Psili Korfi (Giouchtas)
| Psili Korfi | ||
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 Altar of the Minoan sanctuary below the summit stone |
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| height | 811 m | |
| location | near Archanes ; Heraklion , Crete ( Greece ) | |
| Mountains | Giouchtas | |
| Coordinates | 35 ° 14 '24 " N , 25 ° 8' 39" E | |
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| particularities | Minoan mountain sanctuary, transmitting station |
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Psili Korfi ( Greek Ψηλή Κορφή = high peak ) is 811 meters, the highest point of the Giouchtas ridge , a few kilometers west of Archanes , on the Greek island of Crete . At the highest point are the ruins of a Minoan peak sanctuary and a transmitter.
Summit sanctuary
Lore and exploration
In ancient times, the Cretans believed that the tomb of the god Zeus was on the Giouchtas . For this reason they were called liars by the rest of the Greeks, who believed in the immortality of the gods. The historian Michael Psellos reported in the 11th century AD that there was a pile of stones on the Giouchtas, which he believed to be the tomb of Zeus.
In the 19th century, many travelers reported building remains on the summit. In 1894 Arthur Evans first visited the Psili Korfi. At the end of the 19th century, Antonio Taramelli climbed the Giouchtas and made a sketch of the Cyclopean wall on the mountain. In 1909 Evans returned and did excavations and discovered the summit sanctuary. In 1952, an OTE broadcasting station was built on the summit and part of the archaeological site was destroyed. From 1974 to 1992 excavations were carried out under the direction of the archaeologist Alexandra Karetsou.
history
The first sanctuary on Psili Korfi was built at the beginning of the Middle Minoan period (MM IA, approx. 2000 BC). At this time, the 735-meter-long, 3-meter-thick and 3.50-meter-high Cyclopean enclosure wall, which surrounds an area of around 25,000 m², was probably built. However, a sacrificial table from the transition from the Middle Minoan to the Late Minoan period (MM III / SM I, around 1600 BC) was found built into the wall, which is why some researchers relocate the building to this period. A paved road led from Knossos to the sanctuary Anemospilia at the northern foot of the Giouchtas and from there to the Psili Korfi.
While all other known summit sanctuaries were abandoned after their destruction by an earthquake in the last phase of the Middle Minoan Period (MM III A, around 1700 BC), this continued to exist. At that time, a reception building was built 75 meters north at Alonaki ( Greek Αλώνακι = small threshing floor ). Around 1600 BC BC (MM III B) the sanctuary was destroyed a second time. However, the sanctuary continued to be used until the late Geometric period .
description
In ancient times, the holy district was reached from the north. A reception building (F) was reached 75 meters north of the surrounding wall at a height of 730 meters at the place Alonaki, also called Sopata. The priests of the sanctuary lived in the building and kept the utensils needed for the cult there. The remains of a pottery furnace and fragments of pottery wheels show that there was also a pottery workshop here. There was a spring nearby.
The surrounding wall (A) collapsed today. However, their course can still largely be traced using the stone masses. It is believed that the corners were reinforced by bastions . The gate (B) was in the north.
The actual sanctuary (E) is located south of the broadcasting station (C). Here a mother goddess , sometimes referred to as the Great Goddess , was worshiped. At the highest point there is a 9 meter deep crevice. In these offerings were thrown and libations were poured. A stepped altar was found to the southwest. Next to this Evans discovered a kernos , a stone vessel with hollows for offerings. Nearby he found a hoard made up of 2 large and 32 small double axes .
The lowest layer, dating from the earliest times (MM IA), consisted of gray ash from burn victims. At that time there was an open air sanctuary and buildings made of perishable material. Later (MM III) a stone building was erected on the highest point that was accessible via a ramp from the southeast. You first entered an anteroom. From this one got to another room to the north and a long room to the east. To the east of the elongated room there were five almost equally large rooms that were lined up from the south and north.
literature
- Sir Arthur Evans: The Palace of Minos at Knossos . tape 1 . London 1921, p. 151–163 ( archive.org [accessed December 29, 2014]).
- Alexandra Karetsou: Peak Sanctuary of Mt. Juktas . In: Sanctuaries and Cults in the Aegean Bronze Age . Stockholm 1981, p. 137–153 ( academia.edu [accessed December 29, 2014]).
- Ingeborg Witzmann: Bronze Age fixed altars on Crete. Diploma thesis, University of Vienna 2009, pp. 57–61 ( PDF; 28.2 MB )
- Alexandra Karetsou: Two Stone Kernoi from the Juktas Peak Sanctuary . In: Philistor. Studies in Honor of Costis Davaras . Philadelphia 2012, p. 81-96 ( academia.edu [accessed December 29, 2014]).
- Alexandra Karetsou: The Middle Minoan III building complex at Alonaki, Juktas . In: Creta Antica . tape 13 , 2012, p. 83-107 ( academia.edu [accessed December 29, 2014]).
- Alexandra Karetsou: The Middle Minoan III building at Alonaki, Juktas . In: Intermezzo. Intermediacy and Regeneration in Middle Minoan III Palatial Crete . 2013, p. 72-91 ( academia.edu [accessed December 29, 2014]).
Individual evidence
- ↑ Jannis Sakellarakis , Efi Sapouna Sakellaraki: Αρχάνες . Athens 1991, ISBN 960-213-235-3 , pp. 136 .
- ↑ Callimachus of Cyrene , Hymns , I, V, 8−9
- ^ Antonio Taramelli: Ricerche archeologiche cretesi . In: Monumenti antichi . tape 9 . Rome 1899, p. 350 ( uni-heidelberg.de [accessed on November 19, 2014]).
Web links
- Juktas Peak Sanctuary. Minoan Crete, May 20, 2016, accessed November 14, 2016 .