On the Greek island of Crete, Russian tourists mainly go for the sun and sea. The fertile subtropical climate gives it to them in abundance. But there is one attraction that you just have to look at when visiting Crete - the labyrinth of the Minotaur. An excursion to this mysterious place will immerse you in the world of ancient Greek myths. Walking through the endless suites of rooms, passages, stairs and patios, you will feel that it is here that reality is closely intertwined with legends, and one is inseparable from the other.
What is the labyrinth of the Minotaur in Crete? Photos of this attraction are so popular that everyone must have seen it. This is often called the Knossos Palace of King Minos, which is located five kilometers from the city of Heraklion. In addition to organized excursions, you can also get there on your own: regular buses run from Lviv Square and from the bus station. To arrive by minibus and get for six euros to the very heart of an ancient myth - isn’t it a miracle?
Nevertheless, let’s try to figure out what the Knossos palace is: a beautiful example of the palace architecture of the Cretan-Mycenaean civilization or the ominous and eerie labyrinth of the Minotaur? Archaeological excavations far from any poetics carried out at the beginning of the 20th century by Sir Arthur John Evans showed the following.
Back in 2000 BC. e. at this place stood a palace - much smaller and more modestly restored by a British explorer. In 1700 BC e. it was destroyed by an earthquake. A giant (180 x 130 meters) architectural ensemble was built on its ruins , which included the private chambers of Tsar Minos, meeting rooms for dignitaries and government and religious ceremonies of the inhabitants of Knossos. This masterpiece lasted until 1450 BC. e. Then a volcanic eruption occurred that destroyed both the labyrinth of the Minotaur and the entire Cretan-Mycenaean civilization.
The myth is about this. King Minos had two children. This is a beautiful Ariadne and son with the body of a man and the head of a bull. To hide the ugliness of the Minotaur, his father built for him an extremely intricate maze. The Athenians, who at that time were enslaved by Crete, had to send 14 beautiful young men and women every seven years to be eaten by a monster. The brave hero Theseus went to Crete to save young people. Fortunately, the daughter of Minos fell in love with the daredevil and came up with Theseus a way to get out of the tangled interweaving of rooms and transitions to sunlight. She gave him a ball of thread, tying one end to the entrance to the labyrinth of the Minotaur. Killing the monster, Theseus safely climbed to the surface.
Knossos Palace really gives the impression of an intricate maze. Its symbolic image, labros, is often present in the wall paintings of the chambers. Moving from room to room, one can observe that in the Mycenaean civilization the cult of the bull god was professed. Numerous murals depict girls and boys jumping over the head of this animal, fighting with each other. All these paintings involuntarily make you recall the myth of the Athenian youths, sent as a tribute to the monster, and believe in the labyrinth of the Minotaur.