Just weeks after the Minoan palaces officially joined the ranks of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites, Sitia welcomed the first official visit from the Greek National Committee. On the agenda? Strengthening Crete’s eastward ties to cultural diplomacy—and maybe, just maybe, laying the groundwork for more recognition.
UNESCO Greece Chair Aikaterini Tzitzikosta, accompanied by a small team of close collaborators, sat down with Sitia Mayor Giorgos Zervakis at the city’s municipal headquarters. Joining them were City Council President Maro Nikitaki, Deputy Mayor Kostis Lymperios, and Geopark Coordinator Vangelis Perakis, all of whom helped steer the conversation toward heritage, geopolitics, and local pride.
At the end of the meeting, Zervakis presented Tzitzikosta with a symbolic replica of the Palaikastro “Minoan computer”—an artifact of mystery and engineering, now functioning as a token of partnership.
Between Past and Poetry: New UNESCO Ambitions
Tzitzikosta emphasized the longstanding relationship between UNESCO and the Municipality of Sitia, rooted first in the UNESCO Global Geopark designation, and now further deepened through the recognition of the Minoan palace of Kato Zakros.
That bond, she hinted, is not only historical—it is future-facing. During the visit, she confirmed the organization’s intent to support the nomination of Erotokritos, the epic Cretan poem of love and valor, to UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list.
And then came the music. In a lighter moment, the UNESCO representatives proposed funding the travel of Sitia’s Coro Aretousa choir to Italy, where they would return the cultural gesture made by the Corale Madonna di San Giovanni, who recently performed in Crete. If approved, it would be a classic case of choral diplomacy—arias instead of ambassadors.
To conclude her short tour, Tzitzikosta paid a personal visit to the Minoan palace of Kato Zakros, quietly anchoring this chapter of diplomacy in stone, wind, and archaeology.