The Ministry of Culture is restoring the Watermill at the archaeological site of Gortyna and repurposing it as an open-air museum.

The project, carried out by the Heraklion Ephorate of Antiquities, is part of a broader program to restore and highlight the Roman Odeon complex and upgrade the infrastructure of the visitor site. The goal is to ensure the sustainability of the monuments and improve accessibility for all visitors. The restoration project is funded by the Regional Operational Program “Crete”—NSRF 2021–2027.

Culture Minister Lina Mendoni stated: “The restoration of the watermill and its functional integration into the archaeological site of Gortyna, which is open to visitors, is part of the program for the maintenance, promotion, and improvement of infrastructure being implemented by the Heraklion Ephorate of Antiquities. Our goal is to repurpose the Watermill as an open-air museum dedicated to the pre-industrial heritage of the area, featuring evidence from written sources and oral testimonies regarding the complex’s operation, as well as references to similar complexes in the wider region. In this way, we enhance the site’s appeal, offering visitors a comprehensive experience of history and culture. The watermill is located a short distance from the Roman Odeon and the “Great Inscription,” to whose discovery it is directly linked. In 1857, the French Archaeological School of Athens discovered the first stone block of the “Great Inscription”—now on display at the Louvre Museum—embedded in the watermill owned by Panagiotis and Manolis Kouridakis. The watermill remained in operation until the mid-20th century. In 1911, the course of its open conduit was altered to divert the water, which had been flowing over the Conservatory. The plot of land on which it stands was expropriated by the Ministry of Culture between 2004 and 2009, but the building was not formally incorporated into the archaeological site and is not currently open to the public.”

The exact date of construction of the watermill—or Savouidakis’s mill—is unclear. The stone carvings on the cornice of the water tower and above the entrance doorway are contemporary and date to around the mid-19th century. It includes all the typical features of a traditional watermill complex: The cistern, the Glykato (or millhouse), the water tower (well), the main building (workshop) with the mechanism, the underground space of the zo(r)gio, as well as two small adjoining rooms.

The complex includes an earthen cistern connected to the stone-built open Glykato aqueduct, which carries water to the Water Tower. The aqueduct has an arched opening for rainwater runoff. The Water Tower is a stone-built structure that narrows into a stone receptacle with a circular opening for channeling pressurized water into the zourio, the underground space beneath the mill’s main room, where the wooden transmission components are located. The main building is simple. It consists of the waiting area (with a corner fireplace and possibly benches) and the mill workshop, where the milling process took place. All the structures remain roofless and are in a state of ruin.

The mill’s workshop was the place from which the miller oversaw the entire grain-milling process. The proposed landscaping of the surrounding area involves the creation of a small cobblestone path with steps (stairs), gentle slopes (ramps and flat areas), and dirt paths to connect to the archaeological site. Two connection points with the visitor routes are planned, south and east of the complex, in accordance with the architectural study for the improvement of visitor routes and accessibility for people with disabilities to the archaeological site of Gortyna and its monuments.

The buildings in the complex—although they are public assembly buildings—are exempt from the requirement to provide accessibility features for people with disabilities, as the gross floor area of each building is less than 70 square meters. However, provisions have been made to ensure that at least one building is accessible in the event of future modifications to create a path for people with disabilities leading to the Watermill. No supporting facilities (restrooms, ticket office, etc.) are required, as the Watermill complex will operate as an integral part of the rest of the archaeological site open to visitors.