The Palace of Phaistos, including the so-called King's Megaron, was primarily constructed during the Middle Minoan period (circa 2000 to 1700 BCE), with significant developments occurring around 1700 BCE. The site saw further expansions and renovations during the Late Minoan period, particularly around 1450–1400 BCE, when it became an important center in the regione complex, which includes the Megaron—an important ceremonial space—reflects Minoan architectural features and serves as a testament to the sophisticated culture of the time.

circa 1900-1700 BCE

Pithoi Magazines
The magazines of the old palace period (circa 1900-1700 BCE) occupied a large part of the western wing immediately to the east of the western court and externded to the lower terrace. Apart from their use as storage areas, they also appear to have housed some of the workshop activities of the old palace, however, today most of the magazines have been filled in. One of these is the magazines now displays giant pithoi (storage jars) with discs and rope patterns in high relief. Just east of this is a well preserved quern installation for grinding grain. Another partially well-preserved pithoi magazine, dating back to the old palace period, is visible under the floor of the lightwell in the propylaea.

circa 1900-1700 BCE

Tripartite Shrine Complex
The complex of rooms at the foot of the and west of the propylaea, north of the western pithoi magazines and adjacent to the seating of the western court was a small shrine (1900-1700 BCE). It has the typical tripartite layout of the Minoan shrines with the central room being the largest, as we can see from depictions of such shrines in Minoan art as well. In the north room of the tripartite shrine there is a bench with a quern for grinding grain and a depression for collecting the flour for baking the "holy bread" used as an offering. The middle room also has benches, a small rectangular basin and a drainage duct, perhaps for ritual use. The cult objects found in the rooms, such as offering tables, a triton shell, fruit bowls and stone ritual vessels, suggest that the area was a shrine. Immediately to the east were two rooms, of which only the west room is preserved, which, although older, are directly connected to the shrine. A small open air space north of the shrine, which was found full of ashes and bones, was used as a sacrificial altar.

circa 1900-1700 BCE

West Magazines
The north part of the western wing is occupied by the large complex of the palace magazines or store-rooms. It consists of the antechamber, the corridor of the magazines and the magazines themselves.

The first wide hall forms the antechamber of the magazines and opens on to the central court via a doorway with a central column and two pillars. Two other columns inside the room supported the roof. Under the roof of the antechamber was discovered the archive room from the old palace period (circa 1900-1700 BCE), containing over 6,000 clay seals or bullae (i.e. seal impressions on balls of clay, which were used to monitor the movement of the goods in the magazines).

A double doorway with a central pillar on the western side of the antechamber led to the corridor of the magazines, with a second central pullar supporting the roof of the corridor. To right and left were the 11 magazines, in which the goods produced by the palace were stored. The western most magazine, on the north side of the corridor, which has been roofed over by the excavators contains tall pithoi, one of which bears an inscription in Linear A script.

circa 1700 BCE

King's Megaron
The northern most of the "royal apartments" has been identified as the King's Megaron and bears a striking resemblance to the corresponding King's Megaron at the Palace of Knossos. It consists of a spacious central hall with impressive polythyra (pier and door partitions on the north and east sides. The eastern polythyron provides access into a second room with two columns, which opens onto a large lightwell to the east. The gypsum slab flooring with red plaster filling the interstices gave the whole complex a particularly sumptuous personality. the north side of both rooms opens onto a spacious colonnade with columns set far apart, offering a magnificient view of the Mount Psiloritis and the sacred Kamares Cave. A long corridor at the back of the polythyron room leads to the impressive "lustral basin" of the Megaron. The whole apartment was decorated with colourful wall paintings depicting linear and plant motifs.

circa 1700 BCE

Grand Central Court
The grand central court was the basic architectural element of the Minoan palace complexes and the core around with the different wings were set up. It was the focus of the economic, social and religious activity inside the palace. It would have also been the setting of events, festivals or ceremonies which could be watched from the windows and balconies. The grand central court of the palace of Phaistos was built in the time of the old palace (circa 1900-1700 BCE). It was also used in the new palace with some minor alterations to its original orientation and dimensions.It a rectangular, paved, open area with colonnades running along both its long siders, with alternating pillars and columns which supported open colonnades.

On the west side of the court, two adjoining rectanguler rooms with benches, opening onto the court itself, may have been the sitting rooms for the spectatotrs watching the ents taking place in the central court. In the eastern colonnade of the court, some stone built benches next to a water cistern may have formed islands of rest and recreation.

The stepped structure in the north-western corner of the court may have been an altar for the ceremonies which were held here. The pithoi (large storage jars) in front of it were found in buildings which were founded on the site of the court after the destruction of the palace.

circa 1700 BCE

Kouloures
The south end of the western court is occupied by four large stone-built structures known as "kouloures" (rings), belonging to the old palace complex. The workmen on Arthur Evans excavation gave them this name when they were first discovered at ancient Knossos. Similar pits were also later discovered at the palace of Malia. The exact usage of these so-called kouloures is unknown, although today they are generally regarded as depositories for offerings from the palace shrines, or granaries. A cobbled road which provides access from the lower parts of the site to the western court, which was built most likely during the archaic period (circa 800-500 BCE). This road also cuts through one of the kouloures. During Hellenistic period (323-67 BCE) a water-well was also built here.

circa 1700 BCE

North Wing
The north wing was one of the most important sections of the palace, as it is believed to have comprised of the "royal apartments". It also contained sets of rooms, inner courtyards, corridors and staircases leading to the upper floor. The splendid gateway on the north side fo the grand central court led to the complex of the "royal apartments". It is framed by two magnificient wooden half-columns, now partially reconstructed. On either side of the gateway are two niches decorated with all paintings, in which the gate guards may have stood. Behind the gateway is a wide corridor with a drainage channel, which led to an inner courtyard, which in turn led to the "royal-apartments" complex in the very north of the archaological site. The term "royal apartments" was established by the excavators, who followed the terminology applied by Arthur Evans to similar areas and structures at ancient Knossos. These structures are undoubtedly official apartments with particular architectural features, such as open balconies and colonnades, polythyra (pier and door partitions), lightwells and lustral basins. The gypsum slab flooring and solourful wall paintings gave these partments a particularly luxurious appearance.

circa 1700 BCE

Peristyle
The ope air peristyle court, situated near the center of the palace complex, was one of the most elegant inner courtyards of the new palace. It consisted of an impressive peristyle with four columns on each side supporting the corresponding colonnades, while the central area remained open. The same construction appears to have continued on the upper floor, with a second row of columns.

The peristyle court was focal point of the palace, with access routes leading from here to the "royal apartments" (king's and queen's megarons), the propylaea and the center court. In the center of the courtyard, today however, remains of a residention structure dating back to the pre-palatial period (circa 3200-1900 BCE) can also be seen.

circa 1700 BCE

Queen's Megaron
The southern most section of the "royal apartments" has been identified as the "queen's megaron". It consists of a beautiful, spacious hall with a double colonnade opening on to a lightwell. The floors are paved with gypsum slabs with red plasted filling the interstices. Gypsum was also widely used for the benches running around the walls of the megaron and the facing of the lower part of the walls. The upper walls are decorated with frescoes depicting plant motifs. Two beautiful rhytha (libation vessels) were discovered here. One of these rhytha is decorated with the cult symbols of the double axe and sacral know, while the other bears a reed pattern. The staircases to the west and north led to the upper floor of the megaron and the peristyle, where one of the main entrances to the royal apartments was located.

circa 1700 BCE

Shrines in the Western Wing
Almost entirety of the southern part of the western wing was dedicated to the shrines of the new palace period. The main architectural types of shrine are the "bench-shrine" and the "lustral basin". The first type consists of small, rectangular rooms with low benches running around the walls, which were most likely used to place the cultic objects and figurines of the deity. On some of them were found female figurines, ritual vessels and offering tables (small altars). On the walls of some rooms are incised sacred symbols, such as the double axe and the star.

The "lustral basin" type shrines consist of rooms which are generally set at a some what lower level as compared to the surrounding structures, with a few steps leading down into them. These were usually lined with slabs of gypsum, giving them a highly finished appearance. Although it is doubtful that these structures contained water, it is thought that these were used for purification rituals.

There is a third type of Minoan shrine in the south-eastern part of the shrine area. It is a room with central pillars (square, stone built columns) thought to be a cult area, similar to the so-called "pillar crypts" of the palace of Knossos, where the sacred pillar was worshipped by pouring libations.

circa 1700 BCE

Western Court and the Theatrical Area

circa 1700 BCE

Upper Court
The upper court is the first of the three courts in the western wing of the palace complex. Its south side is supported by a strong retaining wall separating it from the lower west court. On the west side, the seventeen circular recesses in the ground indicate the presence of an equal number of wooden columns which probably supported a covered colonnade. The court is crossed from north to south by a raised "processional causeway", which, like those of the other palaces, would have been used for sacred processions and other rituals.

The upper court also functioned as a kind of balcony from which one could watch the events taking place in the western court below, which is just to the south and on a lower level. The twocourts are linked by a majestic staircase starting in the south-east part of the upper court. The buildings on the southern side of the court were built much later, in Hellenistic times (circa 323-67 BCE), when palaces had already been destroyed. The most important of these contains a room with two columns, a central hearth and stone benches around the walls. It is believed to be a public building, probably a prytaneion or an andreion. To the east of the causeway, early Christian tombs dating back to circa 330-600 CE can be seen.

circa 1700-1450 BCE

Propylaea
The impressive staircase starting in the western court led to the monumental propylaea, the principal and the most impressive entrance to the new palace (circa 1700-1450 BCE). The portico consists of a central column - only the base is preserved today, flanked by pilasters. There followed a solid wall with a double opening and a colonnade of three columns. The floors of the propylaea complex were paved with gypsum slabs which gave it a sumptuous appearance. The colonnade opens onto a large air lightwell through which rain water drained away. There are two accesses from the propylaea to different parts of the palace. The first access, in the hall with the colonnade, led via a staircase and corridors to the peristyle and thence to the royal apartments (the king's and the queen's megarons). The second, inthe south-east corner of the lightwell, led to an inner staircase which ended in the antechamber of the magazines and then led to the central court of the palace.

circa 1550 BCE

North-East Complex
The building complex situated at the north-eastern edge of the palace area, comprising of four rooms, does not belong to the old palace, although it directly adjoins it. An elangated or rectangular room lies in the western-most part of this building, with partitions of vertical clay slabs. Similar "cists" in the Palace of Knossos and Zakros were used to store valuable ritual vessels. At Phaistos these areas were found empty. Next door, in the narrow rectangular room to the south-east, a clay tablet inscribed in Linear A and the famous Phaistos Disc bearing hieroglyphic writing were discovered. That's why the building was named as the "palace archive".

The building east of the so-called archive is thought to be a shrine or the archivist's residence, while the eastern most building is known as the "potter's workshop", because a large number of unfinished pots were found there. The intermediate building has an impressiveperistyle of alternating pillars and columns. A staircase on the south side of the peristyle building connects the whole complex to the north-east entrance to the palace, which stood on this spot.

circa 1550 BCE

Phaistos Disc
The so-called Phaistos disc, which was discovered in the western most section (inspect) of the north-east complex, is the most interesting object of the prehistoric Aegean. It is a clay disc stamped with hieroglyphic signs, arranged in a spiral on both sides. Each symbol has been stamped, using a separate movable punch-seal, onto the wet clay before firing. It can therefore be considered the earliest example of "typography". It is dated to circa 1550 BCE. Despite many attempts to decipher it, the contents remain unknown. However, most scholars believe that it is a ritual text. Cretan hieroglyphic script is the first Minoan form of writing. It appeared on seals as early as the late third millennium BCE and its use was standardised in the early second millennium BCE around the same time as the the founding of the first palace complex. It continued to be used, having evolved in to linear hieroglyphic, after the foundation of the new palaces.