Knossos Palace 

Our first stop is at the Minoan Palace of Knossos, located about 5 kilometers south of the center of Heraklion. It is the most important archaeological site in Crete and the center of Minoan civilization. The first signs of human presence in the palace area date back to the Neolithic period (7000-3000 BC). References continue into the Minoan period (after 3000 BC), with the construction of a large palace that was probably destroyed by an earthquake around 1700 BC. The second and more magnificent palace was built on the ruins of the old one. The palace was finally destroyed around 1355 BC by a great fire. The site was rebuilt and inhabited again during the Late Mycenaean period (1600 BC – 1100 BC) and until Roman times.

Noteworthy are the large Central Courtyard, which was a place for public gatherings, the second courtyard on the west side, which was the official entrance to the palace and also a place for ceremonies, the Throne Room with its purification tank and alabaster throne, the South Propylon, the Processional Corridor, and the South Entrance with its fresco of the prince with lilies, the Hall of the Double Axes and the Queen's Palace, as well as the imposing Grand Staircase.