Heraklion. Minoan port

The island's capital, Heraklion, located in the heart of the northern coast of Crete. Its commercial port remembers Minoan times, when he played the harbor of Knossos. City received its name from the name of Hercules, son of Zeus - the Almighty and the Queen Alcmene. In these places, the hero of his famous feat of seventh-exile from the island of Crete the bull. From the mythological times there was only the palace at Knossos and legends transmitted over the millennia. Today Heraklion is a city with 150 thousandth population where full of life, and its atmosphere every year attracts thousands of tourists. Inspection of the capital as part of any tour starts at the fountain located in the heart of the former governor of Francesco Morosini. The fountain was built in 1628, and at its top is magnificent statue of Poseidon. During the reign of Muslim god of the sea was removed from the fountain, and was replaced by stone lions. What is interesting, Lions for 300 years older than the whole structure, they were taken from another building. Near the fountain is the ancient church of St. Mark. It was built by the Venetians in 1239 as an episcopal residence. Here were buried Cretan rulers until 1508 when an earthquake the church was badly damaged. In 1669 it was rebuilt into a mosque. In 1960 the church renovated to arrange it in a showroom and conference - the center-these functions it performs to this day. Following in the direction of the port, we will see one of the finest buildings in Crete, Venetian Loggia of the XVII century. The palace was built as a fountain, at the behest of Francesco Morosini. Decorated with balustrades, arcades and columns make it very easy to design and outstanding. There were balls, and rewarding the local nobility. Today, ceremonies are held in the eastern part of the loggia, where the palace is connected to the former armory and the current city hall. During the town hall is one of the most famous churches of Heraklion in the name of St. Titus (Agios Tee - T & E), dwelt in 2 -96 years. It was the first bishop of Crete and the recipient Apostle Paul in the New Testament. In 1662 the Venetians took the relic and placed in the Basilica of San - Marco, but Pope Paul VI ordered to return the relic to the Orthodox Church, and in 1966 she was returned to Crete. The first temple was built in the X century and then rebuilt many times after fires and earthquakes. In the middle of the XIX century, the Turks have made the church a mosque and completely rebuilt it in the Muslim style. Despite the fact that eventually the church was returned to the Orthodox Church, as it were typical of the mosque prayer niche. Immediately behind the church of St. Titus is seen coast and the old Venetian port. Arsenals, which served as a shipyard and a prison fortress, still remain from those days. Outstanding in the sea fortress Kulesa arose about the XIII century. Like most local buildings, it was destroyed by an earthquake, so the strength that we can see today relates to 1523. Before the Turks staged in her prison, there were barracks, a dining room, armory, and even a mill, a chapel and a bakery serving the soldiers. Alas, the arsenals were not kept in the same good condition as the castle. But most of the defensive walls, which start just where are arsenal, was recently otrestavirovano. The walls still remember Byzantine times, although its modern form when they acquired the Venetians. In the XVI century artist Michele Sanmikeli (1484 -1559) gave them new features. More than three-kilometer wall was surrounded by a dry moat. Other bastions, making a total of seven are also impressive. They are named in honor of St. Andrew, the Almighty, of Bethlehem, St. Martin, Jesus, and Vituri Sabbonera. Defense shaft at the gates of Jesus reaches 40 meters in width. But in the bastion of St. Martin is buried Nikoe Kazantzakis, the most famous of modern Greek writers and poets, the author of the novel "Zorba the Greek." Living in Heraklion, honored him in this way, when he was denied a Christian burial. On his tombstone ascetic stamped inscription: "Do not wait, not afraid of anything, I'm free!". Y Bastion Sabbonera is the largest archaeological museum in Crete. Nowhere in the world there are so many monuments of the Minoan culture. The exhibits cover the period from 5000 BC. er. to Roman times. Most interesting to look the most senior archaeological finds. In the first room are findings related to the period from the Neolithic to preddvortsovogo period (3500 BC). Let us here focus on the stone box with a handle in the shape of dogs and decorated with a sacrificial vessel. The second hall is an exhibit of Knossos and Malia. However, the most famous third room with the findings of the Fest. Here is the famous terracotta disc. Its origin is unknown, and embossed on it the signs are still a controversial opinion. This is one of the oldest on Earth, written records, although no one has still not managed to decipher, and the technique of impression on the clay with bone stamps ahead of his time in 3000 years. In the church of Saint Catherine (Agia Ekatari - no), located near Morosini Fountain, is one of the largest museums of icons in Crete. The museum is the artistic heritage of the monastery of the same name. At the monastery of St. Catherine in the XV - XVI centuries acted iconographic school. Here he studied the famous Dominikos Theotokopoulos, known as El Greco (1541 - 1614), as well as Michael Damascus (1530 - 1591). Today in the walls of the temple you can see these masterpieces. Particularly noteworthy are the following icons: "Christ with Mary Magdalene," "Lady Burning Bush", "Last Supper", "Nicaea", "Adoration of the Magi", "Sacrifice of Abraham." In the museum collection also includes manuscripts of ecclesiastical and liturgical vessels.