The Temple of Knossos at Crete

Theseus fighting the Minotaur, Ariadne and her ball of string, Daedalus the architect and doomed Icarus of the wax wings; how many of us dream Minoan dreams and never realize it?

The archaeological site of Knossos, reported by Homer to be the site of the palace of the legendary King Minos, Daedalus, and the Labyrinth, is on the Mediterranean island of Crete. Archaeological evidence indicates that the site was first occupied by about 6000 BC; an urban town was at Knossos by 2400 BC; and the Neolithic Minoan palace was probably begun about 1900 BC. This first palace was destroyed in an earthquake about 1700 BC; and it was rebuilt and the Bronze Age Minoan palace was built on its ruins. The height of the Minoan culture and Knossos was during this Second Palatial Period (1700-1450 BC). By 1450, evidence of a series of fires and a shift in the cultural material suggests to archaeologists that the Mycenaeans had taken over.

The main archaeologist associated with Knossos is Sir Arthur Evans, who spent nearly 30 years at Knossos, excavating and rebuilding parts of the walls; his work was published as The Palace of Minos at Knossos. As you can see from the photograph on the right, Evans' ideas of what the palace might have looked like were a little gaudy by 21st century tastes.

• The Palace of Minos, Knossos, Greece, more on this legendary building
• Arthur Evans, a brief biography
• Minoan Culture, more on the culture and its archaeological sites
• Knossos, Minoan Palace of Mystery deTraci Regula, About's guide to Greece for Visitors, gives some great advice for traveling to Knossos
• Knossos, Crete from a Mediterranean Cruise, a series of photographs of the site from Linda Garrison, About's guide to Cruises.
• The Minotaur, an archaeology crossword puzzle (the last one, I promise!)
• Theseus and the Minotaur, from Nathaniel Hawthorne and N.S. Gill, guide to Ancient History at About

The top photo is by Max Froumentin, the lower, gaudier Knossos is by Mauricio Pellegrinetti.