PSILORITIS, CRETE—Recent excavations at the Minoan palace of Zominthos uncovered two entrances, an internal stairway, and a second-century A.D. Roman coin, according to The Greek Reporter. The first entrance, on the northeast corner of the palace, led to a sanctuary with an altar and featured an anteroom with two desks. The second entrance, on the southeastern corner, is said to be in poor condition. It had been modified by the Mycenaeans and the Romans, and was damaged by looters in the 1960s. An internal stairway and the remains of ten-foot-tall walls indicate that the building was multistoried. The upper floors were supported by central pillars. The excavation also revealed floors made of glittering limestone and pebbles. Traces of frescoed mortar has also been found on the walls. In another area of the palace, above a metallurgical workshop, a claw-shaped pendulum and a vase decorated with the image of a pig were uncovered. Next door, the excavators found a small bronze scarab that had been made locally, and sea shells. For more, go to “The Minoans of Crete.”
Excavators Return to the Minoan Palace of Zominthos
News September 19, 2017
SHARE:
Recommended Articles
Off the Grid July/August 2021
Zakros, Greece
(Courtesy D. Matthew Buell)
Digs & Discoveries November/December 2022
Cretan Antiquing
(Courtesy EFA, after Gaignerot-Driessen et al. 2020 fig. 26, ph. C. Papanikolopoulos (2), Courtesy EFA, after Gaignerot-Driessen et al. 2020 fig. 26, ph. M. Anastasiadou)
Top 10 Discoveries of the Decade January/February 2021
Grave of the “Griffin Warrior”
Pylos, Greece, 2015
(griffinwarrior.org, Jeff Vanderpool/ Courtesy of the Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati)
Features September/October 2019
World of the Griffin Warrior
A single grave and its extraordinary contents are changing the way archaeologists view two great ancient Greek cultures
(griffinwarrior.org, Jeff Vanderpool/ Courtesy of the Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati)
-
Letter From Peru July/August 2017
Connecting Two Realms
Archaeologists rethink the early civilizations of the Amazon
(Courtesy Quirino Olivera Nuñez) -
Artifacts July/August 2017
Bone Rosary Bead
(Courtesy Border Archaeology) -
Digs & Discoveries July/August 2017
Ka-Ching!
(Courtesy Jersey Heritage)