Phalasarna possessed an enclosed artificial naval harbor, called the Kothon (high, bulbous jug) in antiquity, which was connected to the sea by a canal running westward. It was hewn out of the coastal cliffs, measuring 100 x 75 meters. A second canal provided access 100 meters behind the north side of the acropolis. As a fortification, the harbor had four towers dating from the 4th century BC, parts of which are still preserved. A major earthquake on July 21, 365 AD, which caused the landmass at Phalasarna to rise by six to nine meters, drained the harbor basin.
During the Hellenistic period, Phalasarna, with its sheltered harbor, was a wealthy trading and maritime center with its own fleet and mint. The city's coins depict a female figure or …
The historic city of Phalasarna, on the northern west coast of Crete, was founded around the 5th century BC as a port city for the inland city of Polyrrhenia and …