This Content Is Only For Subscribers
A truly radiant Minoan palace is what the archaeological excavation in the town of Archanes has unveiled this year, under the direction of Dr. Efi Sapouna-Sakellaraki. The excavation, conducted in the northernmost section of the palace, has provided numerous new insights into the building and expanded our knowledge of its architecture and construction. Specifically, the ground floor and the first floor were excavated, while numerous stones had collapsed from the second or third floor, bringing parts of the floors down with them.
The most intriguing discovery of this year’s excavation was the use of a radiant material, gypsum alabaster, known from Phaistos and Knossos, in the construction of the palace. In Archanes, gypsum alabaster was used extravagantly for lintels, doorways, and more, creating an image of a “radiant” structure. Another significant finding was the revelation of the polythyron, which, along with a double doorway also made of gypsum alabaster and a central column, forms a part of a “Minoan Hall,” an essential element of elite Minoan architecture.
Another new element is the identification of the point where the fire that led to the destruction of this part of the palace had started. As previously established in the excavations of 1999/2000, the entire northern excavated area (rooms 30-33) had been destroyed by a fierce fire, in contrast to the southern and western parts that were excavated during that time. The fire had reached temperatures of up to 1000 degrees, as determined by the Fire Department, which had been called in. In room 33, which was not used for storage, around 20 large pithoi were found, containing wine, oil, fabrics, and even aromatic vessels, along with an Egyptian scarab.
The 2023 excavation revealed that the fire had originated from an upper floor. A thick layer of ash and burnt wood was mainly found in the northwest section and reached down to the floor. It is likely that the fire spread from this point.
In this corner of the excavated area, there would have been a shrine, as indicated by the few surviving fragments of stone vessels: one made of rock crystal, one of gray/white steatite, and one with an incised pattern on soapstone. It’s worth noting that soapstone was not a common material during this period (Late Minoan period, around 1600 BC). Therefore, the presence of these soapstone items suggests a likely ritual or magical purpose.
In the shrine, fragments of miniature replicas of large vessels, such as cauldrons, have been found, which were likely offerings. Another ritual find was a marine trident, used as an implement for invoking a deity, as known from a seal found in the Idaion Cave. Larger marine pebbles, symbolizing the deity’s marine aspect, were found a bit further away (room 37). These pebbles were scattered near an exquisite agate seal featuring a fish, found in the adjacent room (34). The shrine, as is often the case, was not reused in later Minoan times.
A section of a bronze spearhead and the foot of a Mycenaean cup were found in the upper layers, along with a Venetian coin and a 1963 American coin. Finally, other fragments of conical cups, as well as ancient “egg cups,” indicate disturbances in the layers as evidence of unauthorized “excavation” in the area above the palace.
The floors of the building were exceptionally well-maintained, featuring pebble floors on the first floor and mosaics made of small schist stones, schist slabs with thin bands of plaster strips, as well as clay slabs in one area. On the ground floor, there were slabs made of polished limestone. The walls, preserved up to a height of 2 metres, were coated with a thin layer of plaster. Fragments of finely detailed plasterwork (red, blue, and black) suggest that they bore wall paintings, which will be carefully removed at a later time due to the lack of time. Furthermore, a window connects room 37 to room 33.
Also of great interest are the mudbrick partition walls found in two rooms (34, 34A) plastered with clay, serving as almost unique room dividers, as well as the clay shelves with a clay plaster in the first floor (one of which is double) and some from the ground floor, possibly fallen from the upper floor, as one was found disintegrated.
The repositories (or cists) are well-known from Knossos (Temple repositories), Zakros, and the building of Archanes itself, which served as a depository with a multitude of conical cups. However, the repositories (of rooms 36 and 37) from this year’s excavations were found completely empty, even though they were not affected by the fire. The only interpretation that can be given is that, during the destruction, the residents, while fleeing, took with them the valuable items that would have been there.
The Palace of Archanes is located 15 kilometres from that of Knossos, which, as calculated by Giannis Sakellarakis (Announcement at a Cretological Conference), has the same size.
For the history of its discovery, it should be noted that Sir Arthur Evans, apparently having noted certain elements, believed, in accordance with the Victorian notions of the time, that the “summer palace” of Knossos would be located there. The palace was later sought by Marinatos and Platon but in the wrong places.
So, in the 1960s, the young archaeologist at the time, Giannis Sakellarakis, searching in the basements of houses and recording visible ruins embedded in the streets, had the good fortune to find himself at the entrance of the palace, which turned out to be magnificent: three storeys high, built of finely cut limestone, with wall paintings depicting plant and marine motifs, a female figure, floors made of colorful schist, altars, and a multitude of valuable objects such as golden figurines, relief stone lamps, various vessels, figurines, and more. All of these left no doubt about the revelation of the sought-after palace from which the theatre and the archive came to light. Furthermore, one of the findings, the famous “house of Archanes,” serves as a model for the form of a Minoan house, thereby placing modern man inside it.
The area was continuously inhabited after the Minoan era, in Mycenaean times, in historical times, and up to the present day. This choice of location by the Minoans for building a palace was not random. It has abundant water from the Juktas, where the Sacred Peak is located, as well as springs. Thus, it had control over water, even that of Knossos, through the Kairatos River, something that was later exploited by Morozinis in the 17th century to transport water to Heraklion. Furthermore, the name Archanes has Indo-European origins, as the root “Arch or Ach” means water (Inakhos river, Acherusia, and “aqua” in Latin).
The revelation of the royal cemetery on the neighbouring hill of Fourni, which operated from 3000 BC with five tholos tombs and a multitude of other types of burials, also provided splendid finds: a variety of seals made of ivory and semi-precious stones, the exquisite Cycladic figurines that indicate relations with the Cyclades, numerous gold jewellery, the most famous being the golden “Ring of Archanes” with a scene of worship, and so on. All of these elements reinforced the view of the timeless brilliance of Archanes. Lastly, the revelation of the sacred site of human sacrifice in Anemospilia convinced the scientific community and demonstrated globally the significance of Archanes as a major religious centre.
