The 'Snake Goddess' might be holding a rope, not a serpent

Wars & Conflicts · Published 16 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: One of archaeology's most famous icons was born from a 1903 excavation and a heavy dose of imaginative restoration. While she remains a symbol of Minoan power, modern scholars suggest the 'snakes' she wrangles might actually be something else entirely—a cord, a rope, or a symbol of trade.

The famous 'Snake Goddess' figurines were discovered in 1903 by Arthur Evans at the Palace of Knossos on Crete. Dating to approximately 1600 BCE, these faience figures—a crushed quartz-paste material prized for its lustrous finish—were found in stone-lined cists Evans called 'Temple Repositories.' While Evans popularized the 'Snake Goddess' and 'Snake Priestess' labels, his work has faced criticism for being overly speculative. Many of the figures are significantly incomplete; for instance, the larger figure lacked its lower body and one arm, while the smaller figure's head was entirely missing and had to be reconstructed by Evans's team.

The debate over what the figures actually depict is central to modern archaeology. While the popular image shows a woman wrangling snakes, some scholars argue the objects in her hands are actually cords or ropes. One critic points out that the 'serpent' on the larger figure has 'peppermint stripes'—a pattern snakes do not possess—suggesting a twisted rope or cord. Others suggest the figures might represent a Syrian religious influence, where elites emulated exotic iconography to signal control over trade, or perhaps they depict a 'mistress of animals' or a precursor to the Greek goddess Athena.

The figurines also feature a 'sacral knot' between the breasts, a symbol of holiness found across Minoan and Mycenaean sites. This knot, combined with the labrys (double-axe), may have functioned similarly to the Egyptian ankh. Furthermore, the exposed breasts of the figures are interpreted variously: they could signify fertility, a fashion statement of the era, or even a sign of mourning, a practice documented by both Homer and Herodotus. Ultimately, these objects remain a 'cloudy topic,' serving as much as icons of modern imagination as they do clear windows into Minoan faith.

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