Mirsini

This village on the main Sitia – Agios Nikolaos road is 25 kms from the former one. It used to be called Metochia tis Tourlotis (i.e. hamlets belonging to Tourloti). The name Mirsini means «myrtle» and there are indeed many myrtle bushes growing there. In the Venetian census of 1583 no village is listed under the old name. Ρ. Faure who has done a lot of research on place-names in Eastern Crete, states in his study «Villes et villages de la Crete Orien­tale» that he believes the place marked as Cathia by F. Basilicata on his map of Crete in 1629, must be Mirsini. We do not know however, what foundation Faure used for his identification. Tombs of the Last Μinoan period were found at Halinomouri; finds from them include vessels, weapons and utensils. At the location called Kastellos or Lenika there was an ancient town, andat Avgo a Late­Minoan guard-station.

In 1959 Ν. Platon (then Ephor of Antiquites) excavated a cemetery of the Late Minoan period with chamber tombs in the vicinity of the hill Asprospilia. At Galana Harakia acircular communal tomb (the Messara type) of the Minoan era was found. It was the first of this type to be discovered in Eastern Crete and contained over 60 burials. Vessels of the Εarly Μinoan and Μiddle Μinoan periods were found and also 25 Larnakes and pithi.

In the chapel of Agios Antonios, the date 1677 and the name Vintzetzos Kornaros have been scratched onto the wall. Xanthoudides regarded this Kornaros as being the poet of «Erotokritos», but the most recent study rejects this belief. The Kornaros family must have been, in anycase, connected witn this district, as a small tower outside the village is still called the Kornaros tower.