Ancient Eleftherna

Ancient Eleftherna is an archaeological site on a ridge in the hills of the Rethymno region of Crete, a short drive inland from Arkadi Monastery. The city was Dorian in origin, Roman in its middle centuries and Byzantine at its end, and its cemetery at Orthi Petra has produced most of the finds. An archaeological museum stands above the excavation and displays them.

Where Eleftherna is

Ancient Eleftherna is situated 25km southeast of Rethymno, close to the Monastery of Arkadi. It is the most significant archaeological location in the Rethymno prefecture, and many areas of it are still to be excavated. The University of Crete began the first organised excavations in 1985.

The pottery village of Margarites sits 1.3 km from the site, which makes the two an easy pairing on the same morning. Margarites has worked clay for centuries and still runs open workshops, and our guide to Margarites covers where to stay and what to see. The Christ Savior and Saint Gedeon Monastery stands 1.4 km away on the same side of the hill.

History of the city

Eleftherna was established by the Dorians around the 9th century BC and was inhabited until the early Byzantine years. The city stood at an altitude of 380m on roads that connected it to ancient Kydonia, Knossos and Mount Ida, and that position is what carried it through so many centuries. Finds have been recovered from three different positions on the same hill.

During the first Cretan War (205BC-200BC), Eleftherna sided with Macedonia against Knossos. The town then resisted the Roman occupation led by the general Quintus Caecilius Metellus, and fell in the end by treachery. Under Rome the city carried on prospering, and baths, cisterns, villas, public buildings and towers were built.

The Byzantine era was the last period of the city before the Arabs destroyed it. Eleftherna became a Diocese in those centuries, and the great basilica was built, parts of which still stand. The Archaeological Museum of Eleftherna was created above the site because of what the excavation has produced.

The Orthi Petra necropolis

A necropolis was found at the Orthi Petra position, and it has produced more material than any other part of Eleftherna. Excavation there is still under way. Archaeologists uncovered the tomb of warriors, holding 480 vases and weapons, along with the trench of warriors killed in battle.

In 2010, archaeologists discovered an unlooted tomb from 700BC. The tomb was a large lying jar with its entrance blocked by an 800kg boulder. Inside the jar were the bones of a young couple, possibly siblings, covered with a gold cap made of 3000 gold sheets of different shapes.

The girl wore gold jewellery depicting a bee, the first representation of a bee as a goddess in Crete. Turned upside down, the same piece reads differently: the bee disappears and a lily takes its place. A second jar held a golden eye at life size among the bones, which the excavators named Tutankhamun’s eye because it is identical to the one on the funerary mask of the Egyptian king.

Things to do around Eleftherna

Five sites sit within 10 km of the excavation, listed here nearest first.

1. Walk through the pottery village of Margarites, 1.3 km from the site.
2. Visit the Christ Savior and Saint Gedeon Monastery at Margarites, 1.4 km away.
3. Hike the Arkadi Gorge, which begins 4.9 km from Eleftherna and runs below the monastery.
4. See Arkadi Monastery, 5 km away and the most visited monument in the Rethymno region.
5. Drive down to the coast for a swim at Geropotamos, 9.4 km north, where a river mouth meets the sea.

Beaches near Eleftherna

Four beaches lie within 10 km of the site, all of them on the north coast between Rethymno and Bali.

• Skaleta beaches lie 9.3 km north, a run of separate stretches east of Rethymno.
• Spilies beach sits 9.3 km away, a pebble cove near Rethymno.
• Geropotamos beach is 9.4 km north, at the mouth of the Geropotamos river.
• Panormo beaches are 9.6 km away, below the village of Panormo.

Getting to Eleftherna

Reach Eleftherna by car from Rethymno, 25km to the northwest, on the inland road that also serves Arkadi and Margarites. There is no coastal bus to the excavation, so the site is normally combined with Arkadi Monastery and Margarites on the same drive. Drivers coming from the north coast turn inland near Panormo or Skaleta.

Four more sites in the Rethymno hills sit on the same inland road network. Attali Monastery stands above Bali on the coast, Diskouri Monastery lies south in the same range, and Patsos Gorge and Platania Gorge both cut through the hills within a short drive.

Frequently asked questions

Where is ancient Eleftherna?

Ancient Eleftherna is 25km southeast of Rethymno, close to Arkadi Monastery. The city stood at an altitude of 380m on a hill, and the finds come from three separate positions on that same hill.

How old is Eleftherna?

The Dorians established Eleftherna around the 9th century BC. People lived there until the early Byzantine years, when the Arabs destroyed the city, so the site covers roughly 1,500 years of continuous occupation.

What was found in the tomb at Orthi Petra?

The unlooted tomb opened in 2010 held the bones of a young couple inside a large lying jar, covered with a gold cap made of 3000 gold sheets. The girl wore gold jewellery showing a bee, and a second jar in the same cemetery held a golden eye at life size. The “tomb of warriors” elsewhere in the necropolis contained 480 vases and weapons.

Is there a museum at Eleftherna?

Yes, the Archaeological Museum of Eleftherna stands above the site. It was created because of the importance of the excavation, and it holds material recovered since the University of Crete started organised digging in 1985.

What else is worth seeing near Eleftherna?

Margarites, Arkadi Monastery and the Arkadi Gorge are all within 5 km. Margarites lies 1.3 km from the excavation and is a pottery village, the gorge starts 4.9 km away, and the coast at Skaleta is 9.3 km north.