Site details

Akrotiri

PK	C7147
TITLE	Akrotiri
WGS84	37.137562° N, 25.454644° E
Accuracy	50 m.

LAT/LON	37.137562, 25.454644
LON/LAT	25.454644, 37.137562

DMS

37° 8' 15.2232" N

25° 27' 16.7184" E

W3W	classical, insincere, mercies
UTM	35 S, 362743.85, 4111250.41
EGSA87	629051, 4110835

Elevation m	55
Elevation feet	180.4
Region	Cyclades
Subregion	Naxos

GENERAL SITE TYPE Cem

TYPE

1.    Artifacts.   Doumas [1977], 84    'Marble figurines'
2.    Cem.   Doumas [1977], 82    ' ..., an Early Cycladic cemetery was excavated in October 1962.'
3.    Cem.   Simpson and Dickinson [1979], 326    'A cemetery of 24 cists was excavated here, ... '
4.    Cem.   Renfrew [2011], 11376    'Important cemetery of 22 graves excavated by Doumas ..., ... '
5.    Lithics.   Doumas [1977], 85    'Obsidian: Object made of this material were very scarce in the graves of Akrotiri. Out of eleven pieces only two represent proper blades ..., while the remainder ... are fragments of blades and microliths ... '
6.    Pottery.   Doumas [1977], 83    ' ..., all the rest were mainly accompanied by poor pottery.'

PERIOD (High Chronology)

1. Grotta-Pelos: (3000 BC - 2600 BC)
    a.    Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: 326, 'The graves are considered to cover most of the GP phase, ... '
    b.    Renfrew [2011]: 11376, ' ..., yielding finds of the Grotta-Pelos culture.'
    c.    Doumas [1977]: 85, 'The earliest pottery, as described, belongs to the Pelos group ... '

2. Keros-Syros: (2600 BC - 2200 BC)
    a.    Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: 326, ' ..., and one is attributed to KS.'
    b.    Doumas [1977]: 85, 'At least two graves are of advanced Keros-Syros culture.'

NOTES

1. Page numbers in Renfrew [2011] are, in actuality, location numbers in the electronic edition, ISBN 978-1-78570-773-5.

2. The photograph in Doumas [1977] Plate IV (c) which is taken from the Akrotiri site (Mandouphes) and looking towards Mt. Koronos can be reproduced in Google Earth from points around 37.137562° N, 25.454644° E and facing 105.66°. This ridge is the strongest candidate I can find for Mandouphes and it is where I have placed the marker. Doumas' description of the site is all too typical of the mushy and imprecise verbal descriptions that are given for many, even the most significant, locations. Here is what he says (82, 'b. Akrotiri'):

"At the north-west coast of Naxos ..., an hour's walk north-east from the village of Engares, is the site of Akrotiri (Cape). There, between the ravine of Koukoula and the valley of Pacheia Ammos (...) an oblong ridge extends from east to west where it reaches the sea. On the north-east slope of this ridge (...) about 500 metres from the sea-shore, on the property of Mr. Skoulaxenos, an Early Cycladic cemetery was excavated in October 1962. Two kilometers or so to the north-east of this point, known as Mandoufes, is an old convent dedicated to the Virgin Mary (Phaneromini; ... ). About one kilometer to the south-west stands the little chapel of Saint Sophie. To the north and north-west extends the sea and to the east the view is interrupted by the heights of Kalyras, projecting before the imposing massif of Koronos ( ... )."

The peak of the Koronos massif is at F6359. The ridge of Kalyras is (probably) F6360; otherwise this toponym cannot be found. The point along the road at 37.139150 N, 25.455867 E is just 56 minutes walk from Engares (F5423) and, simultaneously, a 2.0 km. drive south west from the Convent of the Phaneromeni (F6356). Just to the SW of this point, and up on the ridge, is, perhaps, the most likely candidate for the Akrotiri (Mandouphes) site and it is this that I have marked. It is about 1 km. to the NE of the chapel of Haghia Sophia (F6357) in a straight line, and almost exactly 500 m. from the closest point on the shore. Stone formations along the ridge bear a striking resemblance to the stone structures shown in Doumas [1977] Plate IV (b) although this could be coincidental.

The reader will wish to exercise caution in adopting this location.

rhc

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Doumas [1977]: Doumas,Christos. Early Bronze Age Burial Habits in the Cyclades. Studies in Mediterranean Archaeology, 48, Paul Astroms Forlag, Johannesbergsgatan 24, Goteborg, Sweden. 1977., '',

2. Renfrew [2011]: Renfrew, Colin. The Emergence of Civilisation: The Cyclades and the Aegean in the Third Millenium BC. Oxbow Books. Second ed., 2011 (First edition 1972), '4. Akrotiri', pg. 11376. Online here.

3. Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: Simpson, Richard Hope and O.T.P.K. Dickinson. A Gazetteer of Aegean Civilization in the Bronze Age, Vol. I: The Mainland and the Islands. Paul Åströms Förlag, Goteborg. 1979., 'Akrotiri', pg. 326. Online here.