Book Review: Le Morte d'Arthur by Thomas Malory

Le Morte d'Arthur by Sir Thomas Malory rendered in modern idiom by Keith Baines and with an introduction by Robert Graves

This classic text was modernized by Keith Baines (in 1983!) to allow easier entry for readers who otherwise would have to make it through the Middle English of the original fifteenth century text. At five hundred pages, that's a long, arduous haul.

The book covers a myriad of legends from King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Some are familiar like the Quest for the Holy Grail and the awkward love triangle between Arthur, Sir Launcelot, and Queen Gwynevere (I'm using the spellings from this volume rather than the ones I am more familiar with). Other stories are much less familiar, like Arthur's march to Rome to become the emperor of all of Europe or the exploits of Sir Tristram of Lyoness, a knight in love with Isuelt the Fair who is as unattainable for him as Gwynevere is for Launcelot. The variety of tales is undermined by their similarities and repetitiveness. Knights are constantly questing around and jousting with any knight they happen to run across. After getting knocked off their horses, they proceed to fight with swords for two hours, often bleeding profusely from wounds until one has knocked down the other. Then the helmet is ripped off and the vanquish is beheaded if he does not beg for mercy. These incidents pad out the volume and make it a bit longer than it needs to be.

Otherwise, when the narrative gets into more mythical stories or describes the random details of medieval life, it is more interesting. Castles are visited often. How safe they are seems to be a roll of the dice. Some are the epitome of hospitality, others have customs that are barbaric to the core (like the one that bleeds out any virgin female who happens to visit). How the knights deal with these situations and follow their chivalric code shows how different the times were back then. But the knights are just barely Christian. I was a bit shocked to see how often King Arthur would sleep with a lady just because she was beautiful or available. The book passes no judgment on such actions (though sleeping with his aunt results in Sir Mordred, a knight who causes a lot of trouble). The ending, with the division and destruction of the Knights of the Round Table, is very tragic and well told here.

Overall, I enjoyed the book though I did find a lot of times that I was slogging through some random knight fights just because they happened to run into each other during their travels. Tournaments (mock battles or competitions sponsored by Arthur or other kings) were less interesting than they could have been, with mostly just a running tally of how many knights were unhorsed or defeated without a larger, important narrative going on. The great knights (Launcelot, Gawain, Percivale, etc.) are seemingly undefeatable and win the honors whenever they participate. Real conflicts are more interesting but are constantly getting sidetracked by this other stuff. 

Slightly recommended--this is a classic but it might need some editing unless you want the full medieval experience of pre-medieval legends told in medieval style.

Book Review: Mythology by Edith Hamilton

Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes by Edith Hamilton

This great overview of stories from western mythology is mostly focused on Greek mythology which has such a strong literary tradition from the era before Christ. Roman mythology is mixed in with the Greek since it often overlaps or has continuations, like how the Aeneid follows Aeneas's travels after the Trojan War ends in the Iliad. Hamilton is selective in her sources, looking for the most full accounts. She refashions the texts of Homer, Sophocles, Euripides, and others to tell the stories of the gods and heroes of the ancient world. The last fifteen pages review some of the Norse mythology which is very different from the Greco-Roman works and is more closely related (at least linguistically) to the English-speaking world.

The book brings to life concise reviews and retellings of classic myths, both familiar and unfamiliar. Her style is very personable and she is aware of her biases. Ovid is too bombastic and over-the-top for her, though she does use him when he's more restrained or the only source. The book ends with family trees for the gods and heroes as well as an index to look up the stories and characters.

Highly recommended--this is a a great review of ancient Greco-Roman mythology.

Book Review: Maryland Legends by Trevor J. Blank and David J. Puglia

Maryland Legends: Folklore from the Old Line State by Trevor J. Blank and David J. Puglia

The stories about Maryland cover a wide range of history, from the colonial days right up to the 2000s. The authors are professional researchers and folklorists. They have combed a lot of archives and talked to many people to gather these legendary stories. The book is divided into three sections.

The first section looks at supernatural sites and sightings. Hell House is an abandoned seminary in Ellicott City. People assume some hidden scandal caused the closure in the 1950s and stories of Satanic rituals and shenanigans grew (both as the cause of the closure and as what happened on the grounds after the closure). The situation became worse with a groundskeeper who used violence to keep the curious (even teenagers) out. Other stories are more mundane, like the demise of the Enchanted Forest, an amusement park that went out of business. Its fairy tale buildings took on a sinister tone with their dilapidation, making it a popular spot for seekers of the weird. The section ends with a selection of superstitions from the University of Maryland in College Park, from rubbing a terrapin statue for good luck to hearing former resident bumping around in buildings dating back to the 1800s.

The second section covers various unnatural and undocumented animals (or are they human/animal hybrids?). The Snallygaster is a reptilian bird that attacked people (mostly African-Americans) in the early 1900s. A local newspaper printed the stories. The accounts are clearly fictitious but that did not stop the legend from popping up again and again in subsequent years. The Goatman is a more famous monster that harassed people (especially cars) crossing his country road bridge. There might be some basis in an old, grumpy guy, but the tale moved to other bridges and roads across the state. Some phantom dogs (one more like a werewolf) and a The College Park Cuddler (a normal human who harassed coeds while sleeping) round out the section.

The third section describes some historic stories. Most people think the nickname "Old Line State" refers to the Mason-Dixon Line that separates Maryland from Pennsylvania. The name actually derives from a militia unit in the American Revolution. On Long Island as part of General George Washington's army, they held the line as other units retreated from an overwhelming Redcoat advance. Another famous tale is the defiance of Barbara Fritchie. As the Confederate Army marched through Frederick in 1862, she flew the Union flag. General "Stonewall" Jackson allegedly order the troops to open fire on the flag. She took up the flag and shouted at the soldiers. Jackson then ordered his men to leave her alone. Historically, Jackson came through town at night and his route did not pass Fritchie's house. Nonetheless, the story was relayed by a cousin to John Greenleaf Whittier who wrote Barbara Frietchie as a tribute. The poem's story became the received wisdom. The final tale is of the Poe Toaster, a mysterious figure who came each year from 1949 to 2009 to the grave of Edgar Allan Poe on the anniversary of his death. The figure would drink some cognac, whisper a few words, and leave three red roses. The figure never identified himself though it is clear that a new person took up the task in the 1990s. The Toaster was left unmolested by the crowds that increased through the years. The odd and macabre action fits well with Poe's literary style. 

The book does a good job relating the stories. As scholarly folklorists, the authors do not embellish the tales. They provide some insights on how folklore develops and changes through oral and literary traditions and use these tales as examples. There's a wealth of pictures and a detailed bibliography for those who want to read more, either in general of about specific subjects.

Recommended--it's scholarly without being stuffy and detailed without being sensationalistic.

Book Review: Hawaiian Legends of Ghosts and Ghost-Gods by William D. Westervelt

Hawaiian Legends of Ghosts and Ghost-Gods collected and translated from the Hawaiian by William D. Westervelt

This collection of ancient folklore from Hawaii has a good mixture of familiar and unfamiliar elements. Like many other mythologies, it deals with gods and goddesses, heroes and villains, magic fruit and magical transformations, visits to the realm of the dead and talking animals. Unlike many other mythologies, it has a very Hawaiian flavor. Sharks and turtles feature among the talking animals, with the sharks being rather helpful and the turtles opposing humans. Local fruit and local fish play roles in various tales. A lot of the nature mythology is based on the ocean and the volcanoes, making the stories interesting and very far from the stuff of the Grimm Brothers. 

Most of the stories are good, with an occasional rambling, pointless tale thrown in. The Hawaiian language is very pleasant-sounding even if it looks over-voweled to the eye. 

Recommended.

Book Review: Nevada Myths and Legends by Richard Moreno

Nevada Myths and Legends: The True Stories Behind History's Mysteries by Richard Moreno

Like lots of other folkloric books, Nevada Myths and Legends covers much of the area's history with some deeper focus on certain periods. Most of the stories are more recent with only a few legends from the days before Americans from the East moved in. Pueblo Native Americans and other people who lived even earlier provide a handful of intriguing tales.

The 1930s and 1940s saw a lot of growth in towns and the gambling industry, resulting in many stories of organized crime shenanigans, including mysterious deaths and bank robberies. The robberies date back even earlier, to the Wild West days, when maybe even Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid came through the area and caused trouble. 

Some ghost towns are covered as well as haunted houses in Reno. Even prehistoric, possibly fictional, creatures are still around, like giant snakes or lake-dwelling creatures in the vein of the Loch Ness Monster.

The book is a fun, light read that adds some color to the Silver State.

Mildly recommended.

Book Review: Olympus by G. Johns et al.

 Olympus written by Geoff Johns and Kris Grimminger, and illustrated by Butch Guice

An archaeology professor and three of her students end their European learning tour with a dive in the Aegean Sea. They discover a very old shipwreck and bring back a box. The archaeology program is about to be shut down because they haven't had any results, so the team decides to open the box rather than turn it over to the Greek authorities. They discover a strange and ancient vase inside. A storm suddenly comes up as another ship approaches too close. The other boat is full of mercenaries who board the archaeologists' ship. The storm gets worse, destroying the mercenary vessel. The science boat crashes on a sun-drenched beach. Suddenly the storm is gone. The shore is unfamiliar, especially the gigantic statue of Zeus on the hillside. The people discover they are shipwrecked on Mount Olympus and are soon fighting all sorts of mythical (or so they thought) monsters in an attempt to return the vase to its proper place at the top of Olympus.

The story is fun and action-packed. The violence is a bit gruesome at points (a Cyclops eats what a Cyclops eats) and the language is definitely R-rated. The mercenaries are generally unlikable, making them good cannon fodder for the island's inhabitants. The archaeologists are the heroes. One female student wears a bikini through the whole story, which seems unlikely and looks exploitative. That's the kind of action story this is.

Recommended for some light action reading.

Gen Con 2020 Online

Gen Con is the biggest board game convention in the United States. It happens every summer in Indianapolis...every summer except for the summer of 2020, of course. Corona virus shut down the physical convention. The organizers decided to shift to an online version, with many of the same presentations, demos, announcements, sales, and game play. The web site was fairly easy to navigate. I decided to attend the online con, getting virtual tickets for several events.

My first event was a lecture on Japanese Folklore and Mythology by Laura Baugh.

Cool interface--picture of woods because that's where lots of folk stories start

She described various stories, myths, and legends from Japan's past with a focus on how they show up in anime, manga, and other media these days. Also, she described how they are often misinterpreted, resulting in confusing and/or wrong impressions about what's going on (at least to Western eyes). Her presentation was very thorough and systematic. I learned a lot and added some stuff to my "to watch" list.

The lecture is available on her Twitch account, though you need to skip ahead about a minute because the sound wasn't working. Here's the link to Japanese Folklore and Mythology.

A great cover, too

I joined the Meeple Land Live Play and Giveaway, where people from Blue Orange played the game Meeple Land. They also gave away five copies of the game, asking some questions during the hour-long presentation. The theme of the game is building a theme park. Players have four round to buy attractions and amenities that they place on their large empty board. Attractions are large or medium tiles; amenities are small tiles. The tiles have various paths leading onto and off of them. Paths need to be matched up so that visitors can make it from one spot to the next. Placing the tiles can be tricky.

Meeple Land in action

Once players are done purchasing, they choose one of the buses full of meeples (it looked like anywhere from four to eight meeples of two colors on each bus) to come to populate their parks. Each attraction accommodates a few meeples of various colors, though some meeples might require that an amenity (like the burger stand or the gift shop) be nearby. The more meeples that make it into the park, the more money a player gets for the next round. If no matching attraction is available, the meeples wait at the park entrance for another round.

After the final round, points are given for how many different attractions are in the park and how many meeples are inside. Points are lost for any meeples that didn't have anywhere to go in the park and for any paths that are dead ends. No points are given for leftover money, so spending it wisely in the last turn is even more important than spending it wisely in other turns. The game looks like a lot of fun and is scheduled for release in September 2020. I did not win a free copy but may try to get it when it comes out.

Another helpful event I attended was a Twitch stream about Tabletopia, an online gaming platform. The site provides a 3D space with game pieces that players can manipulate on their own. The site provides PDFs of rules for games but the interaction is not limited by the rules. While playing chess, a player can move their king to any spot on the board. Tabletopia has a lot of games available and they have all been authorized by the games' publishers (except for obvious stuff like chess, checkers, poker, etc.). 80% of the games are free to play. Tabletopia has a monthly subscription model with two paid levels that grant more access. Users can play games solo, online with others, or in "hot seat" mode where other people in the same room take their individual turns at the same computer. The games have a chat box but the organizers recommend an audio or video third party service like Discord, Skype, or Zoom to get that "across the table" experience. The platform works on iOS and Android devices but is best through a browser.

Tabletopia main page

I joined the Dragomino Live Play and Giveaway hosted by Blue Orange. Dragomino is a kid's version of the popular Kingdomino game. In Dragomino, players put tiles together to get dragon eggs. Matching terrains get one egg drawn from a pile of eggs with the terrain's color. Flip the egg to see if it's an empty shell or a baby dragon. Baby dragons are worth one point at the end of the game; the empty shell means that player takes the mommy dragon token and will go first in the next round. At the end of the game, the mommy dragon token is worth one point. The game goes quickly and looks like fun for a younger crowd (5+ is the recommended age for playing).

Dragomino in action

The players

I watched a Learn Wingspan Live demonstration. The game is very popular in both the gaming community and the birding community because it is both a fun game and accurately depicts the birds and their activities. The game is not too complicated but does have a lot of moving parts. Players take their turns getting new birds, laying eggs, and getting food. All of this slowly builds an engine to get more eggs and more birds. The demonstration was on Tabletopia with the same guy from the previous Tabletopia presentation!

Wingspan on Tabletopia

A demo of Back To the Future: Dice Through Time was my final event. Players pilot DeLoreans from one of the four different timelines (1885, 1955, 1985, 2015), running between timelines to collect items scattered by Biff. Each item needs to go back to its original time and place. Every round starts with drawing event cards which can be good or bad. Some events go on the board, causing time paradoxes that need to be resolved. Other events help the players by giving them bonuses; still other events hamper the players by disabling some ability. After the cards are played, each player rolls four dice and then use the dice to move around the board and resolve the various situations. The dice have various faces, like the flux capacitor that lets the player switch timelines or the fist which knock the timeline's Biff to another location (he blocks players from dealing with problems). When players finish their moves, the Outatime track advances for the timeline with the most paradoxes on it. If players return an item to its proper time and space, they get to move the Outatime tracker back a space and get a bonus fetched by Einstein (Doc Brown's dog). The bonus is a token representing a die face. If players can get all the items back where they belong, the players win the game.

The video feed

A closer look at the board

The components for this game look great. The little DeLoreans have some nice detail and the custom die faces are fun. The graphic design is well done. The cards, DeLoreans, and dice all match whichever timeline they are from. The art is not photos from the movies but drawings that are instantly recognizable to fans of the films. The gameplay looks like fun. The couple hosting the video were funny and clearly knew Back to the Future very well, cracking jokes and using quotes from the movies. This looks like a great cooperative game for families.

While I did enjoy everything I did, I never played any games and I never had any of those fun surprises like running into cool cosplayers or finding a random game that is surprisingly enjoyable. I do have some new leads on good games and various ways to play online.

Book Review: Scottish Myths and Legends by Rosemary Gray

Scottish Myths and Legends selected by Rosemary Gray

Scotland has had a long tradition of telling tales of fairies and the fantastic. This book gathers dozens of stories centered in Scotland. They are all entertaining, some more so than others. Only one or two are written with a strong Scottish accent, giving the reader a taste of that style without making the whole book that style. I enjoyed it a lot, especially the diversity of the tales.

The book starts with myths that explain the weather, the seasons, and the geography. Beira is the Queen of Winter whose grip on the weather is only broken in the spring, when she leaves to a sort of Fountain of Youth to become young again. She has many children who helped make the mountains and lochs of Scotland and have many adventures.

The book has an assortment of stories about fairies, merfolk, brownies, witches, and other mystical beings. Mermaids are quite different from what Americans are used to--the Scottish variety can shed an outer skin to visit the surface world and it is a great woe to whatever merperson who loses their skin because they cannot return to the land under the sea. Brownies are like fairies but are always helpful. They don't want praise for doing good deeds and will leave if they are given gifts or other tokens of gratitude. Ghosts and giants also populate the stories.

Mixed in are some familiar tales of young boys going on quests (eg., do three tasks to get the girl), royalty mixing with commoners, and a few nautical adventures. Fantastical elements may or may not be part of the story. These are a lot of fun too.

The stories have a great mixture of history, humor, and horror.

Recommended.

Book Review: Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman

Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman takes the old Norse texts, the Prose Edda and the Poetic Edda, as his source to tell the tales of the ancient Norse gods and goddesses, made so familiar by Marvel's Thor. Odin and Loki and Baldur and the rest are here. Gaiman picks and chooses the stories he wants to retell and has wound up with an overall narrative from the Norse creation myth (the nine worlds connected by Yggdrassil, the world tree) to the Norse apocalypse (Ragnarok, the great battle that ends the lives of just about everyone, gods and humans). But not quite everyone dies, so the ending isn't so grim--it suggests a cyclical nature to the mythology's history.

The individual stories are interesting, though some have more charm and memorableness to them. I especially liked "Hymir and Thor's Fishing Expedition" where Thor (who has never fished before) goes out with a giant and tries to catch something for dinner. Thor is a bit clueless and brutal though he is willing to try anything, because he's Thor. Loki features in many stories for good and for ill. He has a large roll in Ragnarok, especially as the father of many of the evil creatures fighting against the gods.

My only complaint about the book is the style of writing, which vacillates between having the voice of an ancient and otherly narrative and the voice of a very contemporary speaker. Such a juxtaposition works well in something like Anansi Boys, where ancient gods live in modern times, but here it is ill-advised and much less satisfying. Otherwise the stories are excellent.

Recommended.

Book Review: Perseus and Medusa by Blake Hoena et al.

Perseus and Medusa by Blake Hoena and Daniel Perez

This is a fairly faithful retelling of the myths around Greek hero Perseus. A prophecy said that he would cause the death of his grandfather, King Acrisius of Argos. Naturally the king isn't happy about that and sends his daughter and grandson out to sea locked in a chest. They are found and freed by some fishermen who take them in. Perseus has various adventures on the journey that takes him back to Argos where he accidentally kills his grandfather. The main adventure is killing Medusa and taking her head, though he also rescues Ethiopian princess Andromeda from a sea monster and then weds her.

The story is entertaining and well told though it was a bit too scary for L who is only 4 years old. Also, some bits might require explanation, like why the king is banishing them so cruelly. The book has discussion questions, writing prompts, and other resources for school-aged children. It seems aimed at 4th to 8th graders.

Sample from the book:
I'm including this since it made me laugh out loud. It's right after Perseus defeats the sea monster and asks for Andromeda's hand in marriage as a reward. She is willing to marry him but she is promised to another guy, who decides to interrupt the nuptials.

Click to enlarge

Book Review: Theseus and the Minotaur by Nel Yomtov and Tod Smith

Theseus and the Minotaur written by Nel Yomtov and illustrated by Tod Smith

This graphic novel is part of a series on Greek mythology for younger readers, so it simplifies the story of Theseus in certain areas, though it covers all of the bases fairly well. The story begins with Aegeus, King of Athens, who goes to the Oracle of Delphi to find out when and if he will have a son. Naturally he's concerned about the next king. The Oracle is Medea, who tells him the next woman in his arms will bring forth his son. Before giving this good news, she extracts a promise that he will protect her if ever she needs shelter. While in Troezen, the local king's daughter falls into Aegeus's arms. The reader doesn't see anything untoward happen, but she does have a son, Theseus, long after Aegeus is gone. Aegeus left some tokens (sandals and a sword) under a huge rock so that any potential son could retrieve them and come claim the throne of Athens.

Fast forward eighteen years. Medea has fled to Athens, married Aegeus, and they have a young son called Medus. Theseus has grown to manhood in Troezen. Local giant Periphetes comes to terrorize the town. Theseus fights and kills him. His mom decides it's time for him to find out his true identity, lift the rock, and go meet his father. He does. On the journey, he fights many mythical creatures. In Athens, Medea tries to poison Theseus before he can reveal his identity. The king sees Theseus carrying his sword and stops the plot. Pretty soon, Theseus volunteers to go with the fourteen young Athenians to be sacrificed to the Minotaur on Crete. Theseus's plan is to kill the Minotaur and free Athens from this annual horror. The king asks Theseus to fly a white sail on his return to signal his success.

On Crete, Theseus catches the eye of the king's daughter, Ariadne. She helps him by giving him a ball of string so he can find his way back out of the labyrinth. He has a great big fight and slays the Minotaur. He promised to bring Ariadne with him back to Athens, which he realizes in hindsight is a mistake because he doesn't love her. So he leaves her at one of the stops along the way. She'd taken the white sail with her to clean it, so Theseus returns to Athens under the black sail. King Aegeus sees the black sail, despairs because he thinks his son is dead, and throws himself from the cliff. Theseus blames himself (as do the citizens) for his father's death. He rules as best he can to win back their hearts.

The book is a quick read and is very enjoyable. A lot of the more adult details of the story are left out (like why the Cretan queen gives birth to a half-man, half-bull), which is proper for a kid's book. The book also has some discussion questions and writing prompts at the end, along with a glossary and pronunciation guide. It's a good introduction to the story for younger readers. The art is fine, doing a good job conveying the emotions and the actions in the story.

Knossos, Crete

Sir Arthur Evans was an archeologist at the turn of the 20th century. He went to Crete to find ancient Grecian ruins. He found a veritable gold-mine in the site of Knossos, an ancient town with a Minoan-era palace. He bought the land and began to excavate. He did his best to preserve what he found, including reconstructing the site with concrete and a bit of imagination. Some of the authenticity has been lost, but surely many other things would also have been lost if not for his work. His contribution is a mixed bag but the site is quite amazing.

Bust of Sir Arthur Evans

The palace was built around 1700 B.C., replacing the old palace that had been destroyed in an earthquake. Knossos was the capital of Crete at the time. The palace grew and grew with many additions, perhaps inspiring the legend of the labyrinth with its own twisty corridors and complicated sets of rooms, passages, and courtyards.

Approaching the palace

Lots of rooms and staircase, lending a labyrinthian look

J is too cool for the staircase

More labyrinthy bits

It was the palace of King Minos (for whom the Minoan age was named) and it does feature several bull-centric art works, perhaps inspiring the Minotaur (Minos+taurus?) myth.

Bull relief fresco on the North Bastion

The Bull Jumping Mosaic in its natural spot

The first thing visitors see is the "kouloures" or pits just outside the palace area. The pits date back to the pre-palatial period (1900-1700) and were probably used first as granaries and later to dump trash. They were covered over in the palatial period.

"Kouloures"

Inside the pit

Off to the left is an area Evans called the "theater" because of the raised platform at the top of the stairs. Also, a road leads off to Irakleon from this side of the palace. Evans called it the "royal road."

Theater

The North Lustral Basin is one of the many such basins found in the palace. Their use seems to have been religious. Many vases or pitchers were found in the basins, presumably for a washing or purifying ceremony.

North Lustral Basin

Drainage for the palace

The Shrine of the Double Axes was used in the post-palatial period (1375-1200). The back of the room had a bench with a stone double-headed axe and some votive idols on a bench. All were used in religious ceremonies.

Shrine of the Double Axes

Restored Hall of the Double Axes

The Queen's hall or megaron nearby

Storage also nearby

The Throne Room had a stone seat and benches along the side walls. The seat has been replaced with a wooden replica. The room probably didn't have the function we associate with a modern throne room. Several oil jars were found that suggests a religious use to the room, with the king acting in his role as high priest of the community. The frescoes include griffons, a combination of lion's body and an eagle's head, symbolic of the power and magical abilities of the king.

Entrance to the Throne Room

Inside the Throne Room

View of throne and frescoes

The West Wing also did not function as fans of the White House might imagine. The rooms had several statuettes (including that crazy snake/fertility goddess) used in religious ceremonies. This area also has some storage rooms and other halls.

West wing, no oval office!

A large courtyard is found in the middle of the complex. The great hall of the palace was here, along with another shrine.

Great Hall

View down into lower levels

Also just off the main hall is the Room with the Copies, where copies of frescoes are on the walls. The originals have gone to museums like the Irakleon Archeology Museum.

Restored entrance to the Room with the Copies

Waves?

Ladies in Blue

Fresco from Tripartite Shrine

Visitors can still see bits of the original language called Linear A, which has not been deciphered (Linear B, a later language, has been decoded). Cretan hieroglyphics were also in use during the palatial period.

Hieroglyphics?

On the outskirts of the palace are some buildings that were part of the larger city of Knossos, as well as many precious beauties.

South House

Unidentified building

Precious beauties

The site is an amazing bit of history. The Minoan civilization was clearly very advanced and perhaps the first great civilization in European history. It lasted over a thousand years and left an enduring mark on Western civilization through famous legends like the Minotaur and Daedalus and Icarus.