One of the oldest crafts of Cretan folk art is basketry, which has been declining in recent years. Using raw materials from nature such as reed, wicker or lentisks, local people created utilitarian objects needed everyday in rural and pastoral life. Basketry continues to flourish as a craft in the village of Mixorouma, near Spili.
An ‘affiliated’ sector to basket weaving was ‘kanistroplektiki’, the crafting of panniers for transporting agricultural produce, a very difficult artisanal activity, which still survives in a few areas, most notably the village of Nivritos near Zaros, Gonies in Malevizi, and Myxorrouma near Spili.
