Kydonia ( or ), also known as Cydonia (, Kydōnía) was an ancient city located at the site of present-day Chania near the west end of the island of Crete in Greece. The city is known from archaeological remains dating back to the Minoan era as well as literary and historical sources. It was added as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2025.
History
In the area of Kastelli Hill, which is the citadel of Chania's harbor, archaeological excavations have discovered ceramic sherds and finds that date from the
Neolithic to Late Minoan IIIC.
Early Bronze
Scarce finds such as walls and ground floors confirm that the systematic habitation of the hill began during Early Minoan (EM) II period.
Middle Bronze
In the Middle Bronze Age, the material culture on Crete is known as Middle Minoan (MM).
Late Pre-Palatial Period
In the MM IA (c. 2050/2000-1925/1900 BC
[Manning 1995:217]), the architecture was still pre-palatial. These levels were destroyed with the construction of the neopalatial town.
Neo-Palatial Period
In the
Middle Minoan (MM III; c. 1750/1720-1675/1650 BC
[Manning 1995:217]), a palace was built marking the beginning of the Neo-Palatial Period.
[Tzedakis and Chryssoulaki (1987) Neopalatial Architectural Elements in the Area of Chania. In the Function of the Minoan Palace, pp. 111-115]
A large archive of Linear A tablets (97) have been found, the second largest archive known. The tablets were largely economic records of agricultural produce, people and animals.
Late Bronze
A Minoan House (House I) with the characteristic hall was also unearthed. It was destroyed by fire during Late Minoan (LM) IB period. The houses from LMIIIA phase belonged to a palatial settlement, which ceased to exist in LMIII.
The city extended beyond Kastelli Hill as the excavations in Daskalogiannis Street revealed, where a LMI sanctuary or "lustral basin" came to light. The discovery of a corpus of Linear A and Linear B tablets points out the presence of an archive. Moreover, the archaeologists have identified the existence of a local pottery workshop, which was active in LMIII.[The Greek-Swedish excavations at the Agia Aikaterini square, Kastelli, Khania, 1970-1987 and 2001 vol. 1,2,3 ed. by Erik Hallager and Birgitta P. Hallager.(2003)][Maria Andreadaki-Vlazaki, The county of Khania through its monuments (1997)]
At the end of the LM IB, Kydonia seem to have been abandoned for a period.
Mycenean Period
In the Late Minoan IIIA (LM IIIA; 1435/1405-1360/1325 BC
[Manning 1995:217; see McEnroe 2010]), new houses are built. At the end of LM IIIA, the houses are destroyed by fire. In "House 1" three Linear B tablets were found. In the Late Minoan IIIB (LM IIIB; 1360/1325-1200/1190 BC
[Manning 1995:217; see McEnroe 2010]), the town was rebuilt again.
In the Mycenean Period, Linear B is only found at the Cretan sites of Knossos, Kydonia/Chania and Malia. This indicates a scriptorium and archive within a possible palace in Kydonia.
Iron Age
Archaeological evidence from the Early Iron Age and Archaic Era is limited.
In 429 BC, during the Peloponnesian War, Kydonia was attacked by the Classical Athens after the accusations of Nikias from Gortyna for pro-Spartan policy.[Thuc. 2.85]
In 343 BC the city was besieged by Phalaikos and his army of mercenaries after his failed attempt to capture Lyttus. He was killed from a lightning strike that burnt his siege engines.[Diod. Sic 16.63]
Hellenistic Period
In the Hellenistic period, Kydonia took part in the struggle for domination among the cities of Crete.
[Angelos Chaniotis, Die Verträge zwischen kretischen Poleis in der hellenistischen Zeit (1996)] At the end of the 3rd century BC a peace treaty with Aptera was signed.
During the Lyttian War In 220/219 BC both cities joined the alliance of Oreioi (in which Polyrrhenia was a member) and canceled the one with Knossos. Aggressive policy led to the capture of Phalasarna (184 B.C.E) and 14 years later that of Apollonia, an action criticized by Polybius since they were allies.[Polyb. 28.14]
Roman Period
In 69 BC the Romans under Quintus Caecilius Metellus Creticus, after the failed attempt of Marcus Antonius Creticus, invaded Crete. The Cretan general Lasthenes confronted them in the battle of Kydonia, where he lost and retreated. This outcome forced Cretan general
Panares to capitulate to the Romans and deliver them the city without resistance.
[Appian sic 6]
The coins of the
city-state depict Kydon either as an infant suckling a female Cretan hound or as an archer stringing his bow, accompanied by his dog.
The remaining base from the Hellenistic wall can be seen below the Byzantine wall of Kastelli Hill. Rescue excavations have discovered Hellenistic facilities below buildings of the modern city.[Maria Andreadaki-Vlazaki, Khania (Kydonia) : a tour to sites of ancient memory (2009)]
After the battle of Actium (31 BC) Augustus set Kydonia free for its assistance to him.[Dio Cassius 51.2] Kydonians are mentioned in book 12 of the Aeneid, where their excellent bow skills are used in an extended simile describing the Fury's descent to Juturna. The editors of the Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World suggest that the city also bore the name Apollonia (Ἀπολλωνία, Apollōnía) at some point.
Late Antiquity
In 365 the city must have been affected by the earthquake that devastated many cities of Crete. The Episcopate of Kydonia is referred in many ecclesiastical documents. The earliest is in 381 when Cydonius the bishop of Kydonia takes part in the First council of Constantinople.
The prosperity of the city during Late Roman times is illustrated by the mosaics of houses found near Agora Square. Roman workshops have been found in some parts of the modern city.
[Michalis Andrianakis and Maria Andreadaki-Vlazaki, The Old City of Hania Historical Review, Monuments, Archaeological Museum (1997)] Material from the urban architecture of the ancient city was used for the construction of Kastelli Hill's Byzantine wall.
Middle Ages
The first Byzantine period of Kydonia ended with the Arab conquest of Crete in the 820s. After the Byzantine reconquest of Crete in 961, the bishopric was transferred outside the city near the village of Agya.
It is uncertain when the toponym Kydonia ceased to be used in place of forms of the modern
Chania. The scholars suggest that the name was changed by the Arabs, who named the city (, "the
Caravanserai" or "
Inn"). This name may have derived from a suburb of Kydonia called , where the god
Welchanos had been worshipped in antiquity.
[Nikolaos Platon, Κρητικά Χρονικά Α (Kretika Chronika 1) (1947)] Under Venetian rule, the city was known as
Canea.
Modernity
The name is preserved in the Metropolis of Kydonia and Apokoronas, which was established in 1962.
Today's archaeological recoveries from the ancient city of Kydonia are largely stored in the Chania Archaeological Museum in present-day
Chania.
[http://www.chaniamuseum.culture.gr ]
Identification
The exact location of Kydonia was not understood until
Robert Pashley worked it out
[Pashley, 1837] based solely on ancient historical literature without any
archaeological recovery.
[Hogan, 2008] John Pendlebury also identified
Chania with ancient Kydonia.
[J.D.S Pendlebury, The Archaeology of Crete: An introduction (1939)] Ancient authors suggest that Kydonia was located in western
Crete, facing the
Peloponnese.
[Diod. Sic. 5.17][Strabo 10.4] Strabo calculated its distance from other cities of Crete.
[Strabo 10.4.13]
Necropolis
Since Kydonia was inhabited for centuries, the
necropolis of the city is quite extended and includes graveyards from all periods. It lies below the modern city of
Chania. Burial types that have been found include
chamber tombs,
cist graves, and loculus tombs.
Legacy
The
Odyssey mentions a tribe called the Kydonians who live on both sides of the Iardanos River.
[Od. 3.276] Herodotus claims that the city was founded by
Samians , who later on were defeated and enslaved by a coalition of
Aeginetans and other
Cretans.
[Hdt 3.44 and 3.59]
Some legends claim that Kydonia was founded by a king named Cydon (Κύδων, Kýdōn), a son of Hermes[Apol. Rhod. 4.1492] or Apollo[Steph. Byz. Kydonia] and of Akakallis, the daughter of King Minos. According to Pausanias,[Paus. 8.53] he was son of king Tegeates. Diodorus Siculus claimed that the city was founded by King Minos.[Diod. Sic. 5.78]
The region of Cydonia on Mars was named for the Cretan city.
In 2025, the site was designated as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Famous Kydonians
-
Aristocles (5th century BC), sculptor
-
Kresilas (5th century BC), sculptor
See also
-
List of ancient Greek cities
-
Malaxa
-
Polichne
-
Cydonia (region of Mars)
Citations
Sources
-
C. Michael Hogan, Cydonia, Modern Antiquarian, January 23, 2008 [1]
-
Robert Pashley, Travels in Crete, 1837, J. Murray
-
Ian Swindale, Kydonia, [2]
