The south west part of the palatial building

The Minoan site of Petras is situated a couple of kilometres east of the modern town of Siteia and it overlooks the sea from the top of a small plateau. The site has been excavated by Metaxia Tsipopoulou since 1985 and she has also been responsible for extensive work in the bay of Siteia whose aim has been to establish the Minoan settlement patterns in the area. The Minoan township of Petras, with a central building of a palatial character, was almost certainly the main town in this part of northern Crete. The main complex is 2800 square metres in area. The designation "palatial building" is based on finds there which resemble the architectural features of the main Minoan palaces.

The west part of the palatial building

First of all there is evidence that storage of produce was an important aspect of the main complex. The areas devoted to storage grew towards the end of the Neopalatial period and by the end pithoi were even being stored in the courtyard. The magazines were located to the north of the central court on a north-south axis. They were constructed in LM IA.

During LM IB two more storage areas were added, giving a total of 214 square metres of storage space. It seems likely that storage capacity exceeded the needs of the complex which suggests an administrative and redistributive role for the complex. The existence of 44 pithoi in the magazine area demonstrates that agricultural produce from the bay of Siteia must have been centralised at Petras rather than at any of the other sites excavated in the area.

Secondly, there was a small central court running north-south, with a plaster floor and a drainage system using stone and plaster drains. In LM IA the central court measured 6m x 13m but this was reduced in LM IB to 4.9m x 12.

The north west part of the palatial building

Inscriptions are usually associated with an administrative function. In the central building two archive tablets have so far been found. One was inscribed with Linear A while another consisted of hieroglyphic signs. The first was found in the magazine area and the second in the corridor outside the magazine area. There are also other examples of Linear A at Petras but the total number found to date is small.

The architecture of the complex has similarities with palace architecture. These include ashlar masonry, pier and door partitions and columns, in particular on the east side of the central court where there was a stoa with alternating columns and pillars, a feature which has been observed at the places, for example at Malia. Other important architectural features that link the complex with palace architecture include double staircases, cut slab pavements, dadoes and frescoes.

The north east part of thepalatial building

Masons' marks have also been found in great quantities in the central building. Among the marks identified are double axes, stars, branches, Linear A signs and double triangles as well as some lesser signs.

The building was a two-storey unit containing storage areas opening onto the central court and with a monumental staircase as the main entrance. The most extensive wing is to the west and the building is larger in its LM 1A phase. During LM IB the size of the court was reduced slightly and a series of storerooms was built at a lower level on the north, using large ashlar blocks with mason's marks.

For more pictures of Petras click here