⭐ Travel Guide for Island Crete ⛵, Greece❗ - Myths (2024)

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What is the myth of the island of Crete? ›

Mythology and legends

According to Greek mythology, the first queen of Crete was Europa. Later on, Crete island became the land of King Minos. The legend is that the king refused to sacrifice a bull to the gods and Poseidon punished him by making his wife fall in love with a bull.

The ancient Greek god Zeus launched a lightning bolt at a giant lizard that was threatening Crete. The lizard immediately turned to stone and became the island of Dia. The island can be seen from Knossos and it has the shape of a giant lizard.

The island of Delos (/ˈdiːlɒs/; Greek: Δήλος [ˈðilos]; Attic Greek: Δῆλος, Doric Greek: Δᾶλος), near Mykonos, close to the centre of the Cyclades archipelago, is one of the most important mythological, historical, and archaeological sites in Greece.

In Greek myth, the Minotaur was a monster with the head of a bull and the body of a man who was imprisoned in a dark underground labyrinth at Knossos on the Aegean island of Crete. The Labyrinth was an ingenious maze commissioned by King Minos and designed by the architect Daedalus.

The largest island in Greece, Crete is a diverse and vibrant land packed with ancient ruins, buzzing cities and breathtaking beaches. Many people come here for the sun, sea and sand yet the best things to do in Crete include much more than the standard package vacation.

When a mother married her own child. Oedipus was the son of Laius, the king of Thebes, and his wife, Jocasta. Before his birth, an oracle prophesied that Oedipus would kill his father and marry his mother. Horrified by this prophecy, Laius and Jocasta decided to kill their newborn son.

Most Greek legends were embellished with folktales and fiction, but some certainly contain a historical substratum. Such are the tales of more than one sack of Troy, which are supported by archaeological evidence, and the labours of Heracles, which might suggest Mycenaean feudalism.

Santorini, commonly known as Thira, is an island in the Cyclades archipelago. Santorini, Greece, is one of the world's most beautiful islands. This is without a doubt one of the most appealing Greek tourist attractions that every visitor would like to visit.

The deep cave has a single entrance and features stalagmites and stalactites. In antiquity it was a place of worship because it was believed to be the cave where the titan Rhea hid the infant Zeus, to protect him from his father Cronus, who intended to swallow him like others of his progeny.

One of the biggest mythological stories to come out of Crete is the fact it is the birthplace of Zeus, arguably the most well-known and most powerful God within Greek mythology.

What is the most mystical place in Greece? ›

Dodoni. Just southeast of Ioannina, one of the most mystical ancient sites of Greece can be explored called Dodoni, known for the oldest Hellenic oracle. The oracle would observe the rustle of leaves on a sacred oak tree and how the birds would nest in the tree to determine the fortunes of visitors.

But Rhea, his wife, saved the infant Zeus by substituting a stone wrapped in swaddling clothes for Cronus to swallow and hiding Zeus in a cave on Crete.

Greek archaeologists discover mysterious 4,000-year-old building on hill earmarked for new airport. The 4,000-year-old building was discovered on a hill in Crete, Greece, on a site earmarked for the development of a new airport.

Minos, legendary ruler of Crete; he was the son of Zeus, the king of the gods, and of Europa, a Phoenician princess and personification of the continent of Europe.

The Cretans worshipped Amalthea and Rhea, Zeus' mother, as motherly and nurturing goddesses. Some stories of Amalthea raising Zeus depict Amalthea as a goat suckling the infant god. This depiction although zoomorphic shows Amalthea as nurturing. This version of the myth also explains the origins of the cornucopia.

He dwelt at the center of the Labyrinth, which was an elaborate maze-like construction designed by the architect Daedalus and his son Icarus, upon command of King Minos of Crete. The Minotaur was eventually killed by the Athenian hero Theseus.