17 June 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Offerings to goddess Demeter uncovered in archaic temple on Crete island, Greek

Nestled between two mountain peaks overlooking the harbor, excavations in the ancient city of Phalasarna revealed hundreds of offerings to the goddess Demeter in the remains of an ancient temple, the Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports said in a Nov. 11 news release.

The ancient city of Phalasarna is located on the western end of Crete, an island about 200 miles south of mainland Greece.

According to the press release, archaeologists discovered the remains of a temple that had been rebuilt between the late fourth and early third century B.C. The dusty, worn-down ruins were once a monumental staircase leading to two buildings: the main temple and a secondary structure, experts said.

The temple was built in Doric style on a natural rock with two fluted columns, capitals, metopes, and pediment. Estimates indicate it was more than 25 feet high and 16 feet wide. Most important it is the only temple of its kind in Crete.

Archaeologists on the Greek island of Crete unearthed the ruins of a temple rebuilt 2,300 years ago, finding offerings to an ancient water goddess. Photo: Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports

Archaeologists discovered five offering cases in the temple’s once-tiled floor. Researchers found well-preserved, elegant vases inside these cases. Archaeologists translated the inscription on one vase to read: A K E S T O I D A M A T R I – dedicated to the goddess Demeter.

Archaeologists said that as they dug down further at the formerly sacred site, they came across a pit that contained artwork that was from 600 B.C., which is hundreds of years older than the other finds. Glass items, terracotta animal figurines, and clay figurines of women were among these artistic offerings.

The early Archaic period (650 BC) appears to be dominated by Daedalic art in the form of naked female figures with Daedalic headdresses and high poles. From the findings of the 6th c. e.g. Egyptian and Phoenician glass objects, terracotta bird and animal figurines, arrowheads and spearheads, miniature vases, enthroned female figures, and a female figurine holding a poppy and pomegranate stand out. Regarding the findings of the 4th and 3rd c. BC the hydriai stand out, a beaked ritual prochos with a red representation of a flying Cupid, iron spikes and alabaster vessels.

Left: Pottery engraved with the name of the goddess Demeter. Right: Another pottery vessel found at the temple. Photo: the Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports

Piece by piece, archaeologists concluded that the temple was rebuilt about 2,300 years ago after an earlier structure collapsed, experts said according to the release.

Demeter is an ancient Greek goddess associated with the earth, fertility, and the power of water as a life source. The sister and consort of Zeus, she was also worshiped as a goddess of agriculture.

Female figurines made from clay around 600 B.C. were found at the temple. Photo: the Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports

Dorians established Phalasarna around the 7th century BC on the on the far West of Crete on Grambousa peninsula’s Cape Koutri. They controlled the sea routes to Northern Africa and Italy from this location. Their city-state had laws and a political system that allowed for the growth of a progressive community. The local economy’s strength was based on seafaring ability, which led Phalasarna to become a naval power. In the 4thcentury BC, Phalasarna fortified the city with huge walls and other military buildings.

Cover Photo: A view of the temple ruins from above. Photo from the Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports

Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports

Related Articles

A 2,000-year-old ancient “mirror” throws light on aristocratic life in China

17 May 2022

17 May 2022

Archeologists in Beijing have successfully reconstructed a 2,000-year-ago dressing mirror once cherished by the high nobility during the Han Dynasty....

An extraordinary medieval belt loop found near Kamień Pomorski in Poland

18 March 2024

18 March 2024

A late medieval belt loop for hanging keys or a bag was found near the town of Kamień Pomorski in...

Slavic settlement and burial ground with two unusual graves discovered in Saxony-Anhalt

7 August 2024

7 August 2024

Archaeologists from the State Office for Monument Preservation and Archaeology (LDA) of Saxony-Anhalt have uncovered a wealth of medieval treasures,...

Unique Gold Artefacts of Thracian Horseman Found in Bulgaria

23 August 2024

23 August 2024

The Topolovgrad Municipality posted on its Facebook page on Wednesday that during excavations at the site of a Thracian warrior’s...

73 intact Wari mummy bundles and Carved Masks Placed On False Heads Discovered In Peru

1 December 2023

1 December 2023

At Pachacámac, an archaeological site southeast of Lima in Peru, archaeologists unearthed bundles of 73 intact mummy bundles, some containing...

Ground-penetrating radars reveal hidden passages, described in Leonardo’s drawings

16 January 2025

16 January 2025

As part of a PhD thesis, an innovative technological investigation conducted by the Politecnico di Milano, in collaboration with the...

A Second temple of the Second Temple period was discovered at Migdal

13 December 2021

13 December 2021

The University of Haifa reported on Sunday the discovery of a 2,000-year-old synagogue from the Second Temple era in Migdal,...

Fossil found at the edge of the Tibetan Plateau reveals an owl active during the day 6 million years ago

29 March 2022

29 March 2022

The incredibly well-preserved fossil skeleton of an extinct owl that lived was discovered on the edge of the Tibetan Plateau,...

Gold coin hoard discovered in a cup beneath a North Yorkshire kitchen floor is being auctioned off

7 September 2022

7 September 2022

A couple in North Yorkshire found an early 18th-century gold coin hoard buried under the floorboards of their kitchen. The...

Human Presence in Malta Earlier Than Previously Thought: Hunter-Gatherers Navigated 100 km by Sea 1,000 Years Before Farmers

14 April 2025

14 April 2025

Recent archaeological findings have dramatically reshaped our understanding of human history in the Mediterranean, revealing that hunter-gatherers were capable of...

1900 years old a rare mosaic was discovered in Durrës, Albania

6 November 2023

6 November 2023 1

In the port city of Durrës, on the Adriatic Sea in western Albania, a unique mosaic dating back 1900 years...

On a 5,300-year-old skull, archaeologists find evidence of the first known ear surgery

20 February 2022

20 February 2022

Humans may have begun performing ear surgery more than 5,000 years ago, say Spanish archaeologists. Spanish researchers say the skull...

Coin hoard found in fireplace ‘belonging to Scottish clan chief’ murdered at infamous Glencoe Massacre

17 October 2023

17 October 2023 1

Coins believed to have belonged to a Scottish clan chief murdered in an infamous 17th-century Glencoe massacre, have been found...

Beautiful’ Water-Nymph Marble Statue Found in Amastris ancient city

8 September 2023

8 September 2023

Excavations in the ancient city of Amastris, located in the Black Sea province of Bartın’s Amasra district, have unearthed a...

2000-year-old anchor discovered at the bottom of the North Sea

26 September 2022

26 September 2022

A possible Iron Age anchor made from wrought iron was found at the bottom of the southern North Sea during...