Hatziyiannis plot
The property lies on the northern slope of the Kephala Hill at an altitude of 65 m. and has visual control over the whole of the Siteia Bay area. It is adjacent to the Tsakalakis property, containing the Prepalatial cemetery and the Late Minoan IIIC settlement. It was excavated in 2002 and 2003. Dr Y. Papadatos, University of Athens, is preparing the final publication of the early phases.
The largest part of the architectural remains and the movable finds belong to the transition from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age periods, and include two stratigraphical phases. The first phase (transition from the Final Neolithic to the Early Bronze), consists of 3-4 partially preserved buildings with curvilinear walls, and man-made cavities in the bedrock. To the second phase (beginning of Early Minoan I), belong rectilinear walls forming a series of rectangular rooms equipped with benches and platforms. Settlements of the transitional phase Final Neolithic/Early Minoan I are extremely rare on the island, especially if the stratigraphical sequence is considered. Also very important is the evidence for copper working, the earliest securely dated remains of this activity in Crete.
The Late Minoan ΙΙΙC architectural remains suggest a domestic installation and are connected with those of the neighboring Tsakalakis property. The first evidence for human occupation on the Kephala hill were identified during the intensive surface survey in 1986.
The excavations on the Kephala hill offer new data for the earliest and the latest phases of the Minoan civilization.
