Inside the Palace of Knossos | Minotaur art, frescoes, & more

• Historical significance: The heart of the palace where public gatherings and religious ceremonies took place, including the famous bull-leaping rituals.
  
• Design: A vast, open space, designed to accommodate crowds, with surrounding structures providing access to different parts of the palace.
  
• Archaeological finds: Vibrant frescoes on the walls and remains of religious artifacts.

• Historical significance: Believed to have served as the seat of the king or high priest, symbolizing Minoan authority and religious power.
  
• Design: A large, stone seat, resumed to be the oldest throne in Europe, flanked by benches and frescoes depicting griffins, reinforcing its ceremonial nature.
  
• Archaeological finds: Libation vessels and religious symbols like double axes.

• Historical significance: Once home to the royal family, equipped with a flushing toilet and advanced drainage systems to reflect their engineering prowess.
  
• Design: A complex with the King’s apartment and the Queen’s Megaron adorned with the ‘Dolphin Fresco’, highlighting the Minoans’ love for marine life.
  
• Archaeological finds: Decorative frescoes, pottery, and personal items, reflecting the luxurious lifestyle and tastes of the palace’s elite.

• Historical significance: A staircase, linking different levels of the palace, showcasing the Minoans' architectural mastery and providing access to important areas such as the Royal Apartments and ceremonial spaces.
  
• Design: A multi-story staircase with wide steps and stone barriers, designed to accommodate large processions or gatherings.
  
• Archaeological finds: Decorative wall frescoes and inscriptions to showcase their grandeur.

• Historical significance: Also known as the magazines, these rooms were vital to the palace’s economic operations, serving as repositories for grain, oil, and wine.
  
• Design: Rows of large pithoi (storage jars) to showcase the Knossos Palace’s ability to store vast quantities of supplies, essential for trade and sustenance.
  
• Archaeological finds: Storage jars with seals and tablets with Linear A scripts, providing valuable insights into Minoan record-keeping and trade practices.

• Historical significance: One of the main access points to the palace, linking it to the surrounding urban landscape and the harbor, reinforcing Knossos’s role as a center of commerce and power.
  
• Design: Features a prominent columned structure and a large fresco of a charging bull, marking a key transition into the palace. 
  
• Archaeological finds: Showcases the iconic ‘Bull-Leaping Fresco’, one of the best-preserved artworks from the Minoan period.

• Historical significance: A series of pathways and corridors, often thought to be the source of the Labyrinth myth, symbolizing the palace’s complex, maze-like layout.
  
• Design: Winding, inter-connected spaces linking various parts of the Knossos, reflecting the Minoans’ sophisticated architectural planning.
  
• Archaeological finds: No specific artifacts have been found along these corridors, however, their walls are most often lined with frescoes, depicting scenes from the everyday life of Minoans.

• Historical significance: An important ceremonial entrance to the palace, possibly used for processions or formal receptions of visitors.
  
• Design: Features a grand, raised platform, supported by columns, leading to a passageway into the palace complex, highlighting its role as a formal gateway.
  
• Archaeological finds: Decorative elements like fragments of colorful frescoes suggest that the Propylon was adorned to impress visitors entering from the southern side.

• Historical significance: A gathering space for public ceremonies, religious events, and possibly markets, making it central to the social and religious life of Knossos.
  
• Design: A large, paved area, adjacent to the palace, featuring stone benches and surrounded by important buildings.
  
• Archaeological finds: Paved walkways and remnants of religious objects, suggesting its role as a hub for communal gatherings.

• Historical significance: Home to the most elaborate and luxurious rooms in the palace, including a few royal quarters and various workshops, symbolizing the power and sophistication of the Minoan elite.
  
• Design: Features advanced architectural innovations such as light wells, multi-story rooms, and fresco-decorated walls.
  
• Archaeological finds: Fine pottery, frescoes, and personal items, offering detailed insights into their artistic taste and architectural prowess.

This fresco is one of the most well-preserved works of Minoan art, depicting the ceremonial practice of bull-leaping, an important religious activity in their society. See athletes vaulting over the back of a bull, showcasing their skill in athletic or possibly ritualistic feats.

This artwork depicts a royal figure, possibly a priest or prince, highlighting the Minoans' emphasis on ceremonial roles and status within their society. The fresco shows a young man adorned with a crown of lilies and peacock feathers, striding confidently through a natural setting.

This Minoan drawing illustrates a ceremonial parade, depicting men and women carrying offerings, likely part of a religious festival or palace ritual. The figures are elegantly dressed, moving towards a central altar, displaying the civilization’s wealth, artistry, and connection to sacred practices.

Located in the Queen’s Megaron, this piece of Minoan artistry showcases their love for the natural world, especially the marine life, which played a crucial role in their trade and economy. The artist combined moving lines and patterns to retain the dynamism and movement of sea life.

Minoan pottery offers a window into their material culture, reflecting their daily life and artistic advancements. The pieces range from simple utilitarian vessels to highly decorative pieces like Kamares ware, featuring colorful patterns, and the later Marine style, with motifs of sea life.

The Linear B tablets are clay records inscribed with an early form of Greek script, primarily used for administrative purposes like recording inventories and religious rituals. Discovered at Knossos and Pylos, these tablets offer valuable insights into Minoan bureaucracy and trade activities.

Minoan figurines, made from precious materials like ivory and carved stone, depicted deities, animals, and human figures. These small sculptures were found in the Temple Repositories. The Snake Goddess figurines are among the most iconic examples, symbolizing fertility and protection.

The Double Axe was a prominent Minoan symbol associated with religious rituals and possibly the worship of a mother goddess. Found throughout Knossos, from altars to frescoes, and sometimes even carved in stone, it may have been a part of sacrificial offerings or used to denote royal power.