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Modern Description: A Minoan palatial centre in an extremely fertile region. The first palace was founded c. 2000 BC and reconstructed in 1700 and 1600 BC. The entrance propylon in the central court, a shrine, a room with benches, a 'throne room', a circular cistern, the archive of Linear A tablets, a theatral area and craft-industrial workshops have been excavated. The walls were decorated with wall-paintings or coloured stucco. Destroyed in 1450 BC.
On Fourni hill, near the Minoan settlement at Archanes, a rich cemetery has been excavated. The five tholos tombs, the rectangular burial structures, a Mycenaean grave circle with six shaft graves and an ancillary secular building are of considerable architectural interest. The earliest burials date from the 3rd millennium BC, while some tombs were in use for a very long period of time (2000-1350 BC). Tholos tomb Alpha (14th century BC), with a side chamber, was unplundered and contained a royal inhumation. The longevity of use of the tombs (2400-1200 BC) and the host of grave goods distinguish Fourni as one of the most important cemeteries in the Aegean.
The finds are exhibited in the Herakleion and Archanes museums.
At Anemospilia, remains of a two-storey building of the Protopalatial period, which was destroyed by earthquake c. 1700 BC. The four human skeletons were presumably of victims of the earthquake.
Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acharna
Wikidata ID: Q65121499
DARE: 28744

Info: Archaeological Atlas of the Aegean

(Archaeological Atlas of the Aegean, Ministry of the Aegean)

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