations at Malia<br />

have rendered up a vast quantity of splendid<br />

objects, jewels and ceramics dating from<br />

<strong>the</strong> First Palace period to <strong>the</strong> Second Palace<br />

period, among which are a sceptre in <strong>the</strong><br />

form of a leopard, some very fine jewellery<br />

such as <strong>the</strong> pendant with two bees and<br />

a gold pommel from a sword-hilt embossed<br />

with <strong>the</strong> figure of a vaulting acrobat,<br />

preserved in <strong>the</strong> museums of Heraklion and<br />

Ayios Nikolaos.<br />

Directly beyond<br />

<strong>the</strong> entrance one<br />

can make out <strong>the</strong><br />

huge circular<br />

storerooms,<br />

called kouloures,<br />

which held <strong>the</strong><br />

reserves of grain<br />

for <strong>the</strong><br />

population that<br />

inhabited <strong>the</strong><br />

various quarters<br />

around <strong>the</strong> Palace<br />

51


C H A P T E R 2<br />

Tales of Neapoli<br />

and surroundings<br />

The small Museum<br />

of Neapoli contains<br />

an important<br />

collection of statues<br />

from Classical and<br />

Roman times<br />

The fountain in<br />

Houmeriakos was<br />

built during <strong>the</strong><br />

long Turkish<br />

occupation of<br />

<strong>Crete</strong><br />

Travelling back towards Ayios Nikolaos<br />

and passing through a deep gorge crowned<br />

by <strong>the</strong> Monastery of Ayios Georgios Selinari,<br />

one arrives at Neapoli, a lively agricultural<br />

town beneath <strong>the</strong> mountain of Mavro Dasos<br />

which has a beautiful little museum with<br />

finds from <strong>the</strong> excavations of Dreros and<br />

statues from <strong>the</strong> Roman era. In 1340 at Kares,<br />

<strong>the</strong> oldest part of Neapoli, a certain Petros<br />

Philargi was born, a young man of great<br />

intelligence who was sent to study in Paris<br />

and in Oxford in order to follow a career in<br />

<strong>the</strong> priesthood. He became archbishop of<br />

Milan and <strong>the</strong>n cardinal, and finally, at <strong>the</strong><br />

time of <strong>the</strong> schism in <strong>the</strong> Western Church<br />

(which saw <strong>the</strong> curia of Rome in opposition<br />

to that of Avignon) Petrus Philatri was made<br />

Pope, taking <strong>the</strong> name of Alexander V: he<br />

held <strong>the</strong> position for only a year, from 1409<br />

to 1410 and died poisoned by his<br />

adversaries.<br />

A few kilometres from Neapoli, in <strong>the</strong><br />

little village of Houmeriakos <strong>the</strong>re remain<br />

some traces of Venetian influence, among<br />

which a little villa with<br />

an attractive ashlarwork<br />

doorway, which<br />

<strong>the</strong> Cretans call a<br />

Roman door. The town<br />

chronicles recount<br />

that in this house <strong>the</strong>re<br />

once lived a Turk<br />

called Hussein who<br />

having fallen for <strong>the</strong><br />

daughter of <strong>the</strong> local<br />

priest, kidnapped her with <strong>the</strong> intention of<br />

making her his lover. But at nightfall <strong>the</strong><br />

maiden strangled <strong>the</strong> pasha, let herself<br />

down from <strong>the</strong> window disguised as a<br />

52


man, joined <strong>the</strong><br />

rebels and fled to<br />

<strong>the</strong> plain of Lasithi.<br />

Her true identity<br />

was revealed when<br />

<strong>the</strong> swipe of a<br />

sword slashed<br />

open her clo<strong>the</strong>s,<br />

but she continued<br />

to fight until her<br />

death. The<br />

monument<br />

commemorating<br />

this Cretan "Joan<br />

of Arc" is to be found at <strong>the</strong> entrance to <strong>the</strong><br />

town of Kritsa.<br />

The so-called<br />

"Roman door"<br />

and white steps<br />

at Houmeriakos<br />

Again travelling on from Neapoli,<br />

climbing up in <strong>the</strong> direction of <strong>the</strong> Lasithi<br />

plateau, one can visit Kremaston<br />

Monastery, sited on a rocky ridge (hence its<br />

name which means "suspended"), which is<br />

inhabited by a community of monks.<br />

Founded in 1593 and built like a small fort,<br />

<strong>the</strong> monastery has been rebuilt several<br />

times, and in <strong>the</strong> twentieth century opened<br />

a school for children and ceded its<br />

agricultural lands to <strong>the</strong> Agricultural<br />

Commission which turned <strong>the</strong>m into a<br />

model farm.<br />

The monastery<br />

of Kremaston was<br />

recently restored<br />

53


CHAPTER 3<br />

FROM COAST TO COAST<br />

THROUGH THE MOUNTAINS


IERAPETRA<br />

GOURNIA<br />

VASILIKI<br />

EPISKOPI<br />

KAVOUSI<br />

CHAMEZI<br />

ACHLADIA<br />

MOCHLOS<br />

PSIRA


C H A P T E R 3<br />

Where nature is king<br />

Near Istron <strong>the</strong><br />

waters of <strong>the</strong> gulf<br />

of Mirambelo are<br />

a deep turquoise<br />

in contrast with<br />

<strong>the</strong> grey rocks,<br />

<strong>the</strong> evergreen<br />

trees and <strong>the</strong><br />

rock-plants in<br />

bloom<br />

Between Istron and Ierapetra <strong>the</strong> island<br />

of <strong>Crete</strong> narrows like a bottleneck and<br />

stretches a mere 16 kilometres between<br />

<strong>the</strong> gulf of Mirambelo and <strong>the</strong> Libyan sea.<br />

The trip will take us through <strong>the</strong> villages of<br />

<strong>the</strong> Thryptis and Orno mountains as far as<br />

<strong>the</strong> gates of Sitia. Here nature reigns, barely<br />

grazed by <strong>the</strong> hand of man: centuries-old<br />

olive trees, wild figs, shady plane trees,<br />

flower-filled fields, arid open spaces, deep<br />

gorges, small torrents and multicoloured<br />

rocks.<br />

58


59


C H A P T E R 3<br />

From Gournia to Ierapetra<br />

Orthodox<br />

monasteries<br />

are always<br />

hidden<br />

away in silent<br />

places far from<br />

<strong>the</strong> crowds<br />

A short deviation from <strong>the</strong> main coastal<br />

road leads us towards <strong>the</strong> Monastery of<br />

Faneromeni, clinging to <strong>the</strong> mountain top.<br />

The road meanders amid bushes of thyme<br />

and sage as far as <strong>the</strong> little cave church of<br />

<strong>the</strong> monastery which houses a precious icon<br />

of <strong>the</strong> "Death of <strong>the</strong> Virgin", believed to have<br />

miraculous powers. Legend tells of a<br />

shepherd who had lost his way during <strong>the</strong><br />

night, but was drawn to a light in <strong>the</strong><br />

darkness: it came from <strong>the</strong> holy icon and, in<br />

thanks to <strong>the</strong> Virgin who had helped him<br />

find his way once more, <strong>the</strong> first church of<br />

Faneromeni was erected on <strong>the</strong> site.<br />

Gournia, <strong>the</strong><br />

"Minoan Pompei"<br />

Back on <strong>the</strong> main road, <strong>the</strong> ancient city<br />

of Gournia appears, luminous, on a low hill,<br />

like a map open to <strong>the</strong> skies: one can clearly<br />

see <strong>the</strong> walls of <strong>the</strong> houses, <strong>the</strong> streets and<br />

<strong>the</strong> courtyards, so much so that it is known<br />

as <strong>the</strong> "Minoan Pompei". Already inhabited<br />

in <strong>the</strong> Early- and Middle-Minoan era, <strong>the</strong><br />

ruins that we see today belong largely to <strong>the</strong><br />

Late Minoan era (circa 1600 B.C.) and to <strong>the</strong><br />

period of <strong>the</strong> arrival of <strong>the</strong> Mycenaeans who<br />

erected a sanctuary here. The inhabitants of<br />

Gournia were artisans, merchants and<br />

fishermen, but <strong>the</strong>y too wanted to erect a<br />

palace and a <strong>the</strong>atre space of <strong>the</strong>ir own<br />

modelled on Knossos, naturally much<br />

inferior in scale.<br />

60


In <strong>the</strong> Middle<br />

Minoan period<br />

Gournia had its own<br />

local governor who<br />

resided in a palace<br />

high on <strong>the</strong> hill<br />

The several-floored houses and <strong>the</strong><br />

shops, which face onto <strong>the</strong> lanes, <strong>the</strong> steps<br />

and around <strong>the</strong> marketplace, form a<br />

compact urban weave where <strong>the</strong> walls back<br />

one onto <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r and often share roofs.<br />

The excavations between 1901 and 1904 by<br />

<strong>the</strong> American archaeologist<br />

Harriet Boyd-Hawes, have<br />

yielded up many brightlycoloured<br />

ceramics with<br />

marine motifs and various<br />

everyday objects like mortars,<br />

millstones and jars for oil and<br />

for wine. Continuing on<br />

towards Ierapetra one can see<br />

<strong>the</strong> remains of <strong>the</strong> Proto-Minoan settlement<br />

of Vasiliki, almost directly opposite <strong>the</strong><br />

clean break made by <strong>the</strong> Ha gorge which<br />

looks as though it had been cut open<br />

At <strong>the</strong> foot of<br />

<strong>the</strong> Ha gorge<br />

archaeologists<br />

have discovered<br />

remains of an<br />

ancient settlement<br />

61


C H A P T E R 3<br />

The inner walls<br />

of <strong>the</strong> houses<br />

of Vasiliki were<br />

originally<br />

plastered and<br />

painted red<br />

by a giant's sword. Vasiliki too, lying in <strong>the</strong><br />

shade of wind-bent olive trees, retains <strong>the</strong><br />

perfect outline of <strong>the</strong> city layout and is<br />

famous for <strong>the</strong> discovery of a great quantity<br />

of "flame-mottled" pottery with decorations<br />

in red and black, known as Vasiliki Ware. The<br />

corners of <strong>the</strong> small complex are orientated<br />

towards <strong>the</strong> four points of <strong>the</strong> compass, as<br />

was <strong>the</strong> practice in <strong>the</strong> constructions of Asia<br />

Minor: <strong>the</strong> settlement was destroyed.<br />

The town of Episkopi, midway along<br />

our route, has ancient origins as is testified<br />

by <strong>the</strong> sarcophagi found by pure chance<br />

whilst road works were being done near<br />

<strong>the</strong> double church of Ayios Georgios and<br />

Ayios Haralambos. The church dates back to<br />

<strong>the</strong> seventh or eighth century and is<br />

characterised by <strong>the</strong> double facades<br />

62


with one triangular pediment and one<br />

arched, and by an unusual brick dome with<br />

many niches that were once frescoed.<br />

Ierapetra, <strong>the</strong> ancient Hierapytna,<br />

is <strong>the</strong> largest port-town on <strong>the</strong> sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

coast of <strong>Crete</strong>. It grew to be an important<br />

centre in <strong>the</strong> Graeco-Roman era when it was<br />

furnished with temples, baths, an<br />

amphi<strong>the</strong>atre and two <strong>the</strong>atres, porticos<br />

and an aqueduct, of which, however, <strong>the</strong>re<br />

remains no trace. In <strong>the</strong> thirteenth century<br />

<strong>the</strong> Venetians built an imposing castle with<br />

battlements and ramparts. The Turks also<br />

embellished Ierapetra with mosques and<br />

fountains and <strong>the</strong>re are corners of <strong>the</strong> city<br />

that retain a decidedly oriental aspect.<br />

The Venetian and<br />

Ottoman ruins are<br />

<strong>the</strong> most attractive<br />

monuments in<br />

Ierapetra, while<br />

nothing has<br />

survived from <strong>the</strong><br />

Minoan, Greek or<br />

Roman periods<br />

On 26 th June 1798 <strong>the</strong> city had an<br />

illustrious guest in <strong>the</strong> person of Napoleon<br />

Bonaparte who, returning from <strong>the</strong> Egyptian<br />

campaign, spent a night here in a small<br />

house (now known as spiti tu Napoleonta or<br />

Napoleon’s House) not far from <strong>the</strong> church<br />

of Afendi Christou.<br />

Ierapetra has a fine Archaeological<br />

Museum with glass cabinets brimming with<br />

Minoan finds, ceramics, painted sarcophagi<br />

and statues dating from <strong>the</strong> Classical,<br />

Hellenistic and Roman eras.<br />

63


64<br />

C H A P T E R 3


Kavousi and <strong>the</strong><br />

Thryptis and Orno mountains<br />

The road to Kavousi begins with a sea of<br />

dark olive trees. Here one can admire <strong>the</strong><br />

oldest olive tree in <strong>Crete</strong>: how many years<br />

or centuries old it is no one knows, but its<br />

immense trunk, rough and scarred with<br />

hardened swellings like <strong>the</strong> body of a<br />

prehistoric animal, gives <strong>the</strong> impression<br />

that this tree/monument has seen more<br />

things than we humans are capable of<br />

imagining. Its branches were used to weave<br />

<strong>the</strong> crowns for <strong>the</strong> A<strong>the</strong>ns Olympics in 2004.<br />

On <strong>the</strong> mountain that overlooks <strong>the</strong><br />

village of Kavousi one can make out <strong>the</strong><br />

foundations of two archaic settlements from<br />

<strong>the</strong> Early Bronze Age: a hilltop encampment<br />

and a settlement built around a rocky terrace<br />

with a view across <strong>the</strong> sea. Following <strong>the</strong><br />

Dorian invasion <strong>the</strong> Eteocretans chose <strong>the</strong><br />

sites on which to build <strong>the</strong>ir villages with<br />

care: fairly inaccessible, but with an ample<br />

vista that allowed <strong>the</strong>m to control passing<br />

traffic without been seen. Hidden among<br />

luxuriant bushes of yellow-gold broom and<br />

wild sage <strong>the</strong>re are numerous tholos tombs<br />

in which arms, jewellery and armour of <strong>the</strong><br />

Geometric period have been found.<br />

The circular tombs<br />

of Kavousi are<br />

partly hidden by<br />

flowering bushes<br />

65


C H A P T E R 3<br />

From ancient Kavousi one can continue<br />

along rough roads (to be braved in a fourwheel-drive)<br />

that wind through <strong>the</strong><br />

Thryptis and Orno mountains. One has to<br />

be a lover of wild and archaic landscapes to<br />

appreciate this itinerary which takes us<br />

through bare mountains, passes hazardously<br />

above deep ravines and where <strong>the</strong> only<br />

signs of life are <strong>the</strong> birdsong and <strong>the</strong><br />

bleating of <strong>the</strong> goats. Once up in <strong>the</strong><br />

Thryptis mountains it is a good idea to make<br />

a excursion on foot as far as <strong>the</strong> Ha gorge<br />

among perfumed bushes and silvery rocks.<br />

The bare<br />

mountainside<br />

is <strong>the</strong> reign of<br />

sheep and<br />

goats<br />

The Orno mountains<br />

are formed of many<br />

rocky cones with dark,<br />

solitary trees, where<br />

<strong>the</strong> white road passes<br />

through a valley with<br />

isolated cultivated<br />

fields, figs, pome -<br />

granates and even<br />

vines which grow at a<br />

surprisingly high<br />

altitude. A single small<br />

village of just a few<br />

houses, Bembonas,<br />

offers <strong>the</strong> chance for<br />

66


The best way to<br />

discover <strong>the</strong> beauty<br />

of this countryside<br />

is by travelling<br />

slowly and<br />

whenever possible<br />

on foot<br />

a rest at <strong>the</strong> little kafeneion which is frequented<br />

by <strong>the</strong> farmers and shepherds of <strong>the</strong> area.<br />

Having arrived at Chryssopighi <strong>the</strong> road<br />

is asphalted once again: fur<strong>the</strong>r ahead on <strong>the</strong><br />

right one comes to <strong>the</strong> pretty village of Orino<br />

with its myrtle bushes and <strong>the</strong>ir white<br />

headily-perfumed flowers, while on <strong>the</strong><br />

slopes of <strong>the</strong> Orno one arrives at Dafni and<br />

Skordillo amid great groves of olives. At that<br />

point a geological peculiarity has created<br />

bright white rocks of limestone and chalk that<br />

thrust up from <strong>the</strong> dark earth like sharp<br />

blades and calcified bones. In <strong>the</strong> fissures<br />

<strong>the</strong>re grow anemones and cyclamens that<br />

bring to mind certain details, painted with<br />

brush-tip, in medieval miniatures.<br />

67


C H A P T E R 3<br />

The stones of history<br />

Beyond <strong>the</strong> tiny hamlet of Riza <strong>the</strong>re lies<br />

<strong>the</strong> village of Achladia and venturing along<br />

<strong>the</strong> little roads among olives groves,<br />

orchards and vineyards, one can go in search<br />

of a Minoan villa and a tholos tomb, wellhidden<br />

by <strong>the</strong> trees. The perfectly preserved<br />

tholos in all probability dates back to 1300<br />

B.C., to <strong>the</strong> Mycenaean period. A long<br />

dromos, a ramp faced with large dressed<br />

stones, runs down towards a doorway<br />

formed of great monolithic blocks which<br />

leads into a dark chamber roofed with a<br />

dome formed of horizontal courses of stone<br />

[corbelling]. The burial chamber has a false<br />

door which perhaps served to allow<br />

communication between <strong>the</strong> world of <strong>the</strong><br />

dead and that of <strong>the</strong> living.<br />

The tholos<br />

tomb at<br />

Achladia is <strong>the</strong><br />

best preserved<br />

in eastern <strong>Crete</strong><br />

Rendered almost invisible by <strong>the</strong> olive<br />

grove that grows above it, <strong>the</strong> Minoan villa<br />

at Achladia is a large rural construction with<br />

various rooms built around an expansive<br />

courtyard with a kiln for producing ceramics.<br />

Of <strong>the</strong> villa <strong>the</strong>re remain only <strong>the</strong> foundations,<br />

which do however give a good idea of how<br />

Minoan country life was organised.<br />

68


Decidedly more interesting is <strong>the</strong><br />

ancient Minoan complex of Hamezi, dating<br />

back to 2000 B.C., which occupies <strong>the</strong> entire<br />

crest of a bare hill called Souvloti Mouri<br />

("pointed hill"). Built of a rosy stone, and in a<br />

strange elliptical form (<strong>the</strong> only one of its kind<br />

on <strong>Crete</strong>) it was long believed to be a peak<br />

sanctuary,<br />

but was more<br />

probably a<br />

rural villa<br />

housing<br />

several<br />

families who<br />

found<br />

<strong>the</strong>mselves<br />

forced to<br />

adapt <strong>the</strong><br />

shape of <strong>the</strong><br />

house to that<br />

of <strong>the</strong> hillside<br />

terrain. The<br />

rooms are<br />

arranged in<br />

a circle around a deep cistern which served<br />

to collect rainwater because <strong>the</strong> hill has no<br />

springs or wells.<br />

The view from <strong>the</strong><br />

top of <strong>the</strong> hill of<br />

Hamezi looks over<br />

large olive groves<br />

and vineyards right<br />

down to <strong>the</strong> sea's<br />

edge<br />

69


C H A P T E R 3<br />

Nowadays <strong>the</strong><br />

traditional<br />

handicrafts of<br />

<strong>Crete</strong> are to be<br />

found only in<br />

<strong>the</strong> Folklore<br />

Museum<br />

In <strong>the</strong> modern village of Hamezi <strong>the</strong>re<br />

is an interesting Folklore Museum with<br />

traditional agricultural instruments and<br />

craftsmens' tools, costumes, furnishings and<br />

finely embroidered cloths shown in various<br />

rooms which recreate <strong>the</strong> atmosphere of<br />

a real peasant home of <strong>the</strong> past.<br />

Basket-shaped<br />

vase with<br />

double axes -<br />

<strong>the</strong> symbol of<br />

Minoan<br />

religion and<br />

power - from<br />

<strong>the</strong> island of<br />

Psira<br />

70


Psira and Mochlos<br />

Turning back onto <strong>the</strong> main road towards<br />

Ayios Nikolaon one meanders through <strong>the</strong><br />

mountains as far as a panoramic<br />

promontory, after <strong>the</strong> village of Mirsini, from<br />

which <strong>the</strong>re can be seen two small islands,<br />

Mochlos and Psira, and also a huge gypsum<br />

quarry which over time has taken on <strong>the</strong><br />

appearance of a pyramid.<br />

It was once possible<br />

to reach <strong>the</strong> small<br />

island of Mochlos<br />

on foot, walking<br />

along <strong>the</strong> isthmus<br />

Mochlos emerges from <strong>the</strong> water for<br />

only 45 metres, and once formed part of <strong>the</strong><br />

mainland, but during <strong>the</strong> Roman era <strong>the</strong><br />

waves began to climb and submerged <strong>the</strong><br />

isthmus. Mochlos is one of <strong>the</strong> most ancient<br />

settlements on <strong>Crete</strong>, and in its rock tombs,<br />

where <strong>the</strong> local rulers were buried, <strong>the</strong>re<br />

have been found rich grave-goods: gold<br />

jewellery in filigree, silver cups, alabaster<br />

vases and objects in faience.<br />

Gold diadem from<br />

Early Minoan<br />

period, found at<br />

Mochlos<br />

71


C H A P T E R 3<br />

The bold, dark<br />

profile of <strong>the</strong><br />

rocky island of<br />

Psira<br />

The gypsum<br />

quarry once<br />

ruined <strong>the</strong><br />

coastline but<br />

now seems part<br />

of <strong>the</strong> natural<br />

landscape<br />

Psira is larger and fur<strong>the</strong>r from <strong>the</strong><br />

coast and was inhabited from <strong>the</strong> time of<br />

<strong>the</strong> Minoans until <strong>the</strong> Byzantine era. It had<br />

an important port with <strong>the</strong> houses built<br />

amphi<strong>the</strong>atre-style around it and was well<br />

sheltered from <strong>the</strong> winds. Psira controlled<br />

<strong>the</strong> rich maritime trade between <strong>Crete</strong> and<br />

<strong>the</strong> East and <strong>the</strong> inhabitants must have been<br />

very wealthy merchants: <strong>the</strong>ir houses were<br />

frescoed and decorated with reliefs of very<br />

fine workmanship, worthy of a royal palace.<br />

72


73


CHAPTER 4<br />

ETEOCRETANS AND RELICS<br />

OF THE VENETIANS


SITIA<br />

PETRAS<br />

TRIPYTOS<br />

AYIA PHOTIA<br />

ZOU<br />

PRINIAS<br />

ETIA<br />

VOILA<br />

LITHINES<br />

MAKRYYIALOS<br />

KOUFONISSI


C H A P T E R 4<br />

The Venetian castle<br />

of Sitia in an old<br />

engraving. Today<br />

<strong>the</strong> fortress, known<br />

as kazarma and<br />

which was<br />

destroyed by <strong>the</strong><br />

Ottomans, has been<br />

partially restored.<br />

The Venetian<br />

influence in<br />

architecture and<br />

arts is still to be felt<br />

in many places<br />

around Sitia<br />

Starting out from Sitia (<strong>the</strong> city which has<br />

lent its name to <strong>the</strong> whole region, in that<br />

Lasithi is simply a distortion of <strong>the</strong> Venetian<br />

"La Sitia"), our journey takes us into <strong>the</strong> most<br />

hidden lands of <strong>the</strong> Eteocretans, <strong>the</strong> "true<br />

Cretans", who, after <strong>the</strong> destruction of <strong>the</strong><br />

Minoan palaces, preserved <strong>the</strong> customs, <strong>the</strong><br />

language and <strong>the</strong> religion of <strong>the</strong> Minoans for<br />

many centuries. Following <strong>the</strong> end of <strong>the</strong><br />

ancient world it was, however, <strong>the</strong> Venetians<br />

who left a strong imprint on <strong>the</strong> region, and<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir traces can be found in <strong>the</strong> cities, <strong>the</strong><br />

small villages and <strong>the</strong> ruins dotted about<br />

<strong>the</strong> territory. In a document of <strong>the</strong> era, <strong>the</strong><br />

Venetians describe <strong>the</strong> population of Sitia<br />

as "peaceable and respectful of <strong>the</strong> laws<br />

and lovers of feasts".<br />

The Turkish presence was also strong,<br />

governing <strong>the</strong> region with an iron fist, and<br />

<strong>the</strong> occupiers were guilty of innumerable<br />

massacres many of which were <strong>the</strong> work of<br />

Khaireddin Barbarossa, a pirate in <strong>the</strong> pay<br />

of <strong>the</strong> Ottomans.<br />

78


79


C H A P T E R 4<br />

Sitia from Minoan times<br />

to Venetian dominion<br />

Clear, light waters<br />

and a wide horizon<br />

characterize <strong>the</strong><br />

bay of Sitia<br />

Like a white amphi<strong>the</strong>atre, Sitia hugs <strong>the</strong><br />

bay with its port from which <strong>the</strong> ships that<br />

sail towards <strong>the</strong> islands of <strong>the</strong> Dodecanese<br />

leave. In ancient times <strong>the</strong> port was called<br />

Eteia and belonged to <strong>the</strong> city of Pressos<br />

(Praisos), a settlement on <strong>the</strong> hills inland that<br />

remained important from Minoan times to<br />

<strong>the</strong> Hellenistic period.<br />

Later <strong>the</strong> Romans were to occupy Sitia as<br />

an eastern Cretan outpost: <strong>the</strong> remains of<br />

a large fish tank date back to this period,<br />

whilst all traces of <strong>the</strong> earlier civilisations<br />

were destroyed by <strong>the</strong> continual incursions<br />

of pirates and by <strong>the</strong> numerous earthquakes<br />

that have plagued <strong>the</strong> area.<br />

80<br />

Before <strong>the</strong> ninth century an important<br />

diocese was founded in Sitia, to <strong>the</strong>n be<br />

devastated shortly after by <strong>the</strong> Saracens.<br />

For this reason it was decided to transfer<br />

<strong>the</strong> bishopric to Episkopi, less exposed to<br />

raids and pillaging. On <strong>the</strong> Byzantine ruins<br />

<strong>the</strong> Genoese Enrico Pescatore built a fortress<br />

which <strong>the</strong> Venetians took possession of in<br />

1280, and which became, toge<strong>the</strong>r with<br />

Hania, Rethymnon and Heraklion, one of<br />

<strong>Crete</strong>'s most powerful strongholds.


The Venetian Castle<br />

overlooking <strong>the</strong><br />

town of Sitia<br />

For many centuries Sitia remained one<br />

of <strong>the</strong> most important fiefs of <strong>the</strong> aristocratic<br />

families of <strong>the</strong> Venetian Republic. The<br />

fortress (commonly known as Kazarma) was<br />

destroyed along with <strong>the</strong> rest of <strong>the</strong> city in<br />

1538 by <strong>the</strong> pirate Khaireddin Barbarossa,<br />

but immediately rebuilt by <strong>the</strong> Venetians,<br />

although it was <strong>the</strong>n captured by <strong>the</strong> Turks<br />

at <strong>the</strong> end of <strong>the</strong> eighteenth century. The<br />

signs left by <strong>the</strong> devastation that Barbarossa<br />

wreaked can still be seen in <strong>the</strong> little fireblackened<br />

church of <strong>the</strong> monastery of<br />

Faneromeni, few kilometres distant from<br />

Sitia, built above a gorge of white rock and<br />

visible from <strong>the</strong> sea, <strong>the</strong>refore easy prey for<br />

<strong>the</strong> foreign hordes who landed on <strong>the</strong> coast.<br />

In <strong>the</strong> period between <strong>the</strong> end of Venetian<br />

rule and <strong>the</strong> imminent occupation by <strong>the</strong><br />

Turks, one of <strong>the</strong> island's most famous<br />

writers, Vincenzo Cornaro (or Vincente<br />

Kornaros), was born in Sitia, possibly of<br />

noble Venetian origins or a Cretan aristocrat<br />

who adopted an Italian name as was <strong>the</strong><br />

A small hamlet<br />

was built near <strong>the</strong><br />

monastery of<br />

Faneromeni<br />

81


C H A P T E R 4<br />

Archaeological Museum<br />

of Sitia<br />

The Minoan<br />

"prince" in gold<br />

and ivory from<br />

Palaekastro is one<br />

of <strong>the</strong> most<br />

precious finds to<br />

have come out of<br />

eastern <strong>Crete</strong><br />

The Museum's rich collection<br />

includes pottery, clay figurines,<br />

votive offerings, tablets with<br />

Minoan inscriptions, tools,<br />

jewellery and fragments of<br />

murals<br />

82


fashion at <strong>the</strong> time. His epic chivalric poem<br />

"Erotokritos" (he who is tormented by Eros)<br />

is composed of 1680 verses and tells, in<br />

flowery language, of <strong>the</strong> heroic battle<br />

between princes and warriors for <strong>the</strong> hand<br />

of <strong>the</strong> Princess Aretusa, who after terrible<br />

misadventures comes to marry <strong>the</strong><br />

protagonist Erotokritos. The romance unites<br />

myth, legend, magic, passion, adventure,<br />

proverbs and folk wisdom and today <strong>the</strong> old<br />

folk still know <strong>the</strong> verses by heart, and sing<br />

<strong>the</strong>m as <strong>the</strong>y did in <strong>the</strong> past.<br />

With <strong>the</strong> Ottoman occupation <strong>the</strong> city<br />

fell into ruin until 1870, when an illuminated<br />

Turk, Avni Pasha, drew up <strong>the</strong> new city plan<br />

and had it rebuilt, in spite of <strong>the</strong> outbreaks<br />

of rebellion that hinted at <strong>the</strong> imminent<br />

demise of <strong>the</strong> Sultans' dominion. Following<br />

<strong>the</strong> liberation and independence of <strong>the</strong><br />

island, Sitia was gradually repopulated and<br />

became <strong>the</strong> lively and beautiful town,<br />

oriental in character, with narrow streets,<br />

cafes, taverns and open-air markets, that it<br />

is today. One should not miss out on a visit<br />

to <strong>the</strong> Folklore Museum and above all <strong>the</strong><br />

Archaeological Museum which houses<br />

important finds from <strong>the</strong> Minoan civilisation<br />

- including many votive<br />

offerings from <strong>the</strong><br />

nearby peak<br />

sanctuaries and a<br />

splendid Minoan<br />

"prince" in gold and<br />

ivory found at<br />

Palaekastro, along with<br />

numerous daedalic<br />

figurines in <strong>the</strong><br />

Egyptian style and<br />

objects from <strong>the</strong> Greek<br />

and Roman periods.<br />

This engraving<br />

from 1651 shows<br />

<strong>the</strong> town of Sitia at<br />

<strong>the</strong> time of <strong>the</strong><br />

famous poet<br />

Vincenzo Cornaro,<br />

author of <strong>the</strong> epic<br />

"Erotokritos"<br />

Daedalic figurines<br />

were very common<br />

in Doric time<br />

83


A white-rock<br />

gorge leads to a<br />

stony beach and<br />

<strong>the</strong> monastery of<br />

Faneromeni, with<br />

its dark<br />

katholikon, <strong>the</strong><br />

monks' Byzantine<br />

church with<br />

beautiful icons<br />

and frescocovered<br />

walls


C H A P T E R 4<br />

Traces of <strong>the</strong> ancients<br />

around Sitia<br />

The double axe<br />

symbol is found<br />

engraved on<br />

stone and clay<br />

vessels<br />

wherever <strong>the</strong><br />

Minoans<br />

founded a<br />

settlement<br />

An inscription on a Minoan tablet bears<br />

<strong>the</strong> word "se-to-i-ja", <strong>the</strong> most ancient name<br />

given to <strong>the</strong> city of Sitia, used right up to our<br />

own times. Its precise location is not known,<br />

but some scholars believe that it may have<br />

lain on <strong>the</strong> hill at Petras, where Minoan<br />

constructions with enormous blocks of<br />

dressed stone have been discovered. Petras<br />

is also cited by Plato in <strong>the</strong> Protagoras where<br />

he mentions it as <strong>the</strong> birthplace of Myson,<br />

one of <strong>the</strong> Seven Sages of ancient Greece.<br />

O<strong>the</strong>r Minoan ruins have been found at <strong>the</strong><br />

gates of Sitia, along <strong>the</strong> edge of <strong>the</strong> road<br />

that leads towards <strong>the</strong> Libyan sea: <strong>the</strong>y are<br />

<strong>the</strong> remains of a Minoan villa dating from<br />

1600 B.C. with a series of rooms arranged<br />

across terraces, two well - preserved<br />

stairways and a crypt.<br />

Again near Sitia, to be found on a hill<br />

overlooking <strong>the</strong> sea is Tripytos, a large<br />

settlement with houses, workshops and<br />

storerooms built on <strong>the</strong> sandstone slope:<br />

86


Hellenistic-Roman period. Continuing along<br />

<strong>the</strong> road towards <strong>the</strong> east, after a few<br />

kilometres one comes to Ayia Photia, one<br />

of <strong>the</strong> largest<br />

Minoan<br />

necropolises<br />

on <strong>the</strong> island,<br />

with 252<br />

tombs, some<br />

cut into <strong>the</strong><br />

rock, some in<br />

<strong>the</strong> form of<br />

tholoi. Next to <strong>the</strong> necropolis, on <strong>the</strong> crest of<br />

a low hill, a large fortified Minoan villa from<br />

<strong>the</strong> Middle Minoan period has been<br />

Sitia is surrounded<br />

by Minoan<br />

settlements, rural<br />

villas and<br />

cemeteries dating<br />

from <strong>the</strong> Middle<br />

Minoan period to<br />

<strong>the</strong> time when <strong>the</strong><br />

Eteocretans took<br />

refuge in <strong>the</strong><br />

mountain of<br />

eastern <strong>Crete</strong><br />

uncovered with 37 rooms and two circular<br />

structures: even if <strong>the</strong> archaeological<br />

remains are little but outlines, <strong>the</strong> place has<br />

its own particular fascination, between <strong>the</strong><br />

blue of <strong>the</strong> sea and rocks overrun with a<br />

blanket of succulents with bright purple<br />

flowers.<br />

87


C H A P T E R 4<br />

The Minoans from war and work<br />

to religion<br />

On <strong>the</strong> road that leads from Sitia to<br />

Makryyialos along <strong>the</strong> coast of <strong>the</strong> Libyan<br />

Sea we come across a series of settlements<br />

and sanctuaries of <strong>the</strong> later generations of<br />

Minoans and Eteocretans who, amid <strong>the</strong>se<br />

hills, sought refuge from <strong>the</strong> Dorian invaders<br />

in around 1000 B.C.. These sites enable us to<br />

better-understand three of <strong>the</strong> fundamental<br />

aspects of Minoan culture: country life, town<br />

life and <strong>the</strong> religious cults.<br />

Minoan country<br />

villas like that of<br />

Zou were very<br />

important in <strong>the</strong><br />

Eteocretan period,<br />

since <strong>the</strong>y provided<br />

<strong>the</strong> population's<br />

sustenance<br />

Near Zou, famous for its springs which<br />

provided fresh water for all of <strong>the</strong><br />

surrounding area as far as Sitia, a rural villa<br />

has been discovered dating back to around<br />

1600 B.C., built of dressed stone on a very<br />

steep slope on a sandy and fragile terrain<br />

that threatens to crumble. The house is<br />

composed of various rooms, workshops and<br />

a kiln for ceramics, and a large number of<br />

tools and agricultural instruments have been<br />

found <strong>the</strong>re.<br />

Travelling south one can make out a<br />

small sandstone ridge in <strong>the</strong> middle of a<br />

dense grove of olives: this is <strong>the</strong> Minoan<br />

88


Even very small<br />

settlements were<br />

built in <strong>the</strong> form of<br />

miniature royal<br />

palaces<br />

settlement of Ayios Georgios which, in its<br />

form and structure, is more like a miniature<br />

Gournia than a simple country house. The<br />

entrance is marked by a steep staircase<br />

formed of monolithic blocks which leads to<br />

a myriad of small chambers with <strong>the</strong> massive<br />

walls of a fortress. From <strong>the</strong> foot of <strong>the</strong> hill<br />

<strong>the</strong> green countryside stretches out<br />

immersed in absolute silence, and it is easy<br />

to believe that <strong>the</strong> ancients who inhabited<br />

this place loved to surround <strong>the</strong>mselves<br />

with beauty.<br />

More imposing in appearance is<br />

Pressos (Praisos), a Late Minoan city which<br />

was active up until <strong>the</strong> Roman period, with<br />

a triple acropolis built on a cone-shaped hill<br />

entirely surrounded by fortified walls: from<br />

afar <strong>the</strong> hill seems built up in a spiral, like<br />

old representations of <strong>the</strong> tower of Babel.<br />

Pressos lies exactly halfway between <strong>the</strong> two<br />

coasts and was of strategic importance,<br />

allowing control over <strong>the</strong> traffic of people<br />

and goods across a vast territory. In <strong>the</strong><br />

Greek era it was <strong>the</strong> most powerful city-state<br />

of eastern <strong>Crete</strong>, toge<strong>the</strong>r with Itanos<br />

89


C H A P T E R 4<br />

The dominion<br />

of <strong>the</strong> powerful<br />

Pressos<br />

extended over<br />

<strong>the</strong> whole<br />

region of Sitia,<br />

and a treaty<br />

was even made<br />

with <strong>the</strong> distant<br />

Itanos in order<br />

to avoid<br />

surrender to<br />

<strong>the</strong> rival city of<br />

Hierapytna<br />

Every Minoan<br />

settlement had its<br />

own mountain-top<br />

sanctuary:<br />

<strong>the</strong> sanctuary of<br />

Pressos lay on <strong>the</strong><br />

peak of Prinias<br />

with which it was<br />

linked by friendship,<br />

and Hierapytna<br />

(Ierapetra), <strong>the</strong><br />

eternal rival,<br />

especially as far as<br />

<strong>the</strong> lucrative trade in<br />

purple dye which was<br />

extracted from a<br />

particular species<br />

of mollusc which<br />

abounded in <strong>the</strong><br />

coastal waters was<br />

concerned.<br />

Pressos venerated<br />

Zeus Dikteo and<br />

practiced a strange cult, that of <strong>the</strong> "sacred<br />

pig", as a result of which <strong>the</strong> populace was<br />

forbidden to eat pork. Governed by a<br />

democratic aristocracy, Pressos was an<br />

extremely wealthy city that minted coins<br />

with <strong>the</strong> effigies of Apollo, Hercules, Zeus<br />

and Demeter. In <strong>the</strong> buildings from <strong>the</strong><br />

Greek/Hellenistic period, in <strong>the</strong> sanctuary<br />

and in <strong>the</strong> tombs, precious finds have been<br />

made: terracotta figures, painted lions,<br />

helmets, shields and pectorals in bronze and<br />

two A<strong>the</strong>nian amphorae of <strong>the</strong> sixth century<br />

B.C. which probably belonged to a local<br />

athlete who had won prizes at <strong>the</strong><br />

Pana<strong>the</strong>nian Games.<br />

When Ierapetra openly declared war on<br />

Pressos, <strong>the</strong> inhabitants turned for<br />

protection to <strong>the</strong> allied city of Itanos and<br />

also to Ptolemy Philimetor, ruler of Egypt<br />

90


with whom <strong>the</strong>y had commercial dealings,<br />

but, despite <strong>the</strong>ir repeated appeals for help,<br />

in 146 B.C. Ierapetra succeeded in destroying<br />

<strong>the</strong> city. In decline and no longer<br />

independent, in 58 B.C. Pressos was<br />

occupied by <strong>the</strong> Romans who partially<br />

rebuilt <strong>the</strong> city. However it had, lost all its<br />

power.<br />

The Minoans and Eteocretans of <strong>the</strong>se<br />

lands chose a "holy mountain" to take <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

votive offerings to <strong>the</strong> gods. The most<br />

imposing of <strong>the</strong>se peak sanctuaries is found<br />

on <strong>the</strong> mountain of Prinias, which is very<br />

difficult to scale because defended by a very<br />

steep wall of jagged rocks on its western<br />

face and by a<br />

deep gorge on<br />

<strong>the</strong> east. In <strong>the</strong><br />

past shepherds,<br />

farmers and<br />

townsfolk<br />

climbed as far as<br />

<strong>the</strong> summit<br />

carrying offerings<br />

of figurines and<br />

objects in<br />

terracotta, bronze<br />

and gold which<br />

were deposited in<br />

a sacred enclosure or hidden in <strong>the</strong> cracks<br />

between <strong>the</strong> rocks.<br />

The mountain-top sanctuaries were not<br />

always situated on <strong>the</strong> highest mountain<br />

peaks. Even low hills which were unusual in<br />

form or simply emerged from flat terrain<br />

could function as holy mountains for <strong>the</strong><br />

population: for example <strong>the</strong> little mount<br />

Katrinia at Piskokephala, nowadays<br />

cultivated with olive groves and vineyards,<br />

and <strong>the</strong> low ridge of Alia, crowned with<br />

a small white church between Sykia and<br />

Papagianades, where many votive offerings<br />

have been found (now exhibited in <strong>the</strong><br />

museums of Sitia and Ayios Nikolaos).<br />

At Prinias in<br />

particular <strong>the</strong>re<br />

a large number of<br />

horned scarabs in<br />

clay have been<br />

found, <strong>the</strong> rinoceros<br />

orytes commonly<br />

known as<br />

"rhinoceros scarab"<br />

and believed, in <strong>the</strong><br />

"household" cults,<br />

to be talismanic.<br />

91


C H A P T E R 4<br />

The Venetian feudal<br />

territories<br />

As we wander among <strong>the</strong> roads that lead<br />

from Sitia to <strong>the</strong> Libyan sea, history moves<br />

forward in great bounds because in an area<br />

of only a few kilometres we find ourselves<br />

immersed in Minoan remains and <strong>the</strong>n<br />

immediately afterwards in <strong>the</strong> feudal<br />

possessions of <strong>the</strong> Venetians.<br />

Kato Episkopi is <strong>the</strong> village to which,<br />

in <strong>the</strong> eleventh century, <strong>the</strong> bishopric of Sitia<br />

was transferred to escape <strong>the</strong> devastations<br />

wreaked by <strong>the</strong> Saracens. The three-naved<br />

church of <strong>the</strong> Ayioi Apostoloi with its cupola<br />

that recalls Islamic architecture, was noted<br />

by Venetian sources for a peculiarity: it had<br />

Under Venetian<br />

rule Kato and<br />

Epano Episkopi<br />

were seats of<br />

<strong>the</strong> Catholic<br />

bishopric, but in<br />

<strong>the</strong> churches<br />

both Orthodox<br />

and Catholic<br />

rites were<br />

celebrated<br />

two altars, one dedicated to <strong>the</strong> Latin rite<br />

and one to <strong>the</strong> Greek, and often <strong>the</strong> liturgies<br />

of <strong>the</strong> respective priests were celebrated<br />

simultaneously. Ano<strong>the</strong>r beautiful old<br />

church, Panayia, is to be found at Epano<br />

Episkopi and is worth a visit.<br />

A small sign indicates <strong>the</strong> road to Forte<br />

castle, which is recognisable from far off<br />

thanks to its stern outline above a rocky spur<br />

rising up in front of <strong>the</strong> Orno mountain<br />

range. The road winds through cultivated<br />

fields and sweet-scented meadows with<br />

92


eautiful panoramas, as far as <strong>the</strong> ruins of<br />

<strong>the</strong> castle which was once property of <strong>the</strong><br />

Genoese and later recovered by <strong>the</strong><br />

Venetians who called it Monforte. Climbing<br />

to <strong>the</strong> crest one has a splendid view over <strong>the</strong><br />

easternmost part of <strong>Crete</strong> as far as <strong>the</strong><br />

Libyan sea. In <strong>the</strong> sixteenth century <strong>the</strong><br />

fortress was abandoned and fell into ruin for<br />

lack of care. Later <strong>the</strong> site became a refuge<br />

for <strong>the</strong> peoples persecuted by <strong>the</strong> Ottomans<br />

and it is said that up to 3000 people could<br />

take shelter within its walls.<br />

To visit some of <strong>the</strong> most important<br />

lands of <strong>the</strong> noble families of Venice one<br />

must push on through narrow roads<br />

between vineyards and orchards in <strong>the</strong><br />

direction of Ziros. One of <strong>the</strong> most<br />

fascinating sites is Etia, property of <strong>the</strong><br />

powerful Venetian De Mezzo family, who<br />

built <strong>the</strong>ir residence here in <strong>the</strong> sixteenth<br />

century, a large palace, well-conserved and<br />

restored, with two churches alongside it,<br />

Ayia Ekaterina and Ayios Ioannis. Atop <strong>the</strong><br />

main door is <strong>the</strong> family crest of two<br />

mermaids, while inside it opens onto a large<br />

hall with barrel-vaulting and a stairway<br />

which once led to <strong>the</strong> now non-existent<br />

upper floor.<br />

Castles, churches<br />

and palaces testify<br />

to <strong>the</strong> power of<br />

Venetian rule which<br />

lasted for over four<br />

centuries<br />

93


The palace at Etia<br />

with its two small<br />

churches has<br />

been carefully<br />

restored and is<br />

now listed as a<br />

national<br />

monument<br />

The mansion house at<br />

Etia is one of <strong>the</strong> most<br />

representative<br />

examples of Venetian<br />

architecture in<br />

eastern <strong>Crete</strong>. There<br />

was originally a<br />

second floor but <strong>the</strong><br />

building fell in at <strong>the</strong><br />

beginning of <strong>the</strong><br />

nineteenth century


Continuing on towards Armeni and<br />

Handras (two agricultural villages famous<br />

for <strong>the</strong>ir wine and <strong>the</strong> production of<br />

sultanas, which are left to dry on great<br />

sheets stretched out in <strong>the</strong> sun), one arrives<br />

at Voila, ano<strong>the</strong>r important Venetian feudal<br />

estate belonging to <strong>the</strong> Zeno family who,<br />

following <strong>the</strong> Turkish conquest, converted<br />

to Islam: <strong>the</strong>ir sons became fanatical<br />

janissaries, transforming <strong>the</strong> Italian surname<br />

into Tzin-Ali. Of <strong>the</strong> Venetian/Turkish village<br />

<strong>the</strong>re remains <strong>the</strong> imposing tower of <strong>the</strong><br />

palace/fortress with crests and relief<br />

sculptures carved on <strong>the</strong> entrances.<br />

The fertile valley<br />

near Armeni e<br />

Handras was once<br />

Venetian territory,<br />

but after <strong>the</strong> feud of<br />

Voila was ruled by a<br />

Turkish-Venetian<br />

janissary<br />

Alongside <strong>the</strong> palace we can see <strong>the</strong><br />

ruins of <strong>the</strong> church of Ayios Panteleimonas<br />

and some stone houses with blackened<br />

ovens and fireplaces that attest to <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

sporadic use by shepherds and local farmers.<br />

Coming back down past scattered rocks and<br />

boulders, one arrives at a beautiful fountain<br />

in <strong>the</strong> Turkish style with an enclosed garden.<br />

Overhead is <strong>the</strong> church of Ayios Georgios<br />

which houses <strong>the</strong> tomb of <strong>the</strong> Cretan<br />

95


C H A P T E R 4<br />

Salomons, <strong>the</strong> family which<br />

was to give Greece one of<br />

her famous <strong>the</strong>ologians,<br />

Jacopo, and <strong>the</strong> poet<br />

Diorisi.<br />

Ano<strong>the</strong>r village,<br />

Katelionas (which would<br />

be almost camouflaged<br />

among <strong>the</strong> rocks were it<br />

not for two white churches<br />

that shine in <strong>the</strong> sunlight) contains traces<br />

of <strong>the</strong> Venetian presence of <strong>the</strong> sixteenth<br />

century, when it was a large town with a<br />

population of thousands. The Ottomans<br />

forced <strong>the</strong> residents to convert to Islam or<br />

risk expulsion. Katelionas slowly emptied<br />

and was never repopulated.<br />

96


Returning towards Armeni, where on<br />

<strong>the</strong> crest of <strong>the</strong> hill <strong>the</strong> blades of a wind farm<br />

spin dizzyingly, on <strong>the</strong> plain below one can<br />

make out <strong>the</strong> ruins of <strong>the</strong> monastery of Ayia<br />

Sofia, of which <strong>the</strong>re remain some Venetianera<br />

rooms surmounted by wide arches and<br />

blocks from columns and capitals. Used for<br />

a short time as a school during <strong>the</strong> Turkish<br />

occupation, but ever since with nei<strong>the</strong>r<br />

students nor vocation, <strong>the</strong> grey stone<br />

monastery has fallen into total abandon.<br />

Ruins and small<br />

churches are<br />

reminders of <strong>the</strong><br />

past centuries,<br />

often troubled and<br />

rife with<br />

intolerance<br />

Lifting one's eyes up from <strong>the</strong><br />

monastery to <strong>the</strong> high wall of rock that<br />

faces onto a narrow gorge, one can see two<br />

small cave churches dedicated to Ayio<br />

Pneuma. Both little churches are modest,<br />

dug into <strong>the</strong> rock, and <strong>the</strong>ir iconostases too<br />

are simple screens between <strong>the</strong> altar and <strong>the</strong><br />

space reserved for <strong>the</strong> faithful, with a few<br />

icons of <strong>the</strong> saints, but it is worthwhile<br />

climbing up this far to sit on <strong>the</strong> stone<br />

benches and meditate, on <strong>the</strong> beauty of<br />

<strong>the</strong> nature here and of <strong>the</strong> sky amid <strong>the</strong><br />

great silence.<br />

97


C H A P T E R 4<br />

In <strong>the</strong> silent villages<br />

Time seems to stop<br />

in <strong>the</strong> archaic and<br />

unsullied landscape<br />

around Perivolakia<br />

To better understand <strong>the</strong> spirit of this<br />

region we would suggest a visit to <strong>the</strong><br />

villages that tourism has forgotten, like<br />

Perivolakia and Drongari, set into a<br />

landscape both wild and sensual and<br />

approachable via a narrow path along <strong>the</strong><br />

gorge that lies halfway down <strong>the</strong> slope<br />

beneath <strong>the</strong> little churches of Ayio Pneuma.<br />

Where <strong>the</strong> gorge ends one encounters a<br />

small plateau with thistles and thorny<br />

bushes amid farmhouses, all deserted, save<br />

one which appears to be inhabited by<br />

someone fairly eccentric who has decorated<br />

<strong>the</strong> house with odds and ends that vary from<br />

old pieces of iron to ox-horns and empty tin<br />

cans. The place is called Epano Perivolakia<br />

and was abandoned after a terrible<br />

earthquake.<br />

98<br />

Fur<strong>the</strong>r down, settled among <strong>the</strong> olive<br />

trees, Kato Perivolakia appears, a group of<br />

low white houses with flat roofs and<br />

terracotta chimney pots. In Venetian times it<br />

was a rich agricultural village, but now <strong>the</strong><br />

life in its streets seems to have stopped still<br />

and <strong>the</strong> few remaining inhabitants gaze


in wonder at <strong>the</strong> rare visitors who come this<br />

far. Yet more desolate is <strong>the</strong> old stone<br />

hamlet on a ridge at <strong>the</strong> beginning of <strong>the</strong><br />

Perivolakia gorge, which descends between<br />

great boulders and open tree trunks towards<br />

Kapsa Monastery on <strong>the</strong> sou<strong>the</strong>rn coast. The<br />

site has <strong>the</strong> rough beauty of a fortified<br />

village and it is with amazement that one<br />

notices that behind those impenetrable<br />

walls some homes have been rebuilt with<br />

tiny gardens in which <strong>the</strong>re grow almonds<br />

and pomegranates.<br />

Continuing along a dirt road in <strong>the</strong><br />

direction of Apidia one can visit <strong>the</strong> ruins<br />

of <strong>the</strong> medieval village of Drongari, which<br />

emerges amid hay fields and olive trees with<br />

its grey stones that once formed homes,<br />

shops, stables and storehouses. Over <strong>the</strong> last<br />

few years it has all but completely fallen in,<br />

Great silence and<br />

<strong>the</strong> scent of wild<br />

flowers are this<br />

spot's only riches<br />

but one can still make out arched doorways<br />

and rooms with stairs, niches and stone<br />

seats. On <strong>the</strong> platform that marks <strong>the</strong><br />

entrance to <strong>the</strong> ruins, a bare white church<br />

has been erected with a wooden iconostasis<br />

with brightly-coloured paintings.<br />

99


C H A P T E R 4<br />

Along <strong>the</strong> coast of<br />

<strong>the</strong> Libyan sea<br />

From outside <strong>the</strong><br />

church seems<br />

ra<strong>the</strong>r poor, but<br />

inside it boasts<br />

surprisingly<br />

beautiful frescoes<br />

and holy icons<br />

Back on <strong>the</strong> main road leading to <strong>the</strong> sea,<br />

<strong>the</strong> white town of Lithines comes into view,<br />

and merits a stop: it is a lively and well-kept<br />

place with restored houses, flower-filled<br />

gardens and labyrinthine streets. The site<br />

was know as far back as pre-Hellenistic<br />

times, but acquired real importance only in<br />

<strong>the</strong> Byzantine and Venetian eras when it<br />

took <strong>the</strong> name of <strong>the</strong> aristocratic Lithini<br />

family who, in 1591, built <strong>the</strong> church of Ayios<br />

Athanasios in <strong>the</strong> town square. Here was<br />

buried <strong>the</strong> Venetian patrician Gerolamo<br />

Vlasto, fighter for <strong>the</strong> freedom of <strong>Crete</strong> and<br />

refined man of letters. Of <strong>the</strong> small castle<br />

which was once to be found in <strong>the</strong> middle<br />

of <strong>the</strong> village <strong>the</strong>re remain only a few<br />

fragments of reliefs which are now<br />

incorporated into <strong>the</strong> church.<br />

100


101


C H A P T E R 4<br />

The Venetian<br />

style of<br />

architecture<br />

and decoration<br />

continued to be<br />

adopted by<br />

local craftsmen<br />

even after<br />

Venetian rule<br />

ended<br />

Mysteriously dark, <strong>the</strong> church of<br />

Panayia Hodegetria ("<strong>the</strong> Virgin who shows<br />

<strong>the</strong> true path") is entirely frescoed.<br />

Blackened with smoke from <strong>the</strong> candles, it<br />

houses a precious icon of <strong>the</strong> Madonna from<br />

<strong>the</strong> fourteenth century:<br />

from <strong>the</strong> image <strong>the</strong>re<br />

hang hundreds of silver<br />

ex votos - eyes, hands,<br />

feet, figures of men,<br />

women and children<br />

invoking mercy - held by<br />

fine chains so that <strong>the</strong>y<br />

form a wide, tiered skirt<br />

of metal right down to<br />

<strong>the</strong> floor.<br />

The third church of Lithines is dedicated<br />

to <strong>the</strong> Ayia Triada and to Ayios Haralambos.<br />

It has two apses and dates back to 1886. Its<br />

beautiful portals with relief sculptures were<br />

probably salvaged from an older Venetian<br />

building.<br />

102<br />

After Lithines <strong>the</strong> road drops steeply<br />

towards <strong>the</strong> Libyan sea where we find <strong>the</strong><br />

coastal village of Makryyialos with a small<br />

fishing port. Two ancient constructions have<br />

been found here, a Roman villa facing <strong>the</strong><br />

sea and a Minoan villa on a flat area of land<br />

higher up, both hidden among <strong>the</strong> modern<br />

houses.


The Roman villa dates back to <strong>the</strong> first<br />

century A.D. and has a regular plan with a<br />

central courtyard surrounded by many<br />

rooms including small baths and a semicircular<br />

pool - possibly a fish pond. Judging<br />

from <strong>the</strong> precious pavement mosaics and<br />

<strong>the</strong> fragments of marble that decorated <strong>the</strong><br />

walls, this was a luxury abode.<br />

The large Minoan villa belongs to <strong>the</strong><br />

Second Palace period, it has a surrounding<br />

wall and is divided into numerous rooms<br />

with traces of cobbled flooring. The villa had<br />

strong links with <strong>the</strong> religious cults of <strong>the</strong><br />

Minoans because inside <strong>the</strong>re have been<br />

found stone altars, a chamber for ritual<br />

banquets and a magnificent seal on which<br />

<strong>the</strong>re is inscribed a ship with a sanctuary<br />

floating on <strong>the</strong> waves, symbol of <strong>the</strong> sea<br />

gods.<br />

Turning instead towards <strong>the</strong> line of<br />

coast that leads eastwards, we encounter<br />

<strong>the</strong> fifteenth-century monastery of Kapsa,<br />

clinging to <strong>the</strong> high rocks and dedicated to<br />

St John <strong>the</strong> Baptist. In <strong>the</strong> mid 1800s <strong>the</strong><br />

monastery became <strong>the</strong> property of <strong>the</strong><br />

adventurer Yerontoyiannis, a decidedly<br />

controversial character: repenting of a life<br />

of dissolution he became a monk, dedicating<br />

himself to <strong>the</strong> poor, healing <strong>the</strong> sick and<br />

working miracles. Ever since Yerontoyiannis<br />

has been venerated as a saint and every 29 th<br />

August a great feast is dedicated to him at<br />

<strong>the</strong> monastery.<br />

The ancient<br />

settlements, villas<br />

and monasteries<br />

were rarely built on<br />

exposed stretches<br />

of coast because<br />

<strong>the</strong> population<br />

feared foreign<br />

invaders coming<br />

from <strong>the</strong> sea<br />

103


C H A P T E R 4<br />

The island of Koufonissi:<br />

a very special outing<br />

Murex shells are<br />

still to be found<br />

on <strong>the</strong> sandy<br />

beaches of <strong>the</strong><br />

island of<br />

Koufonissi<br />

In <strong>the</strong> summer when <strong>the</strong> sea is calm, a<br />

passenger ferry sets out from <strong>the</strong> port of<br />

Makryyialos for <strong>the</strong> uninhabited island of<br />

Koufonissi (<strong>the</strong> ancient Lefki). White<br />

beaches, crystalline, turquoise waters and<br />

ancient remains make this island an<br />

uncontaminated little paradise, and<br />

exploring it on foot leaves one feeling as free<br />

as <strong>the</strong> birds that wheel between its sea and<br />

<strong>the</strong> sky. Koufonissi has not always been so<br />

silent: in <strong>the</strong> Graeco-Roman period <strong>the</strong><br />

island had a flourishing industry producing<br />

<strong>the</strong> red-purple dye that is extracted from <strong>the</strong><br />

muscles of <strong>the</strong> murex shellfish that are to be<br />

caught in <strong>the</strong> surrounding sea, a dye which<br />

was sold on at great price. The inhabitants of<br />

Koufonissi had commercial dealings with <strong>the</strong><br />

city states of Hierapytna, Itanos and Pressos<br />

and also with A<strong>the</strong>ns and Rome where use<br />

of <strong>the</strong> colour purple was reserved for <strong>the</strong><br />

clothing of <strong>the</strong> aristocracy.<br />

A twelve-tiered Roman <strong>the</strong>atre of <strong>the</strong><br />

fourth century A.D., a temple dedicated to<br />

104


Zeus, an aqueduct and <strong>the</strong> remains of a<br />

Roman villa with columns of porphyry and<br />

mosaic floors all attest to <strong>the</strong> wealth of <strong>the</strong><br />

past. Koufonissi was inhabited up until <strong>the</strong><br />

Byzantine era, as is demonstrated by <strong>the</strong><br />

walls beside <strong>the</strong> sea. Sailing around <strong>the</strong><br />

island, one notes graffiti on <strong>the</strong> rocks<br />

representing sailing-ships, smaller boats and<br />

holy images: <strong>the</strong>y were scratched <strong>the</strong>re by<br />

<strong>the</strong> shipwrecked and by sailors and pirates<br />

whom <strong>the</strong> wind had driven onto <strong>the</strong> rocks.<br />

105


107


CHAPTER 5<br />

PLACES OF WORSHIP<br />

UNDER A VAST SKY


PEAK SANCTUARIES<br />

MONI TOPLOU<br />

ITANOS<br />

PALAEKASTRO<br />

KARYDI<br />

ZAKROS<br />

ETIA<br />

AMBELOS


C H A P T E R 5<br />

Mountain-top sanctuaries<br />

In <strong>the</strong> easternmost part of <strong>Crete</strong> we find<br />

<strong>the</strong> traces of one of <strong>the</strong> most important and<br />

mysterious religious manifestations of <strong>the</strong><br />

Minoan Civilization: <strong>the</strong> rites of worship that<br />

took place on <strong>the</strong> mountain peaks. The peak<br />

sanctuaries originated in <strong>the</strong> Middle<br />

Minoan period, around 2000 B.C., and<br />

remained functional up to <strong>the</strong> time of <strong>the</strong><br />

Eteocretans. According to <strong>the</strong> Greek<br />

archaeologist Costis Davaras, in <strong>the</strong> area<br />

between Itanos and Goudouras alone <strong>the</strong>re<br />

are concentrated a full nine sacred<br />

mountains, <strong>the</strong> best-known of which are<br />

Petsofas and Modi above Palaekastro,<br />

Traostalos and Vigla on <strong>the</strong> road to Zakros,<br />

Kalamaki near Itanos, and Prinias and<br />

Piskokephalo which are found just outside<br />

Sitia.<br />

110<br />

Our knowledge of<br />

Minoan religion is<br />

still very limited.<br />

The finds from<br />

peak-sanctuaries,<br />

caves, domestic<br />

shrines and tombs<br />

seem to indicate<br />

that <strong>the</strong> natural<br />

world played an<br />

important part in<br />

magical<br />

ceremonies<br />

The traveller notes nothing in<br />

particular, if not <strong>the</strong> mountain peaks with<br />

irregular rock formations which contrast<br />

with <strong>the</strong> surrounding landscape and catch<br />

<strong>the</strong> eye: a conical summit, jagged boulders,<br />

rings of rock or majestic ridges. Many of<br />

<strong>the</strong>se sanctuaries did not even have a sacred<br />

enclosure (only on <strong>the</strong> mountain of Petsofas<br />

do <strong>the</strong> walls of a temenos remain), and for<br />

this reason scholars believe that <strong>the</strong> devout<br />

made <strong>the</strong>ir way to <strong>the</strong> mountain tops simply<br />

to pray close to <strong>the</strong> sky, where <strong>the</strong> gods


111


C H A P T E R 5<br />

The peak<br />

sanctuary on<br />

Mount Petsofas<br />

is one of <strong>the</strong> few<br />

sacred sites<br />

with remains of<br />

a shrine<br />

A quantity of<br />

clay scarabs<br />

have been<br />

found at <strong>the</strong><br />

peak sanctuary<br />

of Prinias<br />

could more easily manifest <strong>the</strong>mselves. The<br />

mountain belonged to <strong>the</strong> gods, and to<br />

indicate <strong>the</strong> sacredness of <strong>the</strong> place was<br />

unnecessary.<br />

The Minoans brought precious<br />

offerings to <strong>the</strong> gods - objects in gold, ivory<br />

and bronze, or spontaneous gifts modelled<br />

in clay: domestic animals such as goats,<br />

oxen, bulls and sheep, but also birds, snakes,<br />

tortoises and insects and many figurines,<br />

both male and female, in <strong>the</strong> gesture of<br />

worship with both arms raised above <strong>the</strong><br />

head or with a closed fist held to <strong>the</strong><br />

forehead. They invoked <strong>the</strong> benevolence<br />

of <strong>the</strong> gods, for a good year, for an abundant<br />

harvest or for <strong>the</strong> healing of <strong>the</strong>ir physical<br />

ills: many feet, hands, arms, legs and little<br />

heads have been found in <strong>the</strong> crevasses<br />

between <strong>the</strong> rocks, along with miniature<br />

vases and objects of domestic and<br />

agricultural use.<br />

Votive<br />

offerings were<br />

hidden in<br />

fissures and<br />

cracks in <strong>the</strong><br />

rocks<br />

112


Which deities were<br />

worshipped at <strong>the</strong><br />

peak sanctuaries is<br />

still unknown, but<br />

sacred figures -<br />

especially female -<br />

are often<br />

identifiable<br />

engraved on seals<br />

or painted on<br />

pottery and clay<br />

sarcophagi<br />

For <strong>the</strong> Minoans nature was sacred and<br />

had no need of manipulation. Many plant<br />

symbols appear on <strong>the</strong>ir seals and in <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

painting: olive trees, fig trees, palms, oaks,<br />

pillars<br />

crowned with<br />

treetops,<br />

flowers, fruit<br />

and scattered<br />

leaves, and<br />

water was<br />

present too:<br />

<strong>the</strong> waves of<br />

<strong>the</strong> sea on<br />

which <strong>the</strong>re<br />

sailed <strong>the</strong><br />

boats with<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir sacrificial<br />

altars.<br />

Many of <strong>the</strong><br />

discoveries made relating to <strong>the</strong>se peak<br />

sanctuaries are owed to <strong>the</strong> French scholar,<br />

and tireless traveller, Paul Faure who, in <strong>the</strong><br />

mid twentieth century scoured <strong>the</strong><br />

mountains and grottos of <strong>Crete</strong> on foot in<br />

search of <strong>the</strong> traces of <strong>the</strong> civilian and<br />

religious life of <strong>the</strong> Minoans. Many<br />

archaeologists have used Faure's travel<br />

notes and books as <strong>the</strong> basis of in-depth<br />

studies of <strong>the</strong> sites that he indicated.<br />

Figurines in <strong>the</strong><br />

shape of bulls were<br />

a symbol of<br />

strength,<br />

independence and<br />

fertility<br />

The reconstruction<br />

of <strong>the</strong> peak<br />

sanctuary of<br />

Petsofas<br />

includes a fairly<br />

large temenos<br />

built into <strong>the</strong><br />

rocks<br />

113


At <strong>the</strong> Museum of<br />

Ayios Nikolaos all<br />

sorts of votive<br />

offerings from <strong>the</strong><br />

peak sanctuaries<br />

are on show: small<br />

clay animals,<br />

pottery, and legs<br />

and arms, used to<br />

ask <strong>the</strong> gods for<br />

good health or a<br />

rich harvest<br />

The small clay<br />

figurines - both<br />

male and female -<br />

are in <strong>the</strong> typical<br />

worshiping pose<br />

of <strong>the</strong> Minoans


Archaeologists<br />

have also found<br />

bronze figurines<br />

and animals and<br />

objects in gold.<br />

The peak<br />

sanctuaries first<br />

appear in <strong>the</strong><br />

Middle Minoan<br />

period and some<br />

remained in use up<br />

until <strong>the</strong> Late<br />

Minoan period<br />

The female<br />

figurines have<br />

elaborate<br />

hairstyles and<br />

wide skirts, while<br />

<strong>the</strong> male figures<br />

wear only <strong>the</strong><br />

sacred knot and<br />

a dagger


C H A P T E R 5<br />

Travelling towards <strong>the</strong><br />

“deserted city”<br />

From Sitia <strong>the</strong> road continues along <strong>the</strong><br />

coast towards <strong>the</strong> easternmost point of<br />

<strong>Crete</strong> in a harsh, bare landscape, its few trees<br />

bent by <strong>the</strong> wind which blows angrily here.<br />

In <strong>the</strong> midst of this wild nature <strong>the</strong>re rises<br />

<strong>the</strong> fortress-like monastery of Toplou, which<br />

takes its name from <strong>the</strong> Turkish word top,<br />

cannon, because <strong>the</strong> Venetians had<br />

equipped <strong>the</strong> complex with a powerful<br />

artillery. Dedicated to <strong>the</strong> Panayia Akrotiriani<br />

("<strong>the</strong> Virgin of <strong>the</strong> ridge"), <strong>the</strong> monastery was<br />

founded in <strong>the</strong> fourteenth century by <strong>the</strong><br />

noble Venetian Cornaro family, but thanks<br />

to armed conflicts and earthquakes, Toplou<br />

Monastery has been damaged and rebuilt<br />

many times.<br />

Toplou<br />

Monastery is one<br />

of <strong>the</strong> most<br />

important<br />

monasteries on<br />

<strong>Crete</strong>, erected in<br />

<strong>the</strong> middle of a<br />

fertile plateau<br />

halfway to<br />

Palaekastro. In<br />

<strong>the</strong> past <strong>the</strong><br />

monastery held<br />

land from Capo<br />

Sideros all <strong>the</strong><br />

way to <strong>the</strong> south<br />

coast - mainly<br />

received as gifts<br />

from <strong>the</strong> rich and<br />

devoted families<br />

of Sitia<br />

116


Inside <strong>the</strong> monastery <strong>the</strong> monks have<br />

organised an interesting museum with<br />

antique engravings, illuminated<br />

manuscripts, historical documents and holy<br />

icons, an outstanding example of which is<br />

<strong>the</strong> work painted by <strong>the</strong> eighteenth-century<br />

artist Ioannis Kornaros when he was only<br />

twenty-five years old. The icon is inspired by<br />

<strong>the</strong> psalm "Lord, thou art great", and<br />

represents 61 biblical scenes (in particular,<br />

<strong>the</strong> creation) with hundreds of figures in <strong>the</strong><br />

style of <strong>the</strong> miniaturists.<br />

The monastery's<br />

museum has a rich<br />

collection of<br />

ancient documents<br />

and icons: <strong>the</strong> most<br />

famous is <strong>the</strong><br />

painting by Ioannis<br />

Kornaros<br />

The monastery of Toplou also possesses<br />

a precious stone tablet with Greek<br />

inscriptions dating from 146 B.C., this is <strong>the</strong><br />

treaty between <strong>the</strong> city states of Itanos and<br />

Hierapytna concerning <strong>the</strong> ownership of<br />

and trading rights regarding <strong>the</strong> purple dye<br />

that was produced on <strong>the</strong> island of<br />

Koufonissi. The arbitrator in this dispute was<br />

<strong>the</strong> governor of <strong>the</strong> Roman city of Magnesia<br />

in Asia Minor where an identical copy of <strong>the</strong><br />

ancient treaty has been found. The<br />

inscription was discovered in 1834 at Itanos<br />

by <strong>the</strong> British diplomat and traveller Robert<br />

Pashley, who brought it to Toplou where it<br />

was reused as an altar table and later walled<br />

into <strong>the</strong> facade of <strong>the</strong> chapel.<br />

The inscription on<br />

<strong>the</strong> stone tablet<br />

tells of <strong>the</strong> treaty<br />

made between <strong>the</strong><br />

city states of Itanos<br />

and Hierapytna in<br />

<strong>the</strong> year 146 B.C.<br />

117


118<br />

C H A P T E R 5


The landscape appears increasingly<br />

parched and desolate as we continue along<br />

<strong>the</strong> road towards <strong>the</strong> bay of Grandes,<br />

passing semi-abandoned farmhouses, great<br />

swa<strong>the</strong>s of shrubs toughened by <strong>the</strong> sun<br />

and <strong>the</strong> sea salt, enclosed pastures for <strong>the</strong><br />

herds of long-haired goats, and fields<br />

cultivated with melons, grapes and bananas<br />

which belong to <strong>the</strong> monastic community<br />

of Toplou. On a promontory overhanging<br />

<strong>the</strong> sea one can make out <strong>the</strong> ruins of<br />

ancient Itanos, later called Erimoupolis,<br />

<strong>the</strong> deserted city. Legend tells that<br />

Itanos belonged to <strong>the</strong> Kouretes, <strong>the</strong> young<br />

warriors who danced and beat <strong>the</strong>ir arms<br />

hard on <strong>the</strong>ir shields to cover <strong>the</strong> noise of<br />

<strong>the</strong> whimpering baby Zeus, born in <strong>the</strong><br />

grotto of Mount Dikti (or perhaps on Mount<br />

Ida).<br />

The ruins of<br />

Itanos - later<br />

called<br />

Erimoupolis, <strong>the</strong><br />

deserted city -<br />

are spread wide<br />

over <strong>the</strong> coastal<br />

area, with traces<br />

of Minoan,<br />

Hellenistic and<br />

Roman<br />

constructions<br />

and also early<br />

Christian<br />

remains<br />

Inhabited by <strong>the</strong> Minoans and later<br />

becoming a Phoenician trading post, Itanos<br />

was considered one of <strong>the</strong> most powerful<br />

city states of <strong>the</strong> Graeco-Roman era, it held<br />

<strong>the</strong> right to mint coins and controlled <strong>the</strong><br />

maritime trade between <strong>the</strong> Orient, Egypt<br />

and <strong>the</strong> Mediterranean. The only dangerous<br />

rival was Hierapytna which had<br />

demonstrated its bellicose intentions in<br />

destroying <strong>the</strong> city-state of Pressos, ally of<br />

Itanos. The relationship with Egypt was so<br />

strong that in <strong>the</strong> third century B.C. <strong>the</strong><br />

119


C H A P T E R 5<br />

The Christian<br />

basilica has<br />

fallen into ruin,<br />

but contains <strong>the</strong><br />

columns of <strong>the</strong><br />

central nave,<br />

salvaged from<br />

Roman and<br />

Greek buildings<br />

populace could request <strong>the</strong> help of Ptolemy<br />

Philadelphos to bring down <strong>the</strong> aristocratic<br />

government that oppressed <strong>the</strong>m.<br />

In <strong>the</strong> ninth century <strong>the</strong> city, already badly<br />

damaged by an<br />

earthquake, was razed to<br />

<strong>the</strong> ground by pirates and,<br />

after some attempts at<br />

rebuilding it, was<br />

definitively abandoned in<br />

<strong>the</strong> fifteenth century,<br />

becoming <strong>the</strong> "deserted<br />

city". At Itanos we can see<br />

<strong>the</strong> ruins of each of <strong>the</strong><br />

city's periods of glory - <strong>the</strong><br />

walls of <strong>the</strong> Greek houses,<br />

<strong>the</strong> Hellenistic fortifications, <strong>the</strong> Roman<br />

storerooms dug into <strong>the</strong> rock, <strong>the</strong> necropolis<br />

and <strong>the</strong> remains of a three-naved early<br />

Christian basilica constructed with materials<br />

salvaged from <strong>the</strong> older buildings.<br />

A stone's throw from Itanos, <strong>the</strong> famous<br />

sandy beach of Vai stretches out in <strong>the</strong><br />

shade of a vast palm grove. Legend has it<br />

that it was <strong>the</strong> Saracens who brought <strong>the</strong><br />

palm to this area: pitching <strong>the</strong>ir tents near<br />

<strong>the</strong> shoreline and living off dates, <strong>the</strong> dense<br />

palm grove is thought to have grown from<br />

<strong>the</strong> date-pits that <strong>the</strong>y dropped <strong>the</strong>re.<br />

120


121


C H A P T E R 5<br />

Palaekastro and <strong>the</strong><br />

mountain villages<br />

Overlooking a<br />

natural harbour<br />

near <strong>the</strong> bay of<br />

Kouremenos, in<br />

<strong>the</strong> Middle<br />

Minoan period<br />

<strong>the</strong>re flourished<br />

a town today<br />

called<br />

Roussolakos - <strong>the</strong><br />

red hole -<br />

because of <strong>the</strong><br />

area's purple soil<br />

122<br />

The immense arc of <strong>the</strong> bay of<br />

Kouremenos (where nowadays <strong>the</strong><br />

students of a windsurfing school whisk past)<br />

was inhabited by an important Minoan<br />

community right from <strong>the</strong> dawn of that<br />

civilization. Among <strong>the</strong> olive groves of<br />

Palaekastro, in <strong>the</strong> area known as<br />

Roussolakos at <strong>the</strong> foot of Mount Petsofas<br />

(which watched over one of <strong>the</strong> most<br />

frequented peak sanctuaries of ancient<br />

times) a vast rosy-stoned Minoan settlement<br />

has been<br />

brought<br />

back to<br />

light. The<br />

real name<br />

of this city<br />

is not<br />

known, but<br />

we do<br />

know that later on <strong>the</strong> Greeks were to call it<br />

Heleia for its marshy terrain. Rectangular in<br />

plan with paved streets, steps and a dense<br />

weave of houses built one up against <strong>the</strong><br />

o<strong>the</strong>r to form small districts, <strong>the</strong> city enjoyed<br />

great prestige in <strong>the</strong> Middle Minoan period.<br />

Following <strong>the</strong> natural disaster of around<br />

1450 B.C. which destroyed all <strong>the</strong> palaces<br />

and cities of <strong>Crete</strong>, Palaekastro also


crumbled and <strong>the</strong> few survivors withdrew<br />

to <strong>the</strong> promontory of Kastri overlooking<br />

<strong>the</strong> bay.<br />

The city came to life again during <strong>the</strong><br />

Late Minoan period, and was still inhabited<br />

in <strong>the</strong> Greek era when a great sanctuary<br />

dedicated to Zeus was erected at some time<br />

during <strong>the</strong> eighth to sixth centuries B.C.<br />

When <strong>the</strong> archaeologists of <strong>the</strong> British school<br />

in A<strong>the</strong>ns arrived, <strong>the</strong> temple appeared to<br />

have been completely demolished, and yet<br />

among its ruins it concealed some important<br />

archaeological remains including a frieze<br />

representing a chariot, and a terracotta lion,<br />

The peak<br />

sanctuaries of<br />

Petsofas and Modi,<br />

with <strong>the</strong>ir stark<br />

conical profiles,<br />

were sacred to <strong>the</strong><br />

ancient population<br />

of Palaekastro and<br />

were places of<br />

worship up until<br />

<strong>the</strong> Roman period<br />

Every afternoon<br />

<strong>the</strong> fishing boats<br />

leave <strong>the</strong> small<br />

harbour of<br />

Palaekastro<br />

but above all here <strong>the</strong>re was discovered a<br />

stele carved with <strong>the</strong> famous "Hymn to Zeus<br />

Kouros", to Zeus <strong>the</strong> youth, <strong>the</strong> perfect image<br />

of <strong>the</strong> idealized hero, sung by <strong>the</strong> Kouretes<br />

and by <strong>the</strong> men who worshipped <strong>the</strong> "divine<br />

Zeus, native of <strong>Crete</strong>".<br />

123


124<br />

C H A P T E R 5


Turning right just before <strong>the</strong> entrance<br />

to <strong>the</strong> modern village of Palaekastro, one<br />

can follow a dirt road which leads right to <strong>the</strong><br />

base of <strong>the</strong> sacred mountain of Modi, <strong>the</strong><br />

conical outline of which stands out against<br />

<strong>the</strong> sky from a long way off. To reach <strong>the</strong><br />

summit, where <strong>the</strong> Minoans worshipped <strong>the</strong><br />

gods of nature, and from which one enjoys<br />

a magnificent view over <strong>the</strong> whole of <strong>the</strong><br />

eastern coast, one must pick one's way<br />

through rocks and brushwood, ideally<br />

following <strong>the</strong> winding goat tracks.<br />

From <strong>the</strong> sacred<br />

mountain of Modi a<br />

dirt track leads to<br />

small villages now<br />

partly abandoned,<br />

but with<br />

interesting<br />

traditional houses<br />

The route continues past a forest<br />

formed by <strong>the</strong> mills of a wind-farm and<br />

groups of houses with modest gardens that<br />

are swept by <strong>the</strong> perennial winds, as far as<br />

Mitato and Vrysidi, two tiny hamlets with<br />

few inhabitants. The soil takes on a rosy hue<br />

as <strong>the</strong> path reaches Karydi with its low,<br />

125


C H A P T E R 5<br />

A deep, dark<br />

hole marks <strong>the</strong><br />

entrance to <strong>the</strong><br />

large grotto of<br />

Peristeria<br />

situated<br />

between Karydi<br />

and Adravasti<br />

square houses (most of which are no longer<br />

inhabited) with doors and windows that bang<br />

with every gust of <strong>the</strong> wind - <strong>the</strong> only master<br />

in this ancient village. In <strong>the</strong> bare hills<br />

surrounding Karydi <strong>the</strong> deep grotto of<br />

Peristeria is to be found, opening its<br />

immense<br />

crater-like<br />

mouth<br />

amid <strong>the</strong><br />

thistles. At<br />

this point<br />

<strong>the</strong><br />

landscape<br />

becomes<br />

almost<br />

lunar,<br />

among<br />

pointed rocks that take on <strong>the</strong> form of<br />

animals or little stone monsters curled up<br />

between <strong>the</strong> bushes: venturing on foot over<br />

<strong>the</strong> uneven terrain, clambering over <strong>the</strong><br />

ridges of <strong>the</strong> hills and looking down towards<br />

<strong>the</strong> dark precipices, <strong>the</strong> silence of this land<br />

becomes almost unbearable.<br />

The white<br />

village of<br />

Sitanos<br />

126


Turning back towards Karydi and<br />

following <strong>the</strong> road to Ziros, <strong>the</strong> snow-white<br />

village of Sitanos awaits us, built on <strong>the</strong><br />

slope of hill with labyrinthine alleyways and<br />

flat roofs on which onions, figs and pulses<br />

are laid out to dry in <strong>the</strong> sun. Underground<br />

watercourses have rendered this strip of land<br />

more fertile and <strong>the</strong> landscape is softer here<br />

among vast fields, vineyards and isolated<br />

cypresses.<br />

The area around<br />

Sitanos and<br />

Armeni is<br />

famous for its<br />

grapes and good<br />

wine<br />

127


C H A P T E R 5<br />

Zakros and <strong>the</strong> Valley<br />

of <strong>the</strong> Dead<br />

From <strong>the</strong> top of<br />

<strong>the</strong> sacred peak<br />

of Traostalos<br />

you can see <strong>the</strong><br />

grottoes that<br />

mark <strong>the</strong><br />

entrance to <strong>the</strong><br />

Hochlakies<br />

gorge<br />

As one leaves <strong>the</strong> village of Palaekastro a<br />

sign indicates <strong>the</strong> road for Zakros, one of <strong>the</strong><br />

great Minoan palaces of <strong>Crete</strong>. The land<br />

between <strong>the</strong> two mountain chains that flank<br />

<strong>the</strong> valley is fertile and is cultivated by <strong>the</strong><br />

farmers who live in <strong>the</strong> small traditional<br />

villages of <strong>the</strong> area. Just past <strong>the</strong> houses of<br />

Hochlakies a narrow gorge begins: <strong>the</strong> way<br />

is almost blocked by<br />

gigantic boulders<br />

and a dense<br />

vegetation, but at<br />

<strong>the</strong> end it opens<br />

suddenly onto a<br />

great marshy<br />

meadow with beds<br />

of reeds which are<br />

used for making<br />

matting and baskets.<br />

Fur<strong>the</strong>r on, a lonely<br />

beach of round<br />

pebbles stretches<br />

128


out before an eternally calm sea sheltered<br />

by <strong>the</strong> cliffs on ei<strong>the</strong>r side.<br />

Behind a little cemetery with a small<br />

white church that is level with <strong>the</strong> village of<br />

Azokeramos, <strong>the</strong> climb towards <strong>the</strong> Minoan<br />

peak sanctuary of Traostalos begins. The<br />

path of pink soil contrasts with <strong>the</strong> dark<br />

green bushes of thyme and sage, with <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

scented flowers that feed <strong>the</strong> bees whose<br />

honey has an intense and aromatic flavour.<br />

At <strong>the</strong> summit a group of lighter-coloured<br />

rocks marks out a natural sacred enclosure,<br />

and <strong>the</strong> terrain is scattered with tiny<br />

fragments of terracotta, chippings from <strong>the</strong><br />

votive offerings of <strong>the</strong> Minoans.<br />

Once past <strong>the</strong> modern village of Zakros,<br />

a small clearing marks <strong>the</strong> beginning of <strong>the</strong><br />

descent towards a deep gorge that runs out<br />

into <strong>the</strong> creek of Kato Zakros where<br />

<strong>the</strong> Minoan palace lies. Following<br />

<strong>the</strong> twisted path of <strong>the</strong> gorge past<br />

stones, pools of water and oleander<br />

bushes, on <strong>the</strong> rock walls one notes<br />

numerous caves cut into <strong>the</strong> stone:<br />

<strong>the</strong>se are Minoan graves, rock<br />

tombs that have given <strong>the</strong> gorge<br />

its name of "Valley of Death".<br />

129


C H A P T E R 5<br />

The gorge known<br />

as <strong>the</strong> Valley of<br />

Death descends<br />

from <strong>the</strong> stoney<br />

heights of Kato<br />

Zakros as far as <strong>the</strong><br />

Minoan palace by<br />

<strong>the</strong> sea<br />

The asphalted road<br />

drops rapidly down towards<br />

<strong>the</strong> bay of Kato Zakros, with<br />

fishing boats at anchor along<br />

<strong>the</strong> shore and a row of<br />

taverns that offer fresh fish.<br />

The ancient palace of Zakros,<br />

with its city that extends<br />

across terracing on <strong>the</strong> hill<br />

above, dates back to <strong>the</strong><br />

Second Palace period from<br />

1600 to 1500 B.C. and was<br />

discovered by chance in 1901<br />

by <strong>the</strong> British archaeologist<br />

David Hogarth, while intense<br />

excavation was begun in<br />

1962 by Nikolaos Platon.<br />

Zakros's ancient masters lived<br />

opulently thanks to <strong>the</strong><br />

flourishing maritime trade<br />

that arrived from Egypt, Syria, Cyprus and<br />

Asia Minor. Even though it was <strong>the</strong> smallest<br />

of <strong>Crete</strong>'s four Minoan palaces, <strong>the</strong> Zakros<br />

residence had around 200 rooms, with<br />

banqueting halls, purificatory baths, shrines,<br />

130


<strong>the</strong> treasury, <strong>the</strong> megaron of <strong>the</strong> king and<br />

<strong>the</strong> megaron of <strong>the</strong> queen, and an immense<br />

archive-room in which hundreds of tablets<br />

inscribed with <strong>the</strong> Linear A script were found,<br />

still preserved in <strong>the</strong>ir boxes. In <strong>the</strong> various<br />

rooms more than two-hundred vases were<br />

discovered including real masterpieces<br />

such as a rhyton in rock crystal, as well as<br />

innumerable objects in bronze (axes, swords,<br />

knives, hammers and various forms of vessel),<br />

a very beautiful bull's head and many objects<br />

in ivory, faience and gold.<br />

The Minoan<br />

palace and town<br />

of Zakros<br />

possessed one<br />

of <strong>Crete</strong>'s most<br />

important<br />

harbours and<br />

became <strong>the</strong><br />

main gateway<br />

for trade with<br />

<strong>the</strong> Orient<br />

131


C H A P T E R 5<br />

The coast of <strong>the</strong> wild lilies<br />

The rough and<br />

stony land of<br />

easternmost <strong>Crete</strong><br />

is still untouched<br />

by <strong>the</strong> modern<br />

construction<br />

industry and mass<br />

tourism<br />

Just after <strong>the</strong> village of Zakros, a turning<br />

beside <strong>the</strong> roadside remains of a Minoan<br />

country villa indicates <strong>the</strong> way to<br />

Xerokampos on <strong>the</strong> coast of <strong>the</strong> Libyan sea.<br />

Amid olive groves, winding gorges and high<br />

mountains, at last <strong>the</strong> coast comes into view,<br />

little-inhabited and with wide beaches of<br />

sand and pebbles. Immediately to <strong>the</strong> right<br />

just before arriving at <strong>the</strong> village of<br />

Xerokampos, one finds a small sandy bay<br />

with emerald-green water and one of <strong>the</strong><br />

most beautiful beaches on <strong>Crete</strong>: right up to<br />

<strong>the</strong> water's edge <strong>the</strong>re grow snow-white lilies<br />

and rare succulents that come into flower<br />

under <strong>the</strong> baking midsummer sun.<br />

132


Following <strong>the</strong> shoreline, one notes<br />

a solitary small, white church built over<br />

an ancient Minoan settlement called<br />

Ambelos. Reoccupied in <strong>the</strong> Hellenistic<br />

period, it was later conquered by <strong>the</strong><br />

Romans. The cut of <strong>the</strong> stones has nothing<br />

of <strong>the</strong> monumental to it, but it is none<strong>the</strong>less<br />

interesting to observe <strong>the</strong> remains of <strong>the</strong><br />

ancient site which probably belonged to<br />

<strong>the</strong> kings of Zakros. Ambelos had a peak<br />

sanctuary of its own on <strong>the</strong> promontory that<br />

looks out over <strong>the</strong> two little islands in <strong>the</strong><br />

middle of <strong>the</strong> sea known as Kavali.<br />

The coast near<br />

Ambelos gives a<br />

good idea of what<br />

<strong>the</strong> island must<br />

have been like in<br />

ancient times<br />

Leaving<br />

Ambelos<br />

behind us,<br />

<strong>the</strong> landscape<br />

becomes everwilder<br />

and<br />

more arid<br />

while <strong>the</strong> sea<br />

glitters in <strong>the</strong><br />

sunlight, inviting one to take continual dips<br />

in its refreshing waters. We would<br />

recommend a walk up to <strong>the</strong> far promontory<br />

of Xerokampos which offers a magnificent<br />

view over <strong>the</strong> entire coast as far as Koufonissi.<br />

In one wall of rock <strong>the</strong> wind and <strong>the</strong> saltwater<br />

have carved a giant face with a wide-open<br />

mouth: it could easily be <strong>the</strong> face of <strong>the</strong><br />

gorgon Medusa,<br />

The sea cliffs have<br />

been eroded by<br />

water, wind and<br />

salt which have<br />

sculpted strange<br />

images into <strong>the</strong><br />

rock<br />

133


C H A P T E R 5<br />

sculpted by nature, ready to defend <strong>the</strong><br />

island. Nothing could be better than <strong>the</strong><br />

dizzying climb along <strong>the</strong> snaking road that<br />

leads towards <strong>the</strong> few houses of <strong>the</strong><br />

traditional hamlet of Hametoulo and,<br />

eventually, to Ziros, with its breathtaking<br />

panorama, for taking our leave of eastern<br />

<strong>Crete</strong>; wild, mysterious, secretive, austere<br />

and at <strong>the</strong><br />

same time<br />

warm and<br />

hospitable,<br />

rich in<br />

magnificent<br />

monuments<br />

and jealous<br />

of her many<br />

hidden<br />

beauties.<br />

134


135


137


140


Chronology<br />

7000 B.C. Stone Age, arrival of <strong>the</strong> first settlers<br />

6500-2800 B.C. Neolithic Age and <strong>the</strong> beginning of <strong>the</strong><br />

Bronze Age<br />

2800-2100 B.C. Arrival of <strong>the</strong> Minoans, pre-Palace period<br />

2100-2000 B.C. Beginning of <strong>the</strong> First Palace period<br />

2000-1700 B.C. Palace civilization, construction of <strong>the</strong> First<br />

Palaces<br />

1700 B.C. Destruction of <strong>the</strong> First Palaces by an<br />

earthquake<br />

1650-1500 B.C. Construction of <strong>the</strong> Second Palaces,<br />

Second Palace period<br />

1500-1450 B.C. Eruption of <strong>the</strong> volcano Thera and destruction<br />

of <strong>the</strong> Second Palaces<br />

1450-1200 B.C. Beginning of <strong>the</strong> post-Palace period,<br />

arrival of <strong>the</strong> Mycenaeans<br />

1200-1100 B.C. Beginning of <strong>the</strong> Iron Age<br />

1100-900 B.C. Invasion of <strong>the</strong> Dorians<br />

900-69 B.C. Geometric, Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic<br />

periods. Creation of <strong>the</strong> city states, extensive<br />

trade with <strong>the</strong> Near East and Egypt.<br />

69 B.C.-330 A.D. Roman conquest and <strong>the</strong> beginning<br />

of <strong>the</strong> Early Christian period<br />

330-830 A.D. First Byzantine period<br />

830-961 A.D. Invasion of <strong>the</strong> Arabs<br />

961-1204 A.D. Second Byzantine period<br />

1204-1669 A.D. Venetian dominion and <strong>the</strong> first stirrings<br />

of Cretan resistance<br />

1669-1898 A.D. Turkish occupation and very active<br />

Cretan resistance<br />

1898-1912 A.D. Liberation from Turkish occupation and<br />

creation of <strong>the</strong> Autonomous Cretan State<br />

under <strong>the</strong> protection of <strong>the</strong> European powers<br />

1913 A.D. Official union of <strong>Crete</strong> with Greece<br />

141


Glossary<br />

Acropolis -<br />

Ashlar-work -<br />

Ayios -Ayia<br />

Eteocretan -<br />

Dromos -<br />

Hestiatorion -<br />

Iconostasis -<br />

Kafeneion -<br />

Kastro -<br />

Katholikon -<br />

Kernos -<br />

Janissaries -<br />

Megaron -<br />

Mitate -<br />

Paleos -<br />

Panayia -<br />

ancient citadel<br />

square-hewn stone masonry or facing<br />

‘saint’ or ‘holy’<br />

'true Cretan', <strong>the</strong> last of <strong>the</strong> Minoan peoples<br />

in eastern <strong>Crete</strong><br />

'street', <strong>the</strong> unroofed passage leading<br />

into a tholos tomb<br />

banqueting chamber in ancient buildings<br />

screen between <strong>the</strong> altar and <strong>the</strong> nave<br />

of <strong>the</strong> (Orthodox) church<br />

coffeehouse<br />

castle or fortified area<br />

church or chapel within a monastery<br />

vessel used for religious rituals<br />

young Ottoman soldiers, guards selected<br />

from Christian families and forced to<br />

convert to Islam<br />

<strong>the</strong> great hall of Minoan and Mycenaean<br />

palaces<br />

small stone house<br />

'old'<br />

<strong>the</strong> Virgin Mary<br />

Peak sanctuary - ancient mountain-top shrine<br />

Pithos - large storage jar<br />

Polis -<br />

town<br />

Prytaneion - council chamber<br />

Raki -<br />

strong alcoholic drink produced on <strong>Crete</strong><br />

Rhyton - drinking horn, often in <strong>the</strong> form of an<br />

animal-head<br />

Spiti -<br />

house<br />

Temenos - sacred precinct<br />

Tholos - conical or beehive-shaped tomb<br />

142


TEXT<br />

JUDITH LANGE<br />

PHOTOGRAPHS<br />

JUDITH LANGE - MARIA STEFOSSI<br />

DESIGN - LAYOUT<br />

MARIA STEFOSSI<br />

ENGLISH TRANSLATION<br />

JULIA MACGIBBON<br />

PROOFREADING<br />

JOHN O’ SHEA<br />

COLOR SEPARATION - PRINTING - BINDING<br />

BIBLIOSYNERGATIKI S.A.<br />

The authors<br />

Judith Lange is a journalist, photographer and painter,<br />

Maria Stefossi is a photographer, graphic artist and editor.<br />

Both are great travellers. They have published numerous books toge<strong>the</strong>r,<br />

among <strong>the</strong> most recent of which are: Ancient Theatres, Ancient Stadia, <strong>Crete</strong>,<br />

Mani, Drama and Humble Beauty.<br />

143


www. bluegr.com

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!