Kamares cave or Kamaraiko cave

The cave of Kamares, also called Kamaraiko, is located at the southern foot of Psiloritis. In particular, it is situated on the slopes of Mount Soros, at an altitude of 1700m and northeast of the homonym village of Kamares. It is not important in terms of speleology, but the minoan findings made the cave a very important archaeological site.

The cave was found in 1890 by a local and investigated by Italian archaeologists. It was explored again in 1913 by the British School of Archeology.

Pottery dating back in 2000 BC was found, used, possibly by the residents of Phaistos, for worshipping a Minoan goddess. The vases are of excellent art, with very thin walls (“eggshell”), colorful decor and stunning designs. The style of the decorative vases, which have been found in the palaces of Knossos and Phaistos, has been named “Kamares”, due to the cave. Today, they are housed in the Archaeological Museum of Heraklion.

The findings from the cave remind of the cave findings of Eileithyia cave, close to Heraklion, where the goddess Eileithyia, the goddess of childbirth and midwifery, was worshipped. Thus, archeologists believe that the cave has been a sacred cave devoted to Eileithyia.