Guide to the Dorian City of Lato, Crete, Greece

Overview of the History of Lato

In the mid 19th century it was believed that the site was the location of the ancient Minoan city of Goulas, although this has largely been discounted today, the location of Goulas now being associated with the hill above Kritsa. However, many aspects of the city do lend credence to an enduring Minoan influence in its early history. Linear B tablet inscriptions make reference to a place called 'Ra-To' leading some archaeologists and historians to believe that this and Lato may be one and the same location. Also the goddess worshipped at Lato was Eileithya, who although regarded as the goddess of childbirth and daughter to Zeus and Hera, may in fact go back much further into antiquity significantly predating the Olympian deities. Claims for this revolve around two points of conjecture. Firstly the name, it is claimed, is not of the Indo-European language tree. Linear B inscriptions make reference to 'e-re-u-ti-fa' and it is not beyond the bounds of credibility to see a linguistic shift from this to the name of the goddess worshipped at Lato. The second point that is raised to support a Minoan history to the area is the double axe often associated with Eileithya, the quintessential symbol of the Minoan culture. If these suggestions are indeed true and this memory had persisted through the centuries it would lend credibility to the suggestion that there was Minoan occupation at or near the site, the remains of which have not yet been found. A few late Minoan III objects have been found at Lato, although these have always been on the surface of the site, suggesting more recent transportation, for one reason or another, from another location. The first hard evidence for activity at the site, as excavated up until now, dates back to the archaic period, approximately the 7th century BC, although no evidence of activity in the classical period exists. Large scale building programs and signs of a settled working community begin in the 4th century BC and almost all the major structures at the site can be dated from the fourth to second ceturies BC. Other than evidence at the site numerous inscriptions and references appear elsewhere to confirm this as the period of Lato's major importance in the region.

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