In Crete there is a wide variety of buildings, from the Middle Ages to the early 20th century.
The exhibition focusses on the various forms of habitation of the last five hundred years, as these constitute the majority of buildings and provide important information on social organisation, the economy and the culture of the society under study.
It must be stressed that in traditional societies there are no architects, but specialist craftsmen called
mastores
(from the Latin magister, meaning master). These master builders follow the rules of construction of each area and develop them over time. The customer’s only choice is whether he wants the house to be large and expensive or cheap and simple. In both cases, the mastoras will follow the same rules of construction and all the contemporary decorative elements (carved decoration around doors and windows etc.) will be the same - the only difference is the size of the house. This harmonious process was abandoned in the early 20th century with the introduction of reinforced concrete and construction companies.
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