Overview

The village of Agia Triada was built in the medieval period, on the banks of the Yeropotamos river, at an altitude of 100 m. above sea level. It took its name after the church of the Holy Trinity (Agia Triada) that stood there. According to Venetian demographic surveys the village had in 1583 only 150 inhabitants. .Agia Triada was looted by the Turks in 1897 and was abandoned. Nowadays, except the church of Agia Triada and that of Agios Georgios Galatas there are no other remains of this village. The two churches were built during the 14th century, when the island was under Venetian occupation.  Agios Georgios has the name of Galatas because according to the tradition the clay used to build the church was made with milk instead of water.

Excavations conducted by the Italian Archaeological School in 1902 unearthed the Minoan Royal Palace of Agia Triada. The Palace is considered as the summer residence of the kings of Phaestos. The hill on which it stands was inhabited since the Neolithic Times as it is shown by various findings during the excavations. The palace itself dates to 1600 BC, when Phaestos and Knossos were at the peak of their prosperity. A paved road leads directly from Agia Triada to Phaestos.

The ground plan of the palace is simpler than that of the other Minoan palaces, and is L-shaped. The characteristic Central Court of Phaestos or Knossos is missing here, as well as the purgatory water tanks. However, the palace must have been magnificent.

The Palace of Agia Triada was destroyed around 1400 BC. The Palaces of Phaestos and Knossos had the same fate. Another building, rectangular in shape, with a colonnade, was erected on its ruins. By the Geometric period the palace was no longer inhabited, although it continued to be a place of worship, as can be seen from the clay statuettes that have been excavated there. In the Hellenistic period, a small sanctuary dedicated to Zeus Velchanos occupied the site.