Kato Symi ( el, Κάτω Σύμη) is a small historic village of
Crete
Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...
, in
Heraklion regional unit, from
Ierapetra
Ierapetra ( el, Ιεράπετρα, lit=sacred stone; ancient name: ) is a Greek town and municipality located on the southeast coast of Crete.
History
The town of Ierapetra (in the local dialect: Γεράπετρο ''Gerapetro'') is located on ...
and from
Heraklion
Heraklion or Iraklion ( ; el, Ηράκλειο, , ) is the largest city and the administrative capital of the island of Crete and capital of Heraklion regional unit. It is the fourth largest city in Greece with a population of 211,370 (Urban Ar ...
city. Today it belongs to
Viannos
Viannos ( el, Βιάννος) is a municipality in the Heraklion regional unit, Crete, Greece. The municipality has an area of . Population 5,563 (2011). The seat of the municipality is in Ano Viannos.
In September 1943, German occupation forces ...
municipality and borders the Ierapetra municipality. It lies about above sea level, south of
Mount Dikti in a verdant mountainous area, which is probably the most wooded of Crete. Near the village, at an altitude of , lies the ancient sanctuary of
Hermes
Hermes (; grc-gre, wikt:Ἑρμῆς, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travelle ...
and
Aphrodite
Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols inclu ...
. It is dated from the middle
Minoan period and had been used for worship for more than 1,000 years. Kato Simi has been destroyed three times, by Arabs, Turks and finally by the
German army in World War II, when it was the center of
resistance of the Viannos–Ierapetra area against the Nazi occupying forces.
External links
The Minoan religious sanctuary at Simi
Populated places in Heraklion (regional unit)
{{Crete-geo-stub