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Monastiraki is the archaeological site of an ancient Minoan town close to Monastiraki village on the island of Crete. The site is on the plain of Amari, west of the Ida massif. Monastiraki is 38 kilometers from Rethymnon.
Monastiraki was first excavated during World War II by the German Archaeological Institute. Excavations began again in 1980 by the University of Crete. Three areas have now been excavated. In the early 1980s an Italian team excavated a small area at the north end of the site where the first store of seals was found. Nearby is the area that was illegally excavated by the Germans during the Second World War.
Their excavation was based on the notebooks of the noted British archaeologist J.D.S. Pendlebury, who was captured and executed by the Germans after the Battle of Crete. The Germans concluded that Monastiraki was a small site and their excavations were not extensive. Greek archaeologists have recently revisited the German excavations with some interesting results.
The main part of the excavation lies to the south of these two areas and is under the supervision of Greek archaeologist Athanasia Kanda. There is not very much published in the public domain, and photography is still forbidden at the site, a ruling enforced by the local villagers who allow visitors onto the site.
Monastiraki likely dates to the Middle Minoan Old Palace period and was destroyed at the same time as the old palaces. Its importance for archaeology, then, lies in the fact that it was not subsequently built on and remains one of the best examples of Middle Minoan archaeology on the island. It is clearly located on a strategically important site, dominating the Amari Valley which connects the south coast of Crete to the west of Phaistos with the north coast of Crete at present day Rethymno. It is quite likely that Monastiraki was developed by Phaistos inhabitants founding a satellite center. (Hogan, 2007)
The site may have been a palace, and has thus far yielded a complex of buildings, including storehouses, two archive rooms of earthenware stamps and sanctuaries.
The village of Amari has 222 inhabitants and is located in the valley of the same name in the foothills of Mount Samitos. In bygone days it was the capital of the District of Amari (Neus Amari).
The village is embellished by Venetian and Neoclassical buildings. Of particular interest is the bell-tower of the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, built on the top of a rocky outcrop. On the periphery of the settlement there are two very important frescoed Byzantine churches, those of Ayia Anna and Kera Panayia.
The former dates from the beginning of the 13th century and is the oldest recorded church on Crete; the latter was built on the ruins of a church of the 13th century and the wall-paintings date from the early period of Venetian occupation. Both churches have been preserved. There is a Folk Museum in the village.
The village is embellished by Venetian and Neoclassical buildings. Of particular interest is the bell-tower of the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, built on the top of a rocky outcrop. On the periphery of the settlement there are two very important frescoed Byzantine churches, those of Ayia Anna and Kera Panayia.
The former dates from the beginning of the 13th century and is the oldest recorded church on Crete; the latter was built on the ruins of a church of the 13th century and the wall-paintings date from the early period of Venetian occupation. Both churches have been preserved. There is a Folk Museum in the village.
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