 Overview:
On a conical hill called Souvloto Mouri lies the only known oval house of the Middle Minoan Ia period (2100-2000 B.C.). It belongs to an intermediate type of building, between the circular and the rectangular ones. Two architectural phases are distinguished; the earlier buildings, some with curvilinear walls, dated to the Early Minoan period (2800-2300 B.C.), were mostly farmers’ houses and extended beyond the east side of the oval building.
The discovery of a large number of figurines created the assumption that this was a peak sanctuary, but it seems that it originally was a domestic shrine, incorporated into the house. The main entrance of the Middle Minoan oval house (2200-1550 B.C.) is on the SE side, while a second one was uncovered on the NW, at the base of a staircase that leads to the upper floor.
The structural nucleus of the house is a small open courtyard surrounded by rooms fronting on it. A well or cistern is located in the eastern part of the courtyard. One of the largest rooms on the NE side has been interpreted as a domestic shrine. To the earlier architectural phase belong the foundations of three rooms on the east external side, also slightly curved.
How to get there:
The site can be found on a little road on your right hand, on the national road of Agios Nikolaos-Sitia, a little before you reach the village Hamaizi. You have to walk or drive by car for approx. 800 m in order to get on the hill where the ruins lie. The road is a very narrow dirt-road all the way to the ruins once you leave the national road.
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