9 September 2022. Iraklio, Crete.
This is the third and final tranche of photos from the Archaeological Museum of Heraklion. Up to this point, I’ve focused on the Minoan & Mycenaean civilizations. I certainly have a few more photos on that topic that I’ll be sharing herein, but I’m going to finish up in the Hellenistic and Roman era.
First up are arguably the most famous statues from the Minoan era: the so-called “Snake Goddess” (above left) and the “High Priestess” or “Ariadne” (above right), both found in a burial cist in the ruins of Knossos. These are also the most-copied Minoan statues, certainly insofar as appearing in the collections of contemporary Pagan and feminist households. I myself own three copies of the Snake Goddess, including a large one-of-a-kind reproduction in solid brass, and a large one in resin of Ariadne. These are not only the most well-known of a number of Minoan snake goddess figurines, but they are also some of the most evocative and inspirational to goddess worshippers around the world.
Goddess figurines from the Post-palatial period (Late Minoan III, 1400–1100 BCE) at Gazi, Crete display Mycenaean influence. Clockwise from top left: another snake goddess, a poppy goddess, and goddesses associated with doves.
Below is a Minoan-Mycenaean linear B tablet which records offerings of honey. It specifically calls out the Mistress of the Labyrinth. Paul P. actually has a tattoo of this.
Clockwise from above: Minoan-Mycenaean clay figurines in an attitude of worship; reconstruction of a goddess shrine with horns of consecration as architectural elements; tripod sacrificial hearth. Below, a magnificent Minoan carving of a lioness head rhyton from the palace of Knossos.
Finally, as promised, here is a smattering of Hellenistic and Roman sacred statuary. We were pretty much at a run at this point, just trying to snap as many photos as possible before we had to leave. Top row (from left): Pan, Aphrodite, and a votive dedication to Zeus Meilichios. Bottom row are three examples of Dionysos, with two youthful depictions and one of the God as mature.
In the group’s opinion, the most glorious presentation in the statuary hall was this arrangement of Persephone with Hades and Kerberos (below).
All told, we only had a little over an hour to cruise through the museum before we had to leave for a luncheon date with friends of Paul and Michael P. That was truly a tragedy, as it’s insufficient time to even begin to do the collections justice. We consoled ourselves with the promise that we would be back at some point in the future (spoiler alert: we did so in October 2023, but more on that in a future post).
— Να εχεις μια ωραια μερα. —
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