Herakleion - Paliani Monastery -
Aghia Varvara (Vrontissi Monasstery -
Varsamonero Monastery - Kamares) -
Aghioi Deka (Gagales - Assimi -
Martha), (Miamou, Lentas - Lebena)-
Gortyna - Moires (Kaloi Limenes) -
Phaestos - Aghia Triada - Matala.

We follow the road which leads from the
Chania Gate towards the southwest,
towards Aghia Varvara and Moires,
passing through thickly planted vineyards.

At Xenerato (20 kms. from Herakleion)
there is a detour to the left which leads
to the old convent of Paliani, one of the
most ancient monasteries of the island,
as is indicated by its name (from
"palaia"=old). Established in the first
Byzantine period, we find it mentioned,
since 668 AD, under names such as
Pala and Palaia. The monastery was
twice destroyed by the Turks.

The church has three naves, of which
the central nave is dedicated to the
Dormition of the Virgin (celebrated on the
15th of August), while the other two are
dedicated to the three great Fathers of
the Church: Basil the Great, Gregory
the Theologian and John Chrysostom,
and to Saint Panteleimon, respectively.
From the main road we continue south-
wards, passing through Aghia Varvara
(29.5 kms. from Herakleion). Here we
find the chapel of Profitis Elias which,
according to local tradition, marks the
geographical centre of Crete. To the
northwest of Aghia Varvara, on the hill
called "Patella tou Prinia", lie the ruins
of ancien t Rizinia, which was excavated
by the Italian School of Archaeology.

A detour from Aghia Varvara to the
west leads to Zaro, to the monasteries of
Vrontissi and Aghios Fanourios of Var-
samonero, and to Kamares, going
through charming villages set amid
lush vegetation, through which flow
streams of crystal water. On the south-
erly foothills of the Psiloritis mountain,
with a magnificent view towards the
plain ofMessara, stands the Vrontissi
monastery.

Its church has two naves, one of which
is dedicated to St. Anthony, the other to
St. Thomas.

The monastery may have got its name
from its owner, as was often the case
with other monasteries on Crete, but
we do not know exactly when it was
founded — certainly before 1400, a date
mentioned in manuscripts.

During the Venetian period, it was an
important cultural centre where the
arts and letters flourished, while
during the Turkish occupation the mon-
astery played an important role in the
struggle against the occupiers. A few
14th century frescoes still survive.

The church belfry is very characteristic
and one of the oldest on Crete. It is covered by arches and stands at some distance from the church. At the entrance there is a most elegant Venetian fountain of the 15th century with a depiction in the centre, in relief, of God and Adam and Eve in Paradise, and with four figures at the lower edge which symbolize the rivers of Eden and from whose mouths water flows.

Further along the road to the west, we
come to the village of Voriza, and the
monastery of Varsamonero. Today,
only the church still stands, with its
three naves, dedicated to the Virgin
Mary, to St. John the Forerunner and
to Saint Fanourios. It has a rich decora-
tion of frescoes which are very import-
ant in Cretan hagiography. Apart from
the frescoes there are also some very
precious icons, a beautiful wood-carved
iconostasis and an important inscrip-
tion with the date of the rebuilding of
the church. The woodcarved episcopal
throne and lectern, which are exhibited
in the Historical Museum of Hera-
kleion, both belong to the Varsamonero
monastery.

Further to the west lies the village of
Kamares (26.5 kms. from Aghia Varva-
ra), at an altitude of 600 m. To the north-
east of the village, on a ridge of the Psiloritis mountain (altitude 1525 m.) is
the Cave of Kamares.

This cave can only be reached on foot
(4-5 hours' walk). It is known for the famous Kamares pots of 2000 BC which
were found here, and which were used
by the faithful for libations. The cave,
which was discovered by accident in
1890, by a villager, was explored shortly afterwards by Italian archaeologists and, in 1913, by the British School of
Archaeology.

It is believed that, in Neolithic times, it
was used as a dwelling place while, in
Minoan times, it was a place of worship.
Continuing on our main route from
Aghia Varvara and, passing through
the fertile plain ofMessara, we come to
Aghioi Deka, a village which owes its name to the ten early Christian Martyrs who were beheaded at a short di

Just before entering the village, a road
leads eastwards towards Gagales, Assimi, Praetoria, Pyrgos, KasteUiana, ending up at the village of Martha (see route 5).

Between Aghioi Deka and the Metropolis lie the ruins of ancient Gortys.

Visit of Gortys.

Gortys, or Gortyna, as it is called today,
was one of the strongest and most an-
cient towns of Crete and, during Roman
and early Byzantine times, the capital
of the island. In the 3rd century BC it
captured Phaestos and its port, Matala,
and thus had two ports: Lebena and
Matala. It was in constant conflict with
Knossos, but cultivated peaceful relations with the Achaeans and the Ptolemies of Egypt. During the period of Roman domination it knew its greatest period of prosperity, since it took the side of the Romans and did not put up a resistance against them. In exchange, not only did the Romans not destroy the city, as they had done the other towns which had resisted, but they also helped it extend its domination over the island, and established it as the seat of the Roman praetorians.

Gortyna accepted Christianity early
and became the see of the first Bishop of
Crete, the Apostle Titus. In the early
Byzantine period it flourished and re-
tained its prestige until 828 AD, when
it was taken and destroyed by the Sara-
cens.

From that time on, the town was deserted and was never again inhabited.

The most interesting monuments of the
Gortyna archaeological site are:

On the right bank of the Lethaean tor-
rent, on a height, the remains of an acropolis and to its southeast, the seate
of an ancient theatre. On the other
bank can be seen the Odeon, which was built on the site of an older square
structure during the 1st century AD.
For its reconstruction, the stones of a
nearby archaic circular building were
used, on which were carved the famous
laws of Gortys.

On the northwestern side of the Odeon, four rows of the precious inscribed stones still survive today, constituting the most important record of the Law of the time and an invaluable aid for the study of its inscriptions.

The inscriptions are carved in the Doric
dialect, "boustrophedon", that is, "as
the ox plows", (from left to right and
then right to left and so on) and they
date from the end of the 6th century
BC. Nearby, there stood the agora with
the sanctuary of Asclepios, where the
statue ofAsclepiades was found (Hera-
kleion Archaeological Museum) and,
further to the south, the ruins of the ba-
silica of St. Titus, an impressive church
built with massive carved limestone
blocks. The portion which survives is
covered by an arch.

Architectural elements from the church
and precious religious vessels are kept
in the Historical Museum of Herakleion.
On the Gortyna site there are also remains of the Roman Praetorium (a build-
ing of the 4th century AD), of two Nym-
phaea (shrines dedicated to the Nymphs),
of a sanctuary dedicated to the Pythian Apollo, of the sanctuary of the Egyptian deities, of two theatres, an amphitheatre, an aqueduct, and warm baths.

In the Gortyna museum are exhibited
finds discovered on the site.

Continuing from Aghioi Deka to Moires
and just outside Aghioi, the road forks
out. The left fork, with a southerly direction, passes through the villages of
Metropolis, Houstouliana, Platanos,
Plora, Apesokari, Aghia Marina, Miamou, and ends up at Lentas, a seaside
settlement on the south coast with a
lovely beach and a limpid sea.

At the villages of Platanos, Plora and
Apesokari, early Minoan graves have
been excavated.

To the east of Lentas, lies the ancient
port of Gortyna, Lebena. The excavations of the area brough to light ruins of the Greco - Roman period which coincides with the time when the town and port were at the height of their prosperity. The most important of these ruins are: the sanctuary of Asclepios, a fountain, the Avaton (the "untrodden" - the inner

To the east of the site, on the ruins of a
Byzantine 9th century basilica, stands
the small chapel of St. John (14th or
15th century) with vestiges of frescoes.
In the same area were found vaulted
graves of the early Minoan period.

We continue on our main route towards
the west and, after 8.5 kilometres from
Aghioi Deka, we come to the modern
town of Moires (53 kms. from Herakleion), a road junction and an important commercial centre for the area.

From here there is a road south towards
Pombia, Pigaidakia and Kaloi Limenes.
It is said that it was in this picturesque
settlement of Kaloi Limenes that the
Apostle Paul landed, when he was
being taken to Rome. To the east and
west there are lovely beaches and, opposite them, the islets of Megalo and
Mikro Nissi. To the east there lies Ancient Lassaea, where early Minoan vaulted graves and ruins of the Roman period have been found. On the main route, going west towards Tymbaki and at a distance of 7.5 kms. from Moires, we turn left and, after two kilometres, we come to Phaestos, 63 kms, from Herakleion.

Visit of Phaestos

Second in importance only to Knossos,
from the archaeological point of view, is
Phaestos. It lies 62.5 kms. southwest of
Herakleion, to which it is linked through
regurlar services by KTEL bus. It is built on a hill (at an altitude of 100 m., approximately, above sea level), south
of the Lythaeon river, and commands
the fertile plain ofKato Messara, which
is surrounded by impressive mountains
(Psiloritis, Asteroussia, the Lasithi moun-
tains, far away in the background).
To the south lies the Libyan sea. Phaestos, owing to its importance, is mentioned in the texts of ancient writers (Diodorus, Strabo, Pausanias), but also by
Homer.

According to mythology, the dynasty
which ruled Phaestos was that of Rha-
damanthys, son of Zeus and brother of
Minos. It was a very strong, rich, populous and independent city. It minted its own
coins and, at the acme of its power and prosperity, its domination extended
from the Lithino point to the Melissa

point and included the islets ofPaxima-
dia (Letoae was their ancient name).
The state of Phaestos also disposed of
two strong ports, Matala and Kommos
to the southwest. The area had been inhabited since Neolithic times (3000 BC approximately), as is evidenced by the foundations of Neolithic habitations, the tools, figurines and potsherds which were discovered under the storerooms of the palace, during the excavations which were carried out there.

The first palace was built in approximately 1900 BC and, together with the other structures around, covered an area of 18,000 sq.m (slightly less than that of the palace of Knossos). The great earthquake which occurred around 1700BC was the cause of its destruction, as it was of that ofKnossos. In its place a new, more impressive palace was built, to which belong the greater part of the ruins which have been restored, while several parts of the first palace have also been excavated, mainly those lying to the southwest.

After the discovery of the southern part
of the palace, during the excavations by
D. Levi, various converging clues which
came to light, seemed to lead to the con-
clusion that the second palace, too, was
destroyed by an earthquake, when the
southern part of the hill subsided and
carried along with it the southern part
of the palace and the central court.

Despite the recurring destruction of the
palace, Phaestos continued to flourish
during the Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic periods until, around 200 BC, it
was destroyed by its rival, Gortys, with
which it was in constant conflict. In
spite of this, life continued in Phaestos
during the Roman period as well. The excavations of the area, begun in
1900 by the Italian School of Archaeology, under Federico Halbherr, were continued under L. Pernier and D. Levi and brought to light extremely important finds from the Minoan, Geometric and Hellenistic periods.

The Palace

The palace buildings of Phaestos were
developed around a court called the
central court. The main entrance was
through the northwestern side, along a
paved court, the west court. In this area
there are ruins dating from historic
times. A processional way crosses the
court diagonally. At its northern end
there is a series of eight tiers 22 m. in
length, which were used as theatre
seats and, at the end of the road to the
south, we find the propylon of the Old
Palace with a single column.

At the northeastern end of the western court is a sanctuary consisting of four small connecting rooms with benches. These contained offering tables, pots and
other vessels used for the sacrifice.

Behind the sanctuary is the propylaeon
stairway of the new palace and, after that, the propylaeon. To the southeast
of the propylaea, next to the light well,
a narrow stairway leads to the ante-
chamber of the storerooms which com-
municates with a corridor, to the right
and left of which were the storerooms.

Next to the storerooms, to the right of
the stairway, is the room of the lustral
basin, a remnant of the old palace. A
wide corridor, parallel to that of the
storerooms, links the western court
with the central court, a part of which,
to the southeast, has subsided. The part
of the palace which is situated in the
middle of the western part of the central court consists of small sanctuary rooms, as is witnessed by votive objects which were discovered in them. In some, double axes, symbols of Minoan worship, were actually found inscribed on the walls.

At the southwestern end of the palace,
outside the palace precincts, we can still
see the ruins of the archaic temple of
Rhea.

Along the eastern side of the central
court extends the eastern wing of the palace. From its northern comer begins a
narrow corridor leading eastwards, and
separating the eastern and the northern
wings. South of the corridor there are
four connecting rooms: the first was a
polythyron, the second served as a light
well, the third was the anteroom and the
fourth — further to the south in relation
to the corridor — was a lustral area. Here
rhytons were found, a pitcher, stone
horns and double axes. It is believed that,
after the palace was destroyed, during
the time of the Achaean domination, this
area was still used for religious ceremonies. A portico in the shape of a right angle with a colonnade is found to the east of these rooms.

Access to the northern wing of the palace
is through the centre of the north side of
the central court, where the royal apartments are to be found.

At the entrance there were two half
columns, of which the stone bases are
still extant. From here an outdoor, paved
passage begins. It has a conduit for
draining off the rainwater, and ends up
in the small northern court. To the right
and left of the passage are small rooms.
Another passage, to the east of the northern court, leads to a larger eastern
court, in the centre of which is a sort of
oven. This must have served as a furnace
for melting metals or as a kiln for baking
pots. On this spot were found, also, two
clay potter's wheels. These finds led archaeologists to the conclusion that the
row of rooms on the western side of the
court must have been workshops.

From the northern court a corridor lead-
ing north brings us to the royal apartments, on a lower level. To the left of the corridor is found the queen's chamber. Behind this room a narrow stairway led to the upper floor. To the north of the queen's chamber was the king's residence, adorned, as was the queen's, with sumptuous frescoes and paved with alabaster flagstones with red joints.

Visit of Aghia Triada

To the southwest of the archaeological
site stands the 14th century church of
Aghia Triada. From this church, which
has two naves, the little mediaeval village which used to stand here before it was destroyed by the Turks in 1897, got its name. The Minoan name of the area is
unknown to us.

The royal villa or small Minoan palace of
Aghia Triada, as it was named by the
Italian archaeologists who discovered it
in the early years of our century, was
builtaround 1600 BC, on a hill which had
been inhabited since Neolithic times. It is
believed that it served as a summer resi-
dence of the king ofPhaestos, with which
Aghia Triada was linked by a paved
road. Around 1450 BC, it was destroyed,
and on its ruins were built a new rectan-
gular building and a portico. Later, the
villa was no longer used as a residence,
but served as a place of worship, as the
rich religious objects found here testify.
The visit begins from the western side,
where the small chapel of St. George now
stands. This chapel has a single nave, a tiled roof, and dates from the 14th century. A polythyron leads from approximately the centre of the western wing" to a portico and a light well to the east.

Further on there is a room with benches and another smaller room with an
alabaster platform, which may perhaps
have served as a bed.

In the area to the northeast of the poly-
thyron was found a collection of clay
seals and, beyond that, a room with
frescoes depicting lilies and wild cats
(Archaeological Museum of Hera-
kleion). In a nearby area were found
nineteen copper talents (Archaelogical
Museum of Herakleion) from which it
was conjectured that the room was used
as a treasury.

The storerooms were situated in the
southern part of the western wing.
In the northern wing there is a store-
room with a central square pier and, to
the east, a long and narrow hall for the
reception of important guests. Further
to the east is the staircase. Behind it
there is a portico with five square
columns. To the northeast of the portico
is the rectangular agora of the Achaean
period.

On the eastern side of the agora stood a
row of alternating square and round
columns and, in front of these, were
eight rooms - possibly shops- containing large clay jars.

Matala, only a small fishing village a
few years ago, has now developed into a
modern holiday centre providing hotel
accommodation, rooms to rent and pen-
sions for a good number of visitors.

There are also camping sites, restaurants, tavernas, and many shops.

The hollowed-out rocks with the artificial caves are the characteristic feature of the village. Some of these may possibly have been used as prehistoric dwellings while, during the 1st and 2nd centuries, they were used as tombs. Today the area is an archaeological site and has been fenced off.

The beach of Matala opens like an embracing arm into the Libyan sea. Its
golden sand, clear waters and the mysterious rocks attract many visitors to
this corner of the island.

At the 3.5 km of the Phaestos - Matala
road, a fork to the left leads towards
Siva, to the Hodegetria monastery and.
ends at Kaloi Limenes.

The Hodegetria monastery has several
icons worth mentioning, as well as a collection of holy vestments. Its church
has two naves, and is dedicated to the
Birthday of the Holy Virgin and to the
Holy Apostles. The monastery used to
be surrounded by a wall, the north gate
of which, inscribed with the date 1568,
still stands.

In the area of the monastery was excavated a burial complex consisting of
five chambers, two vaulted tombs and a
paved court within a precinct. In the
tombs were found clay and stone pots,
gold jewellery, bronze tools and many
seals.