The Minoan Palace and the archaeological site of Malia are located 3 km East of the town of Malia. From the architectural point of view the Palace of Malia, is the third- largest of the Minoan Palaces and is considered the most "provincial" of them.
It covered an area of 7,500 sq.m. and according to tradition the third son of Zeus and Europa, Sarpedon, brother of the legendary king Minos, ruled here.
The Palace had two floors and its entrance is from the western paved Court, through a procession passage. It is a building with a central court, loggia, theatre, sanctuaries, Royal quarters, workshops and magazines. North of the western court is the hypostyle crypt, discovered recently, and protected from the weather conditions by a modern roof. The large underground room, whose ceiling was supported by columns, is considered as a council chamber for the political deliberations of the local lords, separated from the dwelling quarters and the official buildings. Its a forebear of the classical Greek Pritaneion, which had a similar function.
The site was inhabited in the Neolithic and early Minoan period (6000- 2000 BC), but very little trace remain. The first Palace was built in 1900 BC and destroyed in 1700 BC when a new Palace was built. Following the fate of the other palaces in Crete it was also destroyed in 1450 BC. and the present ruins are mainly those of the new palace.
The excavations at Malia were begun in 1915 by J. Chatzidakis and were continued by the French Archaeological School. The Palace, houses in the town and the cemetery at Chryssolakos have already been excavated. The finds are exhibited in the Museum of Herakleion, and some in the Museum of Aghios Nikolaos.
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