CNOSSUS

cnossus, knossos, or gnossus, an ancient city of crete, on the left bank of the caeratus, a small stream which falls into the sea on the north side of the island. the city was situated about 3 m. from the coast, and, according to the old traditions, was founded by minos, king of crete. the locality was associated with a number of the most interesting legends of greek mythology, particularly with those which related to jupiter, who was said to have been born, to have been married, and to have been buried in the vicinity. cnossus was also assigned as the site of the labyrinth in which the minotaur was confined. the truth behind these legends has been revealed in recent years by the excavations of dr evans. as the historical city was peopled by dorians, the manners, customs and political institutions of its inhabitants were all dorian. along with gortyna and cydonia, it held for many years the supremacy over the whole of crete; and it always took a prominent part in the civil wars which from time to time desolated the island. when the rest of crete fell under the roman dominion, cnossus shared the same fate, and became a roman colony. aenesidemus, the sceptic philosopher, and chersiphron, the architect of the temple of diana at ephesus, were natives of cnossus. _the site._--as the excavations at cnossus are discussed at length in the article crete, it must suffice here briefly to enumerate the more important. the chief building is the great palace, the so-called "house of minos," the excavation of which by arthur evans dates from 1900: a number of rooms lying round the central paved court, oriented north and south, have been identified, among them being the throne-room with some well-preserved wall paintings and a small bathroom attached, in the north-west quarter a larger bathroom and a shrine, and residential chambers in the south and east. the latter part of the palace is composed of a number of private rooms and halls, and is especially remarkable for its skilful drainage and water-supply systems. in 1907 excavations on the south side of the palace showed that the plan was still incomplete, and a southern cryptoporticus, and outside it a large south-west building, probably an official residence, were discovered. of special interest was a huge circular cavity under the southern porch into which the sub-structures of the palace had been sunk. this cavity was filled with rubbish, sherds, &c., the latest of which was found to date as far back as the beginning of the middle minoan age, and the later work of 1908 only proved (by means of a small shaft sunk through the debris) that the rock floor was 52 ft. below the surface. the first attempt to reach the floor by a cutting in the hill-side proved abortive, but the operations of 1910 led to a successful result. the cavity proved to be a great reservoir approached by a rock-cut staircase and of early minoan date. in 1904-1905 a paved way running due west from the middle of the palace was excavated, and found to lead to another building described as the "little palace" largely buried under an olive grove. the first excavations showed that this building was on the same general plan and belonged to the same period as the "house of minos," though somewhat later in actual date (17th century b.c.). large halls, which had subsequently been broken up into smaller apartments, were found, and among a great number of other artistic remains one seal-impression of special interest showing a one-masted ship carrying a thorough-bred horse--perhaps representing the first importation of horses into crete. a remarkable shrine with fetish idols was also discovered. the sacred double-axe symbol is prominent, as in the greater palace. by the end of 1910 the excavation of this smaller palace was practically completed. it was found to cover an area of more than 9400 ft. with a frontage of more than 130 ft., and had five stone staircases. one object of special interest found in the course of excavation is a black steatite vessel in the form of a bull's head. the modelling is of a very high order, and the one eye which remains perfect is cut out of rock crystal, with the pupil and iris marked by colours applied to the lower face of the crystal. the work of excavation in the palace has been complicated by the necessity of propping up walls, floors and staircases. in some instances it has been found necessary to replace the original wooden pillars by pillars of stone. again in the "queen's megaron" in the east wing of the great palace it was found that the exposure of the remains to the violent extremes of cretan weather must soon prove fatal to them. it was therefore decided to restore the columns and part of the wall, and to roof over the whole area. for recent excavations see r. m. burrows, _the discoveries in crete_ (1907); a. mosso, _the palaces of crete_ (1907); lagrange, _la crete ancienne_ (1908); dr. evans's reports in _the times_, oct. 31, 1905, july 15, 1907, aug. 27, 1908, and 1909 (index); d. mackenzie, _cretan palaces_. coach (through the fr. _coche_, originally from the magyar _kocsi_, an adjective from the hungarian place named kocs, between raab and buda, i.e. the sort of vehicle used there in the 15th century), a large kind of carriage for passengers (see carriage). as a general term it is used (as in "coach-building") for all carriages, and also in combination with qualifying attributes for particular forms (stage-coach, mail-coach, mourning-coach, hackney-coach, &c.); but the typical coach involves four wheels, springs and a roof. the stage-coach, with seats outside and in, was a public conveyance which was known in england from the 16th century, and before railways the stage-coaches had regular routes (stages) all over the country; through their carrying the mails (from 1784) the term "mail-coach" arose. similar vehicles were used in america and on the european continent. the _diligence_, though not invariably with four horses, was the continental analogue for public conveyance, with other minor varieties such as the _stellwagen_ and _eilwagen_. the driving of coaches with four horses was a task in which a considerable amount of skill was required,[1] and english literature is full of the difficulties and humours of "the road" in old days. a form of sport thus arose for enterprising members of the nobility and gentry, and after the introduction of railways made the mail-coach obsolete as a matter of necessity, the old sport of coaching for pleasure still survived, though only to a limited extent. the four-in-hand club was started in england in 1856 and the coaching club in 1870, as the successors of the old bensington driving club (1807-1852), and four-horse club (1808-1829); and in america the new york coaching club was founded in 1875. but coaching remains the sport of the wealthier classes, although in various parts of england (e.g. london to brighton, and in the lake district), in america, and in europe, public coaches still have their regular times and routes for those who enjoy this form of travel. the earliest railway vehicles for passengers were merely the road coaches of the period adapted to run on rails, and the expression "coaching traffic" is still used in england to denote traffic carried in passenger trains. of coaches possessing a history the two best known in the united kingdom are the king's state coach, and that of the lord mayor of london. the latter is the oldest, having been built, or at least first used, for the procession of sir charles asgil, lord mayor elect, in november 1757. the body of this vehicle is not supported by springs, but hung on leather straps; and the whole structure is very richly loaded with ornamental carving, gilding and paint-work. the different panels and the doors contain various allegorical groups of figures representing suitable subjects, and heraldic devices painted in a spirited manner. the royal state coach, which is described as "the most superb carriage ever built," was designed by sir william chambers, the paintings on it were executed by cipriani, and the work was completed in 1761. during the later part of queen victoria's reign it was hardly ever seen, but on the accession of edward vii. the coach was once more put in order for use on state occasions. the following is an official description of this famous coach:-- "the whole of the carriage and body is richly ornamented with laurel and carved work, beautifully gilt. the length, 24 ft.; width, 8 ft. 3 in.; height, 12 ft.; length of pole, 12 ft. 4 in.; weight, 4 tons. the carriage and body of the coach is composed as follows:--of four large tritons, who support the body by four braces, covered with red morocco leather, and ornamented with gilt buckles, the two figures placed in front of the carriage bear the driver, and are represented in the action of drawing by cables extending round their shoulders, and the cranes and sounding shells to announce the approach of the monarch of the ocean; and those at the back carry the imperial fasces, topped with tridents. the driver's foot-board is a large scallop shell, ornamented with bunches of reeds and other marine plants. the pole represents a bundle of lances; the splinter bar is composed of a rich moulding, issuing from beneath a voluted shell, and each end terminating in the head of a dolphin; and the wheels are imitated from those of the ancient triumphal chariot. the body of the coach is composed of eight palm-trees, which, branching out at the top, sustain the roof; and four angular trees are loaded with trophies allusive to the victories obtained by great britain during the late glorious war, supported by four lions' heads. on the centre of the roof stand three boys, representing the genii of england, scotland and ireland, supporting the imperial crown of great britain, and holding in their hands the sceptre, sword of state, and ensigns of knighthood; their bodies are adorned with festoons of laurel, which fall from thence towards the four corners. the panels and doors are painted with appropriate emblematical devices, and the linings are of scarlet velvet richly embossed with national emblems." see the badminton _driving_, by the duke of beaufort (1888); rogers's _manual of driving_ (philadelphia, 1900); and "nimrod's" _essays on the road_ (1876). footnote: [1] the idea of "driving" was responsible for the use of the term "coach" and "coaching" to mean a tutor or trainer, for examinations or athletic contests.