MYCENAE

The site was uncovered by the amateur archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann in 1874, who was also famous for finding Troy. It is one of the earliest examples of sophisticated citadel architecture and built so they say with the help of the Cyclops. Mycenae reached its height as the centre of Aegean Civilization in about 1400 BCE. Situated upon a small hill-top on the lower slopes of the Euboea Mountain, between two of its peaks – Zara and Profit Elias, the citadel was in a formidable position and impossible to conquer. After years of being one of the wealthiest and strongest civilizations Mycenae was destroyed by fire around 1100 BC. A hundred years later the Dorians invaded from the north, replacing the Mycenaean civilization, but the city never regained its former splendour. In 468 BCE, Mycenae was finally besieged and destroyed by the inhabitants of Argos and the city was never rebuilt. At Mycenae you can still visit the ruined citadel and be taken back in time to its tragic history. In 2004 a new Museum was built displaying some of Schliemanns wonderful finds including a replica of the famous death mask of Agamemnon..