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Kato Zakros is a coastal village 8 km away from Pano Zakros at a
magnificent bay. Is the most impressive
small fishing village, hidden away in the east corner of
Crete. Anyone staying in
Kato Zakros will want to walk down the "Valley of the Dead",
approximately a 2-hour walk, which leads down from Pano Zakros, to
the sea at Kato Zakros.
In 1961 the renowned archaeologist Nikolaos Platon traced and
excavated the fourth Minoan Palace
Crete (The Palace of Zakros!!). The first to trace evidence of ancient ruins was Spratt.
After him the archaeologists' ÇaÉbherr and Mariani, Evans and
Hogarth searched the area, while golden jewels found by a peasant
and the finds handed in by Em. Figetakis and Í.Karantonis gave evidence of the existence of ancient sites. The
overall size of the central building was bigger than 10 acres and
there were about 250 chambers for different use. The palace was not
looted when found so although smaller than the ones in
Knossos, Festos and Mallia, the finds there were more in
number (over a 1000) and more significant, thus giving us valuable
information about the life and civilization of the Minoans. Many of
them are "royal", real pieces of art.
The palace was mostly developed due to its geographic position.
It was the big port of call for the Minoan ships coming from and
heading to Egypt and the East. This was evidenced by the many finds
and raw materials coming from these areas. The handicraft and arts were particularly
developed in the Palace of Zakros and were very profitable. The
palace finds are exhibited in the Museums of Heraklion, Sitia and
Agios Nikolaos. The palace was unexpectedly destroyed by the
volcanic eruption in about 1500 B.C.
The Greek Fund of the Archaeological Resources and Expropriations (TAPA)
has published a brief guide where you can find basic information.
Moreover interesting excavations have taken place in the palace
annexes. The old palace was located there, a metal furnace was found
and other buildings were revealed with numerous finds, plates of the
linear Á and  etc. In the gorge of Zakros (that is why it was named the gorge of the
dead) and on the hill of Agios Antonios tombs in caves were
excavated. The porous stone quarry with which the palace
was built was found at Pelekita as well as a cave with traces of Neolithic
habitation (cave of Pelekita). Kato Zakros is an archaeological paradise in a pure
natural landscape of exceptional beauty. |
