Sfendili | The Sunken village of Crete

Sfnedyli is located on the Hersonissos peninsula in the prefecture of Heraklion and is not without reason called the Atlantis of Crete. For 20 years Sfendyli has been flooded and slowly submerged by the waters of the Aposelemi dam. Actually the Spindle is inside the dam reservoir and below the fill level. And while it was built at an altitude of 210 meters, not much remains on the surface. In fact, now the village is half outside and half inside the lake.

The now half-submerged village of Isfendil is believed to have first been established as a settlement around 1500. When the first Turkish census was taken in 1671 the settlement of Isfendil as it was recorded had only nine taxable Christian families. Two hundred years later it belonged to the Municipality of Mochus, while in 1900 it was listed in the Municipality of Lagada. From 1920 onwards it belonged to the rural Municipality of Potamio, and to the community of Potamio from 1928. The name Sfendyli comes from the surname Sfendilos which was widespread in the area at that time.

So, from the moment the dam was created in the area, the village of Sfendyli began to sink. Residents were compensated for their damaged properties that they were forced to vacate. Many of them, of course, refused to leave their homes and had asked for provision to be made for their relocation as well. Twenty years later the village now lives half inside and half outside the lake that has been created. The submergence of the village is admittedly quite spectacular as it changes according to the rainfall. After heavy storms overflow of thousands of cubic meters of water occurs due to the dam.

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