Thrapsano is located 25 kilometers from Heraklion, at an altitude of 340 meters As far as the etymology of the place name is concerned, Xanthoudidis notes that it comes from the word “thrapso” (or “thlapso”), which means warm, heat. So “Thrapsanos” means “Kaminaris”, the one who “bakes” the jars and Thrapsano is the Thrapsanos’ village.

From the oldest written references to the village we know that Thrapsano had been inhabited since the Venetian era, during of which it used to be a suzerainty of the family of Kornaros.

Thrapsano is one of the largest pottery centers of the island of Crete with a great historical ceramic tradition. This is “the potters’ village” and the famous “Thrapsano jar” comes from this place. Today you can visit several pottery studios in the settlement with modern equipment, which continue to produce high quality ceramics.