Today, the fate of some of the world’s most treasured Minoan landmarks is still mired in a European bureaucratic bog.
Phaistos
Leaders Aim to Preserve and Share Crete’s Kommos Palatial Site
Situated on a hilltop overlooking the Gulf of Messara in south-central Crete, the Minoan settlement of Kommos may reveal amazing secrets from the Bronze Age. However, as fabulous such new discoveries may be, the intersection of modern touristic products and the island’s heritage are brought into sharp focus today. With untold Minoan Civilization discoveries still unearthed, Crete’s beaches and other touristic offerings represent a real crisis dynamic and a public dilemma. The good news is, a new preservation and public access initiative by Heraklion parliamentarian Nikos Igoumenidis and Greece’s Minister of Culture Lydia Koniordou may pave the way to remedying these cultural points of pain.
Crete’s Sacred Caves – Part I
The legends and spiritual wonders of Crete may never be fully uncovered. Then again, when local peasants in 1883 discovered ancient votive objects in the now famous Dictaean Cave no modern archaeologist had a clue of Crete’s hidden treasures.
The Mystery of Monastiraki: A Search for the Most Sacred
On the island of Crete many mysteries wait patiently their discovery. One place that comes to mind when I think of misunderstood Minoan Crete is the site of Monastiraki, what was probably a palace overlooking the Amari Valley, south east of Rethymno.
Prayer of Yidini: Echoes of Karfi
A story from ancient Karfi, a story of how the last Minoans may have lived and believed. Karfi was the last stronghold of a magnificent culture destroyed by the gods.