Itanus


Itanus or Itanos was a town on the east coast of ancient Crete, near the promontory which bore the name of Itanum. Its ruins are now visible in Erimopolis, in the modern district of Itanos.

History

is the first Greek historian we know who mentioned Itanus. According to him, the Therans, when founding Cyrene, were indebted for their knowledge of the Libyan coast to Corobius, a seller of purple at Itanus. Some of the coins of this city present the type of a woman terminating in the tail of a fish. This type, recalling the figure of the Syrian goddess, coupled with the trade in purple, suggests a Phoenician origin.

Archaeology

The archeological site of Itanos is open to the public. It is possible to see the ruins of houses, city walls and Christian churches. Many Greek inscriptions were found in situ; the most famous one, kept now in the monastery of Toplou, relates a decision by the Roman Senate about Itanos' conflicts and territorial disputes with the neighbor cities Praisos and Hierapytna.
The site has been excavated recently by an international team under the supervision of the Ecole française d'Athènes and the local Archaeological Ephoria.