One of the most important cities of ancient Crete. According to ancient lexicographers, it was variously named as Satra, Saoros, Aoros and Apollonia. Although familiar to travelers, connoisseurs and archaeologists of past centuries, ancient Eleutherna became known as an exemplary case of Greek systematic excavation, study, conservation, partial restoration, protection.

Continuous excavation by the University of Crete started in 1985 CE and has revealed several thousands square metrs of archaeological deposits in various parts of the site, namely on the hills of ancient Eleutherna (Prines) and the present-day Eleutherna.

Small finds testify to human presence already from the third millennium BCE. The earliest architectural remains date to the Late Bronze Age and have been found on the acropolis of Prines. Continuous occupation of the site is attested from the Early Iron Age through the Geometric, Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine and partly the Medieval period.

The Early Iron Age (circa 9th to 7th centuries BCE), known mainly through the excavation of the Orthi Petra necropolis, whose finds illustrate vividly the burial customs described by Homer in the Iliad (and also in Odyssey), as for example the cremation of Patroclus. The finds speak of, direct or indirect, contacts with other cretan cities, Attica, the Peloponnese, the Cyclades, the Dodecanese, Asia Minor, Cyprus, the Levant, Egypt and possibly Etruria. Architectural remains include a shrine on the Prines acropolis, a megaron-type building at Katsivelos, a house maybe in Xeniana, more shrines at Nisis and Elleniko, as well as large funerary monuments at the Orthi Petra necopolis.

The Hellenistic period (circa later fourth century to first century BCE), when the city expanded over the hills of Prines and Eleutherna (Nisi). Architectural remains include possible remains of fortifications, walls, a bridge, large retaining-walls, public buildings (shrines etc.) and private dwellings. Finds include works of art, statues and inscriptions (both votive offerings and inter-state treaties).

The Roman period (circa first and second century CE), featuring streets, retaining - walls, luxurious houses, public baths etc. at Katsivelos, the acropolis and Orthi Petra, and the early Christian / Byzantine period (fourth, fifth and sixth centuries CE), featuring basilicas and other public and private buildings (at Katsivelos and the acropolis).

circa 900 BCE- 700/800 CE

Geometric Period
Ancient Eleutherna, situated on the northwestern slopes of Mount Ida in central Crete, emerged as a significant settlement during the Geometric period (circa 900–700 BCE). In the ninth century BCE, in sub-Mycenaean times and within the broader framework of the later Greek Dark Ages, Dorian groups established themselves on a steep, naturally fortified ridge that offered strategic defensive advantages. The site occupied a nodal position in the Cretan landscape: it lay between Kydonia on the northwest coast and Knossos inland, while simultaneously controlling access between the northern shore—through its ports at Stavromenos and Panormos—and the major extra-urban sanctuary at the Idaion Andron near the peak of Ida. This advantageous location made Eleutherna a natural crossroads, facilitating both regional interaction and long-distance exchange.

Archaeological evidence from the necropolis at Orthi Petra indicates a socially stratified community characterized by warrior elites and elaborate funerary practices. Rich cremation burials containing weapons, imported goods, and ornamental objects attest to participation in wider Aegean exchange networks and the consolidation of aristocratic identities. The material culture—particularly pottery styles and burial architecture—demonstrates both continuity with Late Bronze Age traditions and adaptation to emerging Early Iron Age socio-political forms. Eleutherna’s inland yet strategically connected position thus underpinned its development into a regional center during this formative phase of Cretan polis formation.

Archaic Period
During the Archaic period (circa 700–480 BCE), Eleutherna consolidated and institutionalized the foundations laid in the preceding centuries. The Dorian city evolved along lines comparable to other Cretan Dorian poleis such as Lato and Dreros, developing civic and religious structures characteristic of the emergent polis. Epigraphic evidence points to the establishment of formal magistracies and codified legal practices, consistent with broader Cretan constitutional traditions.

The city’s territory appears to have expanded, sustained by the agricultural exploitation of surrounding valleys and the continued control of strategic transit routes linking the coast to the interior and to the Idaean sanctuary. Sanctuaries dedicated to deities such as Apollo, alongside possible local cults, structured a religious landscape that reinforced civic cohesion and collective identity. The presence of imported ceramics and metalwork reflects sustained engagement with eastern Mediterranean trade networks, while architectural remains indicate increasing urban articulation and the material expression of organized civic life.

Classical Period
In the Classical period (circa 480–323 BCE), Eleutherna functioned as an established polis within the competitive and often fragmented political environment of ancient Crete. Literary and epigraphic sources imply intermittent alliances and conflicts with neighboring cities, reflecting the endemic rivalries that characterized Cretan interstate relations. The maintenance of fortified structures underscores the persistent militarization of Cretan society and the strategic importance of defensible urban sites.

Although not among the dominant Cretan powers, Eleutherna retained regional significance, leveraging its strategic position and agricultural base. Civic institutions appear to have matured further, as evidenced by public inscriptions recording decrees and inter-polis agreements. Religious continuity persisted, with sustained cult activity at established sanctuaries, suggesting the resilience of traditional ritual frameworks within an evolving political context.

Hellenistic Period
The Hellenistic period (circa 323–67 BCE) marked both continuity and intensified geopolitical entanglement for Eleutherna. Following the fragmentation of Alexander’s empire, Cretan poleis navigated shifting hegemonies and participated in complex systems of alliance and rivalry. Eleutherna engaged in regional leagues and diplomatic exchanges, as attested by inscriptions documenting treaties and proxeny decrees, while urban development proceeded through infrastructural investments and modifications to public spaces.

A notable episode occurred in 220 BCE, when Eleutherna precipitated the outbreak of the Lyttian War by accusing the Rhodians of assassinating their leader, Timarchus. The Eleuthernans subsequently declared war on Rhodes and became embroiled in the wider Cretan conflict. Initially allied with Knossos and Gortys, they were later compelled by Polyrrhenian pressure to alter their allegiance and join the opposing coalition led by the Macedonian king Philip V. These shifting alliances exemplify the volatility of Hellenistic Cretan politics and the susceptibility of local disputes to broader interstate dynamics. Increasing Roman intervention in the second and first centuries BCE (during the later Roman Republic period) progressively altered the political landscape, foreshadowing the loss of effective autonomy.

Roman Period
Following the Roman conquest of Crete in 68/67 BCE until the 4th century CE, Eleutherna was incorporated into the province of Creta et Cyrenaica. Under Roman administration, the city experienced substantial architectural and urban transformation. The construction of luxurious villas, baths, and other public buildings reflects both the adoption of Roman urban models and the prosperity of the local elite during the Imperial period. Integration into imperial economic systems is further indicated by patterns of imported goods and monetary circulation.

Eleutherna remained a prosperous center until the catastrophic earthquake of 365 CE, which caused widespread destruction across Crete and the eastern Mediterranean. Despite seismic episodes that affected much of the island, occupation persisted into Late Antiquity, accompanied by the gradual Christianization of civic space. The establishment of ecclesiastical structures attests to Eleutherna’s role as an episcopal seat, marking a significant transformation in the city’s institutional and ideological framework.

Early Byzantine Period
In Late Antiquity (4th–7th centuries CE and subsequent period), Eleutherna continued as a Christianized urban center integrated into wider ecclesiastical hierarchies. Bishops are attested at the site, and in the mid-seventh century Bishop Euphratas constructed a large basilica, testifying to organized Christian patronage and sustained urban vitality. Basilicas and associated ecclesiastical architecture structured the transformed sacred topography of the city.

Nevertheless, a combination of destabilizing factors—including earthquakes, economic contraction, and external pressures—contributed to gradual decline. The earthquake of 365 CE had long-term repercussions, and further seismic activity, notably in 796 CE, compounded structural damage. In the later eighth century CE, attacks associated with the campaigns of the caliph Harun al-Rashid, together with the subsequent establishment of Arab rule in Crete, accelerated the abandonment of the site. By this stage, settlement patterns had shifted decisively, and Eleutherna’s prominence waned.

Following the later occupation of the island by the Republic of Venice, a Catholic diocese was established at the site, which survives in titular form within the Roman Catholic ecclesiastical structure. The archaeological remains of Eleutherna thus document a longue durée trajectory extending from the Early Iron Age through Roman prosperity and Christian transformation to eventual medieval abandonment.

circa 650 BCE

Funerary Monument 4A
Funerary monument 4A, in the middle of the site, is a fairly large masonry structure with a relatively square floor-plan bounded by an enclosure wall on the north, west and south. The lower foundations of the monument, which consist of unworked stones, are fairly strong, and support euthynteria rest at least two limestone orthostates, above which rise stone walls. Based on a series of observations relating to the structure, on fragments of plain and relief architectural elements discovered during excavation, and on stone warriors carrying shields, which were discoveredon its euthynteria and in the surrounding areas, an attemplt was made to reconstruct the western and southern sides using new materials that imitate the ancient finds, in order to give visitors an idea of the overall structure as it may have stood during the antiquity. The west wall of the enclosure of the monument bears traces of funeral pyres on its outer facade, lit on the orthostates of the courtyard of crematorium A, which are dated to about the middle of the seventh century BCE (circa 650 BCE), and this date, therefore, appears to form the terminus ante quem for the monument.

The area to the west of the euthynteria of the monument has yielded the bottom part of the kore of proto-archaic/daidalic period, while the legs of an Archaic period kouros were discovered broken and thrown inside the monument, probably when the site was tidied after it had been plundered. The kore, which retains several diagnostic features, calls to mind a masterpiece, the so-called "Lady of Auxerre" a famous statue in Daidalic style now in the Louvre Museum in Paris, which comes from ancient Crete and most probably from Eleutherna itself, as indicated by recent macroscopic, microscopic and petrological analysis as well as stylistic studies. The kore may have been placed in the niche of the west flase door of the monument 4A.

The entire monument reminds of much earlier funerary buildings of the Late Minoan Period, such as the one depicted on the famous AyiaTriada sarcophagus (inspect), now displayed in the Heraklion Museum.

During the excavation no traces of bones were found inside the monument, which points to its probably use as a cenotaph, a sanctuary or a heroon. The warriors carryng shields at the top of the building structure appear to have been its speaking symbols and are probably a reference to the shield bearing Kouretes, who clased their bronze shields together in front of the cave on Mount Ida (Psiloreitis) so that Kronos would not hear the crying of the newly born Zeus and devour him. These warriors will have served as models of military virtue and bravery for the young of the city-state of ancient Eleutherna. according to the ancient authors, indeed it is to one of these, Eleuther, that Eleutherna itself owes its foundation and its name. If this heroon-sanctuary is interpreted as a cenotaph, then, it is one of the earliest monuments to the unknown warrior in world history.

circa 550 BCE

Funerary Monuments K, 3K, 4K and 5K
Funerary enclosures are structures made of rougnly cut or dressed stones that surround an area with one or more burials or cremations. It is often difficult to determine whether the wall was built to enclose a vurial, or cremation, or to define a place for the related burial practice to be carried out.

Building K: North of incinerator A is pi-shaped structure (measuring approx. 2.30 x 4.40 meters), which uses the outer surgace of the incinerator's well built north wall as its south boundary. The structure is built of relatively large unworked stones, Charcoal, pottery, fragments broken clay vases, fragments of bronze enclosures. Certainly, no traces of frequent cremations flames were noted on the outer surface of the incinerator;s north wall, and this may argue for building K being a rubbish pit or ancillary room for the crematorium A.

Structures 3K, 4K and 5K: The structure 3K (west) sits above a series of funeral pyres, while 4K (east) rests on the earthen deposits, sherds and small unworked stones. The foundations of both buildings were built with large and small stones up to a certain height. Above and around the last course of the foundations a two or three stepped stone structure was created, the part that has survived in the middle of the east wall of the structure 4K, consisting of well-dressed stones on which probably orthostates and/or walls rested. The small finds recovered during excavations in the buildings (sculptural gragments such as part of a bird's tail, part of a frieze, wings of daemonic figures, etc) give us an idea of their sculpted decorations. It is difficult to reconstruct them, however, since we do not have enough material and lack the details of their superstructure. It is conceivable that the upper pat of a Daidalic figure, known as the torso of Eleutherma, now on display in the Heraklion Archaeological Museum, was most probably seated on one of them. They were probably either funerary buildings or raised pedestals over funerary pyres for sculptural groups, and appear to have been later in date than both monument 4A (south), and the Orthi Petra (north).

Finally, these appears to be another similar structure, structure 5K, at a higher level than the others, to the east of 4K. This may be the latest in date, circa sixth century BCE.

circa 1600–1400 BCE

Orthi Petra Necropolis
The Orthi Petra Necropolis, situated on the western slope of the Prines hill within the ancient city of Eleutherna in Crete, represents a critical archaeological palimpsest of funerary practices dating from the Late Protogeometric to the early Archaic periods (circa 870/850–600 BCE). Systematically excavated by Professor Nicholas Stampolidis and the University of Crete over three decades, the site provides unprecedented material evidence that corroborates Homeric descriptions of Iron Age burial rituals, most notably the "Homeric pyres".

The necropolis exhibits a diverse range of burial customs, including simple inhumations, pithos burials, and elaborate cremations; the latter are frequently associated with high-status male "warrior-princes" and are accompanied by rich grave goods such as bronze vessels, gold jewelry, and weapons. Significant discoveries include "Tomb A1K1," containing the remains of over 140 individuals, and "Building M," which housed four related females of high social and priestly standing. These findings, characterized by an abundance of exotic artifacts from the Near East and Egypt, illustrate Eleutherna's role as a wealthy, extroverted society deeply integrated into Mediterranean trade networks during the "Dark Ages" of Greece.

circa 1600–1400 BCE

Great Tumulus
A long series of funerary pyres located very close to each other was excavated in the north-east covered part of the cemetery, most of them apparently dating fro the eighth to seventh century BCE. Certainly, these "independent" burial pyres were covered at some point beneath a large elliptical tumulus consisting of small, unworked stones and soil. They lay to the north, west, south, and possibly east of the enormous pedestal of the so-called "Great pillar" (Orthi Petra).

These independent burial pyres were cremations carried out at a specific spot on the ground, not in a pit. Their remains (charred wood and bones, and a variety of grave offerings) stayed in sity, as did the ash urn, which was usually placed at the pyre's edge before a tumulus of earth and rubble concealed everything. They are independent of isolated but not individual, since some were used for more than one body simultaneously.

These funerary pyres, which were ignited directly on the ground with or without the use of mud bricks or unworked stones to facilitate the burning, come very close to the description of burial practices in the verses of Homer, especially in the Iliad; a wooden structure consisting of tree trunks, logs, and dry branches was raised, on which the body (or possibly multiple bodies), in most cases of adults, was placed together with a large number of offerings; large and small vases, both plain and decorated, usually containing offerings of liquid or dry foods (possibly oil, wine, honey, olives, corn, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, meat etc.), tools, weapons, jewellery and sometimes animals. It is difficult to say whether the latter were offerings to the deceased of the remains of funeral banquets eaten by those who attended the burial ceremony. The fire usually reached 800-1000 degree C and as Homer tells us, consumed men, animals and objects. After the fire was extinguished, the deceased;s burnt remains were carefully collected, washed, sometimes perfumed, and placed in ash urns, themouths of which were covered with ceramic or bronze vases. These were then sually placed at the edge of the funeral pyre's remnants, after which a tumulus of earth and stone was raised to cover all of the remains. Burnt offerings from memorial services are often found on the tumulus or at its edge, as are pillars or stelae, which served as grave markers.

In the case of Eleutherna's funerary pyres, both the plain and more complex tumulus types have been noted. In the case of the latter the "molten" earth and rubble of the plain tumulus is essentially given a form with bricks around it, like a grave, on top of which small and large rivr pebbles were sometimes placed, either irregularly or arranged more carefully in a variety of shapes. In other cases a built stone structure, a kind of funerary monument, was created around and above the pyre. On the north and west edges of the tumulus, and at certain points above it, jar burials and ordinary internments were placed, partially disturbing its stratigraphy.