Prinias
Encyclopedia
Prinias Crete
, 35 kilometres southwest of Iraklion, about halfway between Gortyn
and Knossos
, is an archaeological site that has revealed a seventh-century BCE temple with striking similarities to Egypt
ian architecture, and an Egyptianizing seated goddess. Above the site is a peak sanctuary, a sub-Minoan survival.
Prinias developed at a similar time frame with Lato
and Polyrrhenia
as an Archaic Period settlement, colonised by Greeks from the mainland.
The site contains vestiges of "the first stone buildings since the fall of the Mycenaean
kingdoms". Temple A, dated to around 625 BCE, is the earliest known Greek temple
decorated with sculpture
. Although its plan follows the Mycenaean model, the building had a flat roof and three massive piers on the façade. The most remarkable surviving detail is a limestone
lintel bearing two monumental statues of goddesses, seated facing each other. The figures, whose identification is disputed, each wear a long skirt and a cape, reminiscent of the so-called "Lady of Auxerre
". Below the figures is an orientalizing frieze
representing three panthers
on each side; the motif is typical for North Syria
.
Temple B is known for its Daedalic sculpture, which "consists of a statue of a goddess seated on a throne and wearing a polos
and a stiff garment decorated with animals, a horse
, a lion
, and a sphinx
". The goddess could have represented either Rhea
or Artemis
as "the mistress of animals". Most of the finds from Prinias (including a singular frieze of horsemen) are conserved at the Archaeological Museum
at Heraklion
.
Further evidence of Orientalizing culture was extracted from the necropolis
which spreads to the west from the ancient town. Some 680 burials (including ritual burials of dogs and horses) were made in the area between the 13th century and 600 BCE. The ritual has Oriental features, with bodies cremated, and heads buried separately.
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
, 35 kilometres southwest of Iraklion, about halfway between Gortyn
Gortyn
Gortyn, Gortys or Gortyna is a municipality and an archaeological site on the Mediterranean island of Crete, 45 km away from the modern capital Heraklion. The seat of the municipality is the village Agioi Deka...
and Knossos
Knossos
Knossos , also known as Labyrinth, or Knossos Palace, is the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete and probably the ceremonial and political centre of the Minoan civilization and culture. The palace appears as a maze of workrooms, living spaces, and store rooms close to a central square...
, is an archaeological site that has revealed a seventh-century BCE temple with striking similarities to Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian architecture, and an Egyptianizing seated goddess. Above the site is a peak sanctuary, a sub-Minoan survival.
Prinias developed at a similar time frame with Lato
Lato
Lato was an ancient city of Crete, the ruins of which are located approximately 3 km from the small town of Kritsa. The Dorian city-state was built in a defensible position overlooking Mirabello Bay between two peaks, both of which became acropolises to the city...
and Polyrrhenia
Polyrrhenia
Polyrrhenia , is some 7km inland from Kissamos in the prefecture of Chania of Crete. It was an important Archaic Period settlement co-temporaneous with Lato and Prinias....
as an Archaic Period settlement, colonised by Greeks from the mainland.
The site contains vestiges of "the first stone buildings since the fall of the Mycenaean
Mycenaean Greece
Mycenaean Greece was a cultural period of Bronze Age Greece taking its name from the archaeological site of Mycenae in northeastern Argolis, in the Peloponnese of southern Greece. Athens, Pylos, Thebes, and Tiryns are also important Mycenaean sites...
kingdoms". Temple A, dated to around 625 BCE, is the earliest known Greek temple
Greek temple
Greek temples were structures built to house deity statues within Greek sanctuaries in Greek paganism. The temples themselves did usually not directly serve a cult purpose, since the sacrifices and rituals dedicated to the respective deity took place outside them...
decorated with sculpture
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
. Although its plan follows the Mycenaean model, the building had a flat roof and three massive piers on the façade. The most remarkable surviving detail is a limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
lintel bearing two monumental statues of goddesses, seated facing each other. The figures, whose identification is disputed, each wear a long skirt and a cape, reminiscent of the so-called "Lady of Auxerre
Lady of Auxerre
The relatively small limestone Cretan sculpture called the Lady of Auxerre, , at the Louvre Museum in Paris depicts an archaic Greek goddess of c. 650 - 625 BC...
". Below the figures is an orientalizing frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
representing three panthers
Leopard
The leopard , Panthera pardus, is a member of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera, the other three being the tiger, lion, and jaguar. The leopard was once distributed across eastern and southern Asia and Africa, from Siberia to South Africa, but its...
on each side; the motif is typical for North Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
.
Temple B is known for its Daedalic sculpture, which "consists of a statue of a goddess seated on a throne and wearing a polos
Polos
Polos generally refers to a high cylindrical crown typically worn by mythological goddesses.Polos may also refer to:* The plural of polo* In music, the polos is one of the interlocking parts of Kotekan...
and a stiff garment decorated with animals, a horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
, a lion
Lion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
, and a sphinx
Sphinx
A sphinx is a mythical creature with a lion's body and a human head or a cat head.The sphinx, in Greek tradition, has the haunches of a lion, the wings of a great bird, and the face of a woman. She is mythicised as treacherous and merciless...
". The goddess could have represented either Rhea
Rhea (mythology)
Rhea was the Titaness daughter of Uranus, the sky, and Gaia, the earth, in Greek mythology. She was known as "the mother of gods". In earlier traditions, she was strongly associated with Gaia and Cybele, the Great Goddess, and was later seen by the classical Greeks as the mother of the Olympian...
or Artemis
Artemis
Artemis was one of the most widely venerated of the Ancient Greek deities. Her Roman equivalent is Diana. Some scholars believe that the name and indeed the goddess herself was originally pre-Greek. Homer refers to her as Artemis Agrotera, Potnia Theron: "Artemis of the wildland, Mistress of Animals"...
as "the mistress of animals". Most of the finds from Prinias (including a singular frieze of horsemen) are conserved at the Archaeological Museum
Iraklion Archaeological Museum
The Heraklion Archaeological Museum is a museum located in Heraklion on Crete. It is one the great museums of Greece and the best in the world for Minoan art, as it contains the most notable and complete collection of artifacts of the Minoan civilization of Crete. The museum began in 1883 as a...
at Heraklion
Heraklion
Heraklion, or Heraclion is the largest city and the administrative capital of the island of Crete, Greece. It is the 4th largest city in Greece....
.
Further evidence of Orientalizing culture was extracted from the necropolis
Necropolis
A necropolis is a large cemetery or burial ground, usually including structural tombs. The word comes from the Greek νεκρόπολις - nekropolis, literally meaning "city of the dead"...
which spreads to the west from the ancient town. Some 680 burials (including ritual burials of dogs and horses) were made in the area between the 13th century and 600 BCE. The ritual has Oriental features, with bodies cremated, and heads buried separately.
External links
Article of A. Pautasso about Arts and crafts between the 12th and 6th centuries BC.Article of D. Palermo with anticipations about archaeological excavation of 2007- (Greek)The official web site (Rizinia.com)