Geography
Crete is a mountainous island with natural harbours. There are signs of earthquake damage at many Minoan sites and clear signs of both uplifting of land and submersion of coastal sites due to tectonic processes all along the coasts.
Homer recorded a tradition that Crete had 90 cities. To judge from the palace sites, the island was probably divided into at least eight political units during the height of the Minoan period. The north is thought to have been governed from Knossos, the south from Phaistos, the central eastern part from Malia, and the eastern tip from Kato Zakros and the west from Chania. Smaller palaces have been found in other places.
Some of the major Minoan archaeological sites are:
- Palaces
- Knossos - the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete; was purchased for excavations by Evans on March 16, 1900.
- Phaistos - the second largest palatial building on the island, excavated by the Italian school shortly after Knossos
- Malia - the subject of French excavations, a palatial centre which affords a look into the development of the palaces in the protopalatial period
- Kato Zakros - a palatial site excavated by Greek archaeologists in the far east of the island. This is also referred to as "Zakro" in archaeological literature.
- Galatas - the most recently confirmed palatial site
- Agia Triada - an administrative centre close to Phaistos
- Gournia - a town site excavated in the first quarter of the 20th century by the American School
- Pyrgos - an early Minoan site on the south of the island
- Vasiliki - an early Minoan site towards the east of the island which gives its name to a distinctive ceramic ware
- Fournu Korfi - a site on the south of the island
- Pseira - island town with ritual sites
- Mount Juktas - the greatest of the Minoan peak sanctuaries because of its association with the palace of Knossos
- Arkalochori - the find site of the famous Arkalochori Axe
- Karfi - a refuge site from the late Minoan period, one of the last of the Minoan sites
- Akrotiri - settlement on the island of Santorini (Thera), near the site of the Thera Eruption
- Zominthos - a mountainous city in the northern foothills of Mount Ida
Read more about this topic: Minoan Civilization
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