Cranii was one of the four ancient city-states of Cephalonia, located just south of modern Argostoli at the head of the same bay. The ancient city flourished from the Classical through the Hellenistic period before being absorbed into the Roman province. Today sections of the ancient fortification walls — built with massive polygonal limestone blocks fitted together without mortar — are still visible on the hillside, along with the remains of chamber tombs.
The site is unfenced, freely accessible, and largely unexcavated outside the areas where the Archaeological Museum has made targeted investigations. It requires some searching to find the best-preserved sections of wall; a local guide or a good map from the museum is helpful. For those interested in ancient Greece beyond the famous sites, Cranii offers a genuinely unmediated encounter with a small city that once governed its own territory, minted its own coins, and sent ships across the Ionian Sea.