Although Zakros Palace was the last Minoan palace to have been discovered (1962), the excavations proved remarkably fruitful. The exquisite rock-crystal vase and stone bull’s head, now in Heraklion Archaeological Museum, were found at Zakros, along with a treasure trove of Minoan antiquities. Ancient Zakros, the smallest of Crete’s four palatial complexes, was a major port in Minoan times, trading with Egypt, Syria, Anatolia and Cyprus. Some parts of the palace complex are submerged.
If you enter the palace complex on the southern side you will first come to the workshops for the palace. The King’s Apartment and Queen’s Apartment are to the right of the entrance. Next to the King’s Apartment is the Cistern Hall , which once had a cistern in the centre surrounded by a colonnaded balustrade. Seven steps descended to the floor of the cistern, which may have been a swimming pool, an aquarium or a pool for a sacred boat. Nearby, the Central Court was the focal point of the whole palace. Notice the altar base in the northwestern corner of the court; there was also a well in the southeast corner of the court at the bottom of eight steps. When the site was excavated the well contained the preserved remains of olives that may have been offered to the deities.
Adjacent to the central court is the Hall of Ceremonies in which two rhytons (ceremonial drinking vessels) were found. To the south is the Banquet Hall , so named for the quantity of wine vases found there. To the north of the central court is the kitchen. The column bases probably supported the dining room above. To the northwest of the central court is another light well and to the left of the banquet hall is the Lustral Basin , which once contained a magnificent marble amphora. The Lustral Basin served as a washroom for those entering the nearby Central Shrine . You can still see a ledge and a niche in the southern wall for the ceremonial idols.
Below the Lustral Basin is the Treasury , which yielded nearly a hundred jars and rhytons. Next to the treasury is the Archive Room , which once contained Linear A record tablets. Close to the northwest corner of the North East Court is the bathroom with a cesspit.
