A walk of about one kilometer (half a mile) from the center of Gavalochori brings you to the cool and shady Venetian Wells, a historic spot that contains 24 ancient wells. A first glance suggests there is nothing of interest here because the wells near the road have been capped with concrete. But walk back beyond the concrete caps, and you’ll discover delightful stone-ringed wells that still hold water. You also don’t want to miss the two plane trees whose branches have grown together or “embraced,” making it a romantic spot for weddings and wedding pictures. Take a peek at the lovely and well-preserved Venetian bridge directly across the road from the wells while you are here.
The water that collected in this spot was first used by the Dorians, a tribe of Greeks who conquered Crete around 1100 BC (which is why the area close to the wells is still called Dorkes). The actual wells, however, were built by the Venetians sometime during the 15th or 16th centuries.
The wells weren’t used by the residents of Gavalochori to supply drinking water because each house had its own cistern for collecting rainwater. The site was an important gathering spot for the villagers, however, until 1969, when a municipal water system was built. It was here that they watered their animals—cows, oxen, horses, donkeys, sheep, and goats; met other villagers; and shared the latest news. The wells are also where the women did the laundry, using open fires built near the wells to heat the water. Blankets and rag rugs, however, weren’t washed at the wells but were taken to the village of Kera and cleaned in the sea because salt water was known to clean these items better than sweet water. The leaves of the plane trees scattered through the area were collected by the women and taken home to be dried and used as filling for mattresses.
In the late 19th and early 20th century, the villagers of Gavalochori celebrated the name day of Saint George under the plane trees at the Venetian wells. November 3 is the day when the wine the villagers had made was ready to be tasted and the wine barrels traditionally opened. Because it is also the name or feast day of Saint George, he was sometimes called Saint George the Methistis (who makes people drunk). The villagers threw the first carafe of their new wine into one of the wells on this day, and many of these carafes have been excavated and are now on display in the Folklore Museum in Gavalochori.
You will see two signs at the wells. The one by the two plane trees that have grown together reads:
Στων πηγαδιών τον Πλάτανο
εις το Γαβαλοχώρι
υπάρχει το φαινόμενο
αγκαλιασμένοι κλώνοι
At the wells under the plane trees
in Gavalochori,
there is the phenomenon
of the embracing branches
The second is on a tree next to one of the wells and reads:
Γαβαλιανέ μου Πλάτανε
απούσαι στα πηγάδια
εις τον κορμό σου φαίνονται
του χρόνου τα σημάδια
My Gavalochori plane tree,
which is at the wells,
the signs of time
can be seen on your trunk
A walk of about one kilometer (half a mile) from the center of Gavalochori brings you to the cool and shady Venetian Wells, a historic spot that contains 24 ancient wells. A first glance suggests there is nothing of interest here because the wells near the road have been capped with concrete. But walk back beyond the concrete caps, and you’ll discover delightful stone-ringed wells that still hold water. You also don’t want to miss the two plane trees whose branches have grown together or “embraced,” making it a romantic spot for weddings and wedding pictures. Take a peek at the lovely and well-preserved Venetian bridge directly across the road from the wells while you are here.
The water that collected in this spot was first used by the Dorians, a tribe of Greeks who conquered Crete around 1100 BC (which is why the area close to the wells is still called Dorkes). The actual wells, however, were built by the Venetians sometime during the 15th or 16th centuries.
The wells weren’t used by the residents of Gavalochori to supply drinking water because each house had its own cistern for collecting rainwater. The site was an important gathering spot for the villagers, however, until 1969, when a municipal water system was built. It was here that they watered their animals—cows, oxen, horses, donkeys, sheep, and goats; met other villagers; and shared the latest news. The wells are also where the women did the laundry, using open fires built near the wells to heat the water. Blankets and rag rugs, however, weren’t washed at the wells but were taken to the village of Kera and cleaned in the sea because salt water was known to clean these items better than sweet water. The leaves of the plane trees scattered through the area were collected by the women and taken home to be dried and used as filling for mattresses.
In the late 19th and early 20th century, the villagers of Gavalochori celebrated the name day of Saint George under the plane trees at the Venetian wells. November 3 is the day when the wine the villagers had made was ready to be tasted and the wine barrels traditionally opened. Because it is also the name or feast day of Saint George, he was sometimes called Saint George the Methistis (who makes people drunk). The villagers threw the first carafe of their new wine into one of the wells on this day, and many of these carafes have been excavated and are now on display in the Folklore Museum in Gavalochori.
You will see two signs at the wells. The one by the two plane trees that have grown together reads:
Στων πηγαδιών τον Πλάτανο
εις το Γαβαλοχώρι
υπάρχει το φαινόμενο
αγκαλιασμένοι κλώνοι
At the wells under the plane trees
in Gavalochori,
there is the phenomenon
of the embracing branches
The second is on a tree next to one of the wells and reads:
Γαβαλιανέ μου Πλάτανε
απούσαι στα πηγάδια
εις τον κορμό σου φαίνονται
του χρόνου τα σημάδια
My Gavalochori plane tree,
which is at the wells,
the signs of time
can be seen on your trunk
