LABYRINTH CAVE OF GORTYS
The myth.
When King Minos of Crete took the throne, he prayed to Poseidon /god of sea/ for a sign of his right to rule. The god answered by sending a handsome white bull from the sea. Minos was a wise ruler, famous for his justice, but he offended Poseidon by refusing to sacrifice the white bull. So Poseidon punishes him. Made his wife Pasihpae fall in love with the bull, and gave birth to the Minotaur. Half man, half bull. Then Minos asked Deadalus to build a prison for the beast, to be hidden. So he made a Labyrinth.
The maze cave is located in the municipality of Mires in the prefecture of Iraklio between the towns of Kastelli, Roufas, Plouti and Ambelouzos. It is situated at 410 meters altitude on the northern edge of the Messara, south of the Psiloritis Massif (Mount Ida).
Many Cretan people say, that the Labyrinth Cave is the labyrinth of the Minotaur. Arthur Evans dug up Knossos at the beginning of the 20th century and identified it as the labyrinth of the myth. His opinion was mostly accepted and got scientific standard. Paul Faure, a french archaeologist, was the only one, who thought, that a third place - the cave called Agia Paraskevi near Skotino (there is also have a cache GC1D9HX) was this labyrinth. As the theory, that Knossos was the labyrinth, is more and more criticized by serious arguments, we must say today, that the question, which was the "true" labyrinth - and if ever it did exist -, is not yet answered. As the Minotaur and the labyrinth both are myths, the labyrinth cannot be localized seriously - apart from the fact, that this cave is not a labyrinth, neither a classic one nor a maze.
In earlier centuries was one of the most important things to be seen for people travelling in Crete. The most ancient known map, which isn't really a map but a drawing, was published by Christoforo Buondelmonti, who visited the cave in the year 1415
At the end of the Word War II some weapons and ammunition were left in the Labyrinth.
IT IS VERY DANGEROUS TO ENTER THE LABYRINTH CAVE!!
I can't write the exact location of the Labyrinth because of security reasons.
http://www.labyrinthos.ch/
Small Labyrinth
You can get an idea of the Labyrinth if you visit the Small Labyrinth ,which is located an the north side of the hill.
The cache is closed of the small labyrinth cave. Between the two cave systems, there is no known connection. The small maze cave is safe to enter.