Greek Islands with the Best Ancient Ruins

Almost every Greek island has some evidence of pre-historic and ancient habitation. Some ruins are quite impressive while others are less so. Some cost money to enter and to maintain. Many more are totally free and unsupervised. This page highlights the Greek islands with ancient and pre-historic ruins which are considered especially important for their ancient heritage. Some are worth making a special effort to visit while others are worth seeing only if in the neighborhood, if then. I try to cut through the hype surrounding these sites and tell you which ones are really worth visiting. Fortunately there are good sites within every Aegean Greek island group.

• Aegina: The Temple of Aphaia (Saronic Gulf)
• Delos: The entire island (Cylcades)
• Crete: Knossos
• Kos: the Asklepion (Dodecanese)
• Rhodes: Lindos Acropolis (Dodecanese)
• Santorini: Acrotiri, ancient Thira (Cylcades)

Aegina - Saronic Gulf: Near Athens (1hr)

Only an hour from Piraeus, the Doric peristyle Temple of Aphaia sits about 1 km north of the the port of Ag. Marina and has been called "the most perfectly developed of the late archaic temples in European Hellas". Enjoying an excellent view of the Saronic Gulf, it is reachable by bus or half hour walk. Aegina has two ports, so if the temple is your goal make sure you disembark at Ag. Marina.

Aphaia was the Aeginetan version of the Cretan Goddess Vritomartis who, as the Great Mother, was worshipped under various names and aspects (Hecate), throughout the ancient world. For many years the temple was thought to have been dedicated to Athena which, in fact, it later was, during the Peloponnesian wars. Inscriptions to Artemis Apahia or "Artemis not dark"  have been found near by.  Aphaia also means "the disappeared one" and although there are conflicting myths as to the identity of the perpetrator; Zeus or King Minos of Crete, all agree that she threw herself into the sea rather than face violation.

The temple as it stands today is built on the ruins of at least two previous ones. Originally it had 32 columns of which 24 still stand and was constructed of local limestone coated with a thin layer of stucco and painted. All the columns except three were carved from solid rock. On the north side are three columns made from drums presumably to enable the construction of the interior at which point they could be erected piece meal. This temple is unique in Greece because it had an internal colonnade around the cella where the cult statue was placed. Unfortunately most of the 17 pedimental sculptures discovered in 1811 are in Munich after being purchased by Mad Prince Ludwig of Bavaria whose son Otto later became King of Greece and was eventually deposed. Ludwig's representatives, appalled at the sight of the island's peasants grinding them for the lime kiln, purchased them from the Turks. Admission charged. 9 am to dusk, 3 pm in winter.

Santorini - Cyclades: Ancient Acrotiri

Ancient Acrotiri is a pre-historic Cycladic village and was likely a Minoan colony. In approximately 1500 BC it was covered with ash from the eruption of the island's volcano. Ancient Acrotiri was first unearthed in 1967 by Professor Spiros Marinatos who, in 1974 fell to his death during the dig, and is buried, by his express wish, on site. The site suffered further mishap in 2005 when the roof partially collapsed killing a visitor and injuring several others.

Situated 15 km from Fira and1 km from modern Acrotiri (pop 210), the site is roofed to protect it from the elements (above). It rests in a ravine below the modern day village of Acrotiri with its ruined medieval castle and near by, red beach.

The ancient occupants of Acrotiri appear to have had ample time to escape the massive destruction to the island since no jewelry or human remains have been discovered. What they left behind however is quite interesting and brings to mind the finds of Herculaneum similarly buried under volcanic tephra. The most interesting finds are the beautifully executed wall paintings or frescos of which the best are in the National Archeology Museum Athens.

Of the two "major" ancient sites on Santorini, Acrotiri and ancient Thira, if you have only time to visit one, visit Acrotiri.

Santorini - Cyclades: Ancient Thira

The city of Ancient Thira was built on the mountain slope 12 km SE of Fira and composed of tiers upheld by extensive foundations. A settlement existed here in archaic times c 9th C BC. The majority of the present ruins were constructed under the Ptolemies (300-145 BC) who used the island as a naval base from which to control the Aegean and the latter ruins date from the Byzantine period.

The cities site is140 meters wide and 800 meters long and built upon a ridge called middle mountain. During the Byzantine era it was surrounded by a wall with a main street traversing the entire length with numerous side streets. The central street leads to the Agora (left) which had a row of shops on its north side. Its southern boundary was the Doric Royal Stoa with two aisles and a colonnade along one wall. At the southern end of the city is the gymnasium where in the 7th c BC young, nude boys practiced athletic events and whom were much admired by their fellows as attested to by numerous erotic graffiti carved into the walls. Many of the houses have fine decorative mosaics and advanced plumbing systems. The impressive Terrace of the Festivals and the 6th c BC Temple of Apollo Karneios were the scene of Doric cult worship.  Read more about Ancient Thira

Delos - Cyclades: Near Mykonos

Delos, reachable from Mykonos, and from neighboring Tinos & Naxos in high summer, is one of the smallest if not the smallest of the Cyclades. In its hey day Delos was the political, spiritual and economic center of the Aegean with free port status and large population. Revered as the birth place of Apollo and Artemis by their moon goddess mother Leto, (also pursued and impregnated by Zeus disguised as a swan and immortalized on canvas by Michelangelo) the island boasted an oracle second only to Delphi and a splendid and famous temple of Apollo funded by the combined mainland city states. That was then.

Today the island is uninhabited and has been under excavation by the French School of Archeology since 1873. The ruins cover an area exceeding 1 square km and several hours are needed to view them only if researching your dissertation. An hour or two will be more than enough for most people because when you have seen one pile of rubble you have seen them all. The island itself is 5.5 km long and 1.2 km wide and its west coast had three small harbors: little, sacred and commercial. Its still commercial! I am sure W. C. Fields would have something memorable to say about Delos and have no doubts that P. T. Barnum would look enviously at the present day operation. Still, its considered a major site but in my view is not worth the money.

Unfortunately as you swelter in the hot sun of Delos, looking at a lot of rubble, should you feel the need for shade, their isn't any except in the small hokey museum and the snack bar, both of which can be very overcrowded. Warm soda, high prices, no water fountain and to top it all off toilet facilities are woefully inadequate and the staff harried. When you add up the cost of getting there and back plus the entrance fee, I, at least, felt disapprobation towards the authorities and 22 euros out of pocket. The whole place feels artificial, as though trying desperately to (unsuccessfully) justify itself and its admission fees. I fail to see what all the fuss was about. The view up the stairs from Mt. Kythnos was nice and getting there in the boat more memorable. In antiquity, on a good day, up to ten thousand slaves could be sold on Delos. They moved masses of people through Delos then and they move masses of people through Delos now! I am not annoyed by one or two people in my view screen but several hundred is another matter! My view, and I think the view of the authorities, is that most people who go to Mykonos will visit Delos as a matter of course, so don't rock the boat to Delos and visit off season only if you have nothing better to do. Read more about Delos.

Crete's Knossos: near Heraklion (5km)

4,000 years ago, Knossos was the capital of Europe's oldest civilization, the Minoan. Not a civilization of rude thatched huts such a those existing in Europe thousands of years later but of a society boasting Europe's oldest paved road, running water, flush able toilets and some of the best wall murals and art ever produced.

Preliminary excavations of Knossos were undertaken in 1878 by island resident and archeologist Minos Kalokairinos and continued by Sir Arthur Evans in 1900 . Knossos ranks as one of Europe's most significant pre-historic attractions. Its ruins comprise the second most popular archeological site in Greece after the acropolis of Athens and receive over 1 million visitors a year. The palace of Knossos had over 1,500 rooms and the reconstruction undertaken by Evans, at his own initiative, exemplify his efforts to make what was at the time nothing more than a heap of rubble, come alive. To a great extent he did so and even the reconstructions he made became historic and what you see today are reconstructions of his reconstructions (plus more modern additions). This is what Delos needs and makes Knossos the more illuminating of the two. Read more about Knossos

Kos - Dodecanese: The Asklepion

Hippocrates, father of modern medicine was a son of Kos and during the 5th C BC dared to propose that illness was not punishment sent by the Gods but the result of natural causes. Hippocrates has a common sense view and felt that healers should attempt to learn as much as possible through observation of each patient's symptoms before diagnosis. His cures consisted of a wholesome regimen of pure and radioactive waters, relaxation, special diets and herbal remedies. He founded on Kos a medical school which became renowned throughout the ancient world. His Hippocratic oath set the standard of medical ethics and is, if not always adhered to, at least sworn to by doctors to the present day. After his death, and probably due to a Dorian influence, an Asklepion (clinic) was founded to which patients came from near and far seeking cures.

4 km from Kos town and originally sacred to Kyparissios Apollo the site of the Asklepion was latter taken over and enlarged during the Hellenistic period. It was one of the main centers of the Asklepiadai, supposed descendants of Asklepios & Hygieia but in actuality a hereditary guild of priests who closely held their secrets of medicine.

Unlike Epidavros and other centers where healing was accomplished, if at all, by the power of suggestion and visions, in Kos, the patients actually underwent a positive regimen of cure at the hands of physicians under the guidance of rules laid down by Hippocrates himself. The site was special in that under the Romans were constructed (well preserved) central baths which had pumped to them by a series of conduits and reservoirs waters fed by metals rich and sulfurous springs.

The Sanctuary was particularly popular under the Ptolemy heirs of Alexander and throve under the Romans as well. Xenophon who was a wealthy court physician in Rome returned to Kos and bestowed upon it the many statues he had gathered in Rome just for this purpose. The sanctuary also had the right of asylum and even greater Imperial baths were built in the later days of the Roman Empire. In the 6th C AD however the sanctuary was overwhelmed by an earthquake or possibly in 554 by invading hordes from Anatolia who despoiled the island. Read more about the Asklepion of Kos

Rhodes - Dodecanese: Lindos

From about 2000 BC and up until the synoecism of 407 BC Lindos was the most important of the three cities on Rhodes. The city of Rhodes after its founding, eventually out shone it. Today the charming village of Lindos and its acropolis still has several things going for it including its very beautiful Sanctuary of Athena Lindia atop the acropolis. The ancient town of Lindos was 4 times larger than the present (pop 800) but what remains is quite unique and well worth spending a night or two visiting off season. Rhodes is extremely hot in August and over 400,000 coach borne tourists a year are estimated to pass through most in July and August. (left the acropolis of Lindos)

Lindos also possesses the only two twin natural harbors on the island and this made it Rhodes most important trading center for millennia. During the Turkish occupation, the merchants of Lindos handled most of the islands trade and to this day are still known for their sound business sense. St Paul in 58 AD landed at Lindos in the bay now named after him and converted its residents to Christianity. The cliff top acropolis was first occupied about 1510 BC and was later fortified by the Knights of St. John.

Today Lindos enjoys a status as an archeologically protected site where a permit must be obtained by residents before changing the color of a door. Lindos has been considered one of the more magical places in Greece for decades and attracted successful musicians, artists and rich businessmen including Saudi princes into purchasing some of the authentic captains houses as getaways. Little is left of traditional village life as the local economy centers around the throngs of visiting tourists which reaches its peak each July and August. The nightlife is intimate and a lot of fun! ( more Cycladic than anything, the village of Lindos right)

During the 6th C BC Tyranny of Cleoboulus, Lindos also grew rich from its several colonies, not least of which was Pathenope (present day Naples). Cleoboulos, one of the 7 sages of Greece, was a benevolent tyrant and known for his even handedness and pithy maxims, one of which was "measure in all things" (nothing in excess) which was also engraved upon the Oracle at Delphi. He is responsible for the construction of the Temple of Lindean Athena and its Propylaea although it was destroyed in an earthquake and rebuilt most recently by the Italians. He was also famous for his good looks and his belief in the intellectual equality of women. His father, King Evander had the distinction of initiating the construction of the reservoir and rock tunnels which supplied the city with water up until the very recent past. Timachidas in 99 BC cataloged the temples votive gifts and its star studded list of benefactors included: Cadmus, MInos, Herakles, Menaleus and even Helen. Read more about the Temple of Lindean Athena

Island Runners up

Many other Greek islands had cities, ports and temples in antiquity. Due to the encroachment of time, and the depredations of latter men by building over them, using them for construction materials, destroying them as conquerors or carting off the statues and monuments for decorative or speculative purposes, they unfortunately have less to show of themselves. Many artifacts may be found as parts of collections throughout the museums and private collections of this world. Including island museums in Greece and the National Archeology Museum in Athens and Heraklion, Crete. (right ivory statuette 7th c BC Samos archeology museum)

• North & East Aegean: Thassos, Samothraki, Lesvos, Chios, Samos
• Cyclades: Tenos, Paros, Naxos, Milos

One particularly interesting such ancient site, although not much to look at, is the Eupalineion or aqueduct of Samos (524 BC), initiated by Polycrates and built by Eupalinos of Megara. Basically this is a tunnel 1,150 yards long running through Mt. Ampleos which carried water to a reservoir in the middle of the city. What's remarkable about it is, it was begun at both ends simultaneously and joined up perfectly with its other half under the mountain. It probably took 10 to 15 years to dig through solid rock. This is without modern surveying equipment mind you. No one is sure to this day how it was accomplished but it assured the cites water supply during times of siege and was also used as an escape route by Meandrius during Darius' encirclement and blockade. A maintenance ledge runs within the long and narrow tunnel above the water channel. Flashlight helpful. Herodotus in his Histories also credits Samos with  2 other great works, the mole of the harbor and the Temple of Hera (mostly a ruin unfortunately).