Ancient site · City
Knossos (Palace of Minos)
Knossos, just south of Heraklion on Crete, was the largest centre of the Minoan civilisation. People settled the hill around 7000 BCE.
The first palace, built around 1900 BCE, was rebuilt after a destruction around 1700 BCE into a huge complex of courtyards, storerooms, shrines and painted halls. It was probably a centre of government, trade and religion. Thousands of Linear B tablets were found there. Arthur Evans dug it from 1900 and rebuilt parts in concrete, which still shapes how visitors see it.
- Dates
- palace c. 1900–1350 BCE (hill settled from c. 7000 BCE)
- Still standing
- Yes
- Location
- 35.30° N, 25.16° E
How we know
Late clay tablets in Linear B (early Greek) name Knossos as Ko-no-so, but the Minoans' own Linear A script is undeciphered, so most of its history comes from excavation.
Nearby sites
- Akrotiri settled by c. 4500 BCE; buried c. 1600 BCE
- Acropolis of Athens (Parthenon) Parthenon 447–432 BCE; damaged 1687
- Mycenae citadel c. 1600–1100 BCE (Lion Gate c. 1250 BCE)
- Olympia Games c. 776 BCE (traditional) – 390s CE
- Sesklo c. 7000–4400 BCE (earliest levels possibly older)
- Troy (Hisarlik) c. 3600 BCE – c. 500 CE
Related
- Minoan civilisation archaeological culture
- The world in 2000 BCE: Cities of Bronze chapter