Follow me…to the palace of Phaistos

Follow me…to the palace of Phaistos

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The palace of Phaistos is the second largest palace of

Minoan Crete with a surface area of 18,000sq.m. It is

located to the southwest of Herakleio, built on a hill at the

western corner of the fertile Mesara plain. The Phaistos

palace was constructed in two phases. The largest part of the palace that we see today dates

back to the 16th century BC.

KEY:

1. West court2. “Theatre”3. Circular pits4. Façade of the old palace5. Propylon6. Storerooms7. West wing sanctuaries 8. Central court9. Workshops10. Royal quarters11. Building in which the Phaistos Disk

was found12. Old palace spaces

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The broad staircase on one side of the court formed the seats of a theatre. From here the lords of Phaistos watched the official ceremonies and, maybe, the bull leaping games. Can you imagine what they watched?

We begin our tour of the palace from the large west paved court. Large pavement slabs created a walkway down its centre. This was the course for the processions related to the rituals held in the palace in which men and women alike participated. You can also follow the same course as if participating in a large celebration at the palace.

If you go towards the south, on a branch of this procession walkway, you will come across the circular pits, built deep into the ground, which were used to store goods, such as wheat.

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Follow the processional walkway and you will arrive at the propylon of the old palace. Certain walls belong to the first, older palace, while others to the second, newer palace. The wall that you see at the end of the corridor belongs to the old palace.

You have reached the official entry to the new palace! Follow the staircase of the imposing propylon to enter the palace.

After going straight to the large hall, where the visitors were received, turn right and go down the narrow staircase to reach the storage rooms. The palace goods, such as oil, wine, legumes and many others, were kept in large pithoi in each small room.

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If you cross the central court diagonally you will come to the workshops of the north wing. Palace craftsmen worked here. In the middle of the outdoor area was a furnace for smelting metals for the craftsmen who worked in bronze. Can you find it?

Following the same path to the northeast you will finally come out on the central court of the palace. It was paved and had columns all around, which initially formed stoes. The court was the heart and soul of the palace.

Head southwards down the hill and you will come across many small rooms next to each other. Religious objects were found in some, such as double axes and sacred symbols etched in the walls. These are the sacred rooms of the palace, where the rituals took place.

To reach the royal apartments you have to return to the central court (8) and enter through the beautiful northern gate. The recesses on the left and right of the entrance marked the positions of the guards. Straight ahead there are two luxurious apartments, belonging to the king and queen.

Don’t forget to visit this building… this is where the famous Phaistos disk with a Linear A script tablet were found. Perhaps the palace archives were kept here.

All of these small rooms belong to the old, first palace of Phaistos. They really look like a maze! However, this area is closed to the public.

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Project coordinator: Maria Lagogianni, Ph.D. archaeologist | Souzana Choulia - Kapeloni, archaeologist

General editors: Tonia Koutsouraki, archaeologist | Alexandra Seleli, archaeologist/museologist

Graphic Design editor: Spilios Pistas, graphic artist

Texts: Iro Mathioudaki, Ph.D. (Archaeology)

Editing of texts: Violetta Zefki, archaeologist - translator

Graphic Design: Pashalia Tsagarian, graphic designer

Illustrated by: Elias Karras, painter

Texts translation: Katerina Apostolaki, translator/interpreter

Bibliography: Hatzi – Vallianou, D., Phaistos, Athens 1989 | Pini Ε., Knossos, Faistos, Malia, Zakros, Erevnites publications, Athens 2004

Chrysoulaki St., Minoan Civilisation, Educational dossier Νο 3, MELINA PROJECT “O kosmos tis arhaiotitas (The world in ancient times)” Ministry of Culture – Ministry of Education and

Religious Affairs, Athens 1998. | http://odysseus.culture.gr, Phaistos, The Palace of Phaistos, 23rd Ephorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities

MINISTRY OF CULTURE AND SPORTSGENERAL DIRECTORATE OF ANTIQUITIES AND CULTURAL HERITAGE

DIRECTORATE OF MUSEUMS/DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS AND COMMUNICATION

Copyright © 2015 MINISTRY OF CULTURE AND SPORTSISBN 978-960-386-206-2

The leaflet “Follow me …to the palace of Phaistos”, part of the theme “Minoan Civilisation” was created and digitized in 2015, within the framework of Act code no. MIS 339815 “Updating and digitizing educational material to support the educational process, which is implemented by the Directorate of Museums as part of the Operational Programme “Education and Lifelong Learning” and jointly funded by the European Union (European Social Fund) and by national resources.