Fourni


On a hill west of town and reached via a steep footpath, Fourni is the most extensive Minoan necropolis in Crete. Burials took place here over a period of 1000 years, the oldest going back to 2500 BC. One of the tombs contained the remains of a Minoan noblewoman whose jewellery is on display in Iraklio town's Heraklion Archaeological Museum. To visit, you must make arrangements in advance with the Archeological Collection of Archanes.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Mt Yiouhtas Peak Sanctuary

0.59 MILES

Driving south from Arhanes, look for the turn-off for Giourtas. The narrow (but drivable) road leads to the top of Mt Yiouhtas. After a bone-rattling 5km,…

2. Archaeological Museum of Arhanes

0.75 MILES

This small museum displays many important finds from regional excavations, especially from Minoan times. Among the highlights are clay larnakes (coffins)…

3. Anemospilia

1.04 MILES

Anemospilia packs major importance into its small frame. Excavation of this middle-Minoan three-room temple yielded evidence that human sacrifice played…

4. Vathypetro

2.52 MILES

About 5km south of Arhanes, and well signposted, Vathypetro was built around 1600 BC, probably as the villa of a prosperous Minoan noble. Archaeologists…

5. Nikos Kazantzakis Museum

2.97 MILES

In a modern building overlooking the kafeneia-flanked central plaza of author Nikos Kazantzakis' ancestral village, this well-curated museum zeroes in on…

7. Queen’s Megaron

3.58 MILES

Archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans believed that this pretty space in the residential eastern wing, with its painted pillars and playful dolphin fresco on the…

8. Queen’s Bathroom & WC

3.59 MILES

Next to the queen's bedroom, but barely visible through glass, the ruler's wife's 'bathroom' may have had a clay bathtub and a primitive type of water…