PHAISTOS

The Palace of Phaistos is one of the key centers of Minoan civilization in Crete, second in importance only to Knossos, and a major cultural attraction in southern Heraklion.

Human settlement in Phaistos traces back to the Neolithic era, with the introduction of metal use around the middle of the 3rd millennium BC, which spurred further development. At the start of the 2nd millennium, power shifted to kings who constructed grand palatial centers.

The initial palace was built around 1900 BC, known as the Protopalatial period. Together with the surrounding structures, it spanned an area of 18,000 square meters, slightly smaller than the Palace of Knossos. It was twice destroyed by significant earthquakes over approximately three centuries, leading to the construction of an even more magnificent palace in its place. Consequently, archaeologists can observe three distinct construction phases.

I particularly was in awe of the beautiful clay jogs or magazines used to store olive oil and other supplies.