Zakros

Zakros is a Minoan palace complex on eastern Crete, the smallest of the known Minoan palaces yet a vital trade hub linking Crete to Egypt, Cyprus, and the Near East. First occupied around 2000 BC, the palace was built c. 1900 BC, destroyed by earthquake c. 1700 BC, rebuilt, and finally destroyed c. 1450 BC. Excavated by Nikolaos Platon from 1961, it yielded an intact treasury and 591 Linear A documents -- the second largest such archive after Hagia Triada. The approximately 8,000 square metre complex contained around 150 rooms arranged around a central court with advanced water management systems.