Mitata (sing. mitato) is the Cretan name for the rudimentary shepherds’ dwellings built in the mountains and, since one of their principal uses is to store and age cheese, they’re often considered to be the earliest form of dairies in the country. These stone structures symbolize the first stage of what later grew into a great tradition of dairy farming in Crete.
Most of the mitata in the region of Rethymno are concentrated on the Nida Plateau and in Livadia, high up on the slopes of Mt Psiloritis. This is where shepherds would spend their summers – alone, except for their animals and other passing shepherds. Being so remote, the mitata were also used as hideouts during the Ottoman occupation; during the Second World War, they provided cover for resistance fighters. These shelters, built of locally-sourced stones and shaped like Minoan tholos tombs, have entrances that face due east and, although they’re unique to Crete, somewhat similar structures can be found in other parts of the Mediterranean as well. Each one was surrounded by a drystone wall about 1.5m high, which was used as a corral to gather sheep and goats for milking. Made of nothing but stone on stone, the mitata continue to stand on the mountain rock as examples of perfect vernacular architecture – modest, sturdy and functional in the extreme. Larger, squarer stones were placed at the bottom in a circle, with the stones at the top being carved into shape. The structures became narrower as they grew taller, much like an igloo, in order to stand the weight of the winter snow. The gaps between the stones were deliberately not filled in with clay or any other material, in order to allow air to pass through the walls to dry out the cheese, maturing it in the process. A small window – like a skylight – was left at the top of the dome, where spiders would be able to weave a nice thick web, catching flies and other insects and keeping them away from the cheese: a brilliant example of man and insect working together in symbiosis.
