Sights in Knossos
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Lustral Basin
The Lustral Basin is in the area of the Royal Road. Evans speculated that this was where the Minoans performed a ritual cleansing with water before religious ceremonies.
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Royal Road
The Royal Road leads off to the west of the theatral area. The road, Europe's first (Knossos has lots of firsts), was flanked by workshops and the houses of ordinary people.
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giant pithoi
Worth seeking out in the northern section of the palace are the giant pithoi, ceramic jars used for storing olive oil, wine and grain. Evans found over 100 of them at Knossos (some were 2m high).
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Domestic Quarter
From the Central Court, the impressive grand staircase leads from the middle of the eastern side of the palace to the royal apartments, which Evans called the Domestic Quarter. This section of the site is now cordoned off.
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Piano Nobile
On the 1st floor of the west side of the palace is the section Evans called the Piano Nobile, for he believed the reception and staterooms were here. A room at the northern end of this floor displays copies of some of the frescoes found at Knossos.
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Corridor of the Procession Fresco
The usual entrance to the palace complex is across the Western Court and along the Corridor of the Procession Fresco. The fresco depicted a long line of people carrying gifts to present to the king; only fragments remain. A copy of one of these fragments, called the Priest King Fresco, can be seen to the south of the Central Court.
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Bull Fresco
Entering the Central Court from the north, you will pass the relief Bull Fresco, which depicts a charging bull. Relief frescoes were made by moulding wet plaster and then painting it while it was still wet. Once you have reached the Central Court, which in Minoan times was surrounded by the high walls of the palace, you can begin exploring the most important rooms of the complex.
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queen's megaron
A passage leads from the Hall of the Double Axes to the queen's megaron. Above the door is a copy of the Dolphin Fresco, one of the most exquisite Minoan artworks. A blue floral design decorates the portal. Next to this room is the queen's bathroom, complete with terracotta bathtub and a water closet, touted as the first ever to work on the flush principle; water was poured down by hand.
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theatral area
An alternative way to enter is to have a look at the Corridor of the Procession Fresco, then walk straight ahead to enter the site from the northern end. If you do this you will come to the theatral area, a series of steps whose function remains unknown. It could have been a theatre where spectators watched acrobatic and dance performances, or the place where people gathered to welcome important visitors arriving by the Royal Road.
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Hall of the Double Axes
Within the royal apartments is the Hall of the Double Axes. This was the king's megaron, a spacious double room in which the ruler both slept and carried out certain court duties. The room had a light well at one end and a balcony at the other to ensure air circulation.
The room takes its name from the double axe marks on its light well. These marks appear in many places at Knossos. The labrys (double axe) was a sacred symbol to the Minoans, and the origin of our word 'labyrinth'.
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Knossos
The ruins of Knossos (k-nos-os) were uncovered in 1900 by the British archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans. Heinrich Schliemann, the legendary discoverer of ancient Troy, had his eye on the spot, believing an ancient city was buried there, but he was unable to strike a deal with the local landowner in Turkish-controlled Crete.
Intrigued by Schliemann's discovery of engraved seals in Crete, and later pottery finds in Kamares, Evans sailed to Crete in 1894 and set in train the purchase of a share of the Knossos site, which gave him exclusive rights to the excavation. He returned five years later and began digging with a group of Cretan workmen. The first treasure to be unearthed…
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