Venetian mansions in Rethymnon

Many Venetian mansions with their attractive moulded facades are preserved in Rethymnon, particularly in Arkadiou Street.

The Venetians paid special attention to the architecture of public and private buildings alike, always in the style of the metropolis. This is why, at least in the early years of the Venetian occupation of Crete, they employed Venetian architects and engineers who were later replaced by master builders or murari.

Murari were Venetian-trained Cretan masons whose work was aesthetically identical to that of the Venetians themselves. Venetian architecture as a whole exudes an air of graceful Western architecture, which obviously reinforced the message of the incontestable power of Venice.

It should be noted, however, that houses in Crete are very different from Venetian palazzi, due to financial reasons and the preservation of a strong Cretan architectural tradition. This is why the Renaissance influence often stops at the facade.