Mt. Ida, the tallest mountain on the island of Crete,  has been highly significant to the honey bees for milennia.  According to mythology, the goddess Rhea  chose to protect her unborn baby from its father, Chronos, who made a practice of eating her babies after he was warned that an heir would kill him.  The pregnant goddess hid inside a cave beneath Mt. Ida where she gave birth to Zeus.  The babe was suckled by the goat goddess and fed honey by the melissa bee priestesses.  Later, when he became the ruler of the world,  Zeus showed an exceptional gratitude to his custodians.   He placed the melissae among the stars, and to the bees that had produced the honey especially for him, he gave the golden colour as well as the strength to resist the harsh mountain climate.

Around 2,700 years ago, a temple site grew at a place named Eleuthrena within view of Mt Ida's summit, only10 miles away from the sacred cave of Zeus.   Very recently, marvelous archeological discoveries suggest that a thriving  bee priestess culture existed at Eleuthrena!  

At Eleuthrena, the discovery of a gold bee goddess pendant made archeology headlines in 2009.  Uncovered in the same necropolis, a limestone sculpture of a female bears strong resemblance to the female image of the pendant -- particularly the hair style which reflects an Egyptian influence.