Homer mentions Lyktos (an alternative spelling), as being “well built” in his ‘catalogue of ships’ (Iliad, Book II, 647), as does Hesiod in his ‘Theogony’ as a “rich city” and where Rhea was sent to give birth to Zeus. The city was sacked by the people of Knossos, in 220 BC, and initially suffered at the hands of the Romans, whom it opposed during Quintus Metullus’ invasion of the island, in 69 BC, but ultimately became one of most important cities for the Romans. The site is closed to the public, though it quite easy to gain access, should one wish.
