Naxos (Greek island)

The Greek island of Naxos (pronounced nacks-oz) is the largest of the Cyclades island chain and the heart of the ancient Cycladic culture native to the islands. The Cyclades (pronounced kih-klad-dez) is a collection of thirty islands and almost two hundred small islets located in the southwestern Aegean Sea. The islands' name is derived from the Greek word kyklades (meaning circular) in reference to their collective orientation around the island of Delos, which was one of the most sacred locations in Ancient Greece.

Naxos is a tourist destination that is known for its beaches, picturesque towns, and archaeological sites. On a cultural scale, its location in the Aegean Sea meant that it was subject to influences from many cultures, including the Thracians, Minoans, Mycenaeans, Venetians, Byzantines, Ottomans, and Greeks. As it has one of the few sources of fresh water in the Cyclades, it produces a broad variety of agricultural crops such as citrus fruits, corn, figs, grapes, and olives. Naxos is also a source of valuable minerals, including iron and lead ores, copper, gold, silver, obsidian, and emery. In particular, Naxian marble is highly regarded.

Brief History

Naxos is 166 square miles (430 square kilometers) in area. The population of the island in the mid-2020s was approximately 19,000 people. The largest town and administrative center is Hora (which is also known as Naxos Town), where a quarter of the Naxian people live. Tourism has grown into the island's greatest source of income in the twenty-first century.

The island was first colonized in the middle Neolithic period (about 6000 BCE), possibly by travelers from Thraki (Thrace) in northeastern Greece. These first settlers found the island to be fertile, while the surrounding Aegean Sea provided a wealth of seafood. A flourishing culture had developed on Naxos by the fourth millennium B.C.E. This distinct society eventually evolved into the Early Cycladic culture by the third millennium BCE, with Naxos as its center. Archaeological evidence has shown that these early peoples were proficient stone sculptors. Several important examples of Cycladic stone statues made of Naxian marble have been uncovered as a testament to the skill of these artisans.

The Early Cycladic culture is divided into two periods: Grotta-Pelos (Early Cycladic I culture), which lasted from approximately 3200 BCE to 2700 BCE, and Keros-Syros (Early Cycladic II) from 2700 BCE to 2200 BCE. The vast majority of archaeological evidence of the Early Cycladic culture is derived from the Keros-Syros phase, with materials found in graves pointing to a growing economic split between various Naxian social classes. The Early Cycladic culture had developed strong ocean-faring skills and had interactions with other nearby cultures of the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean Seas. Their navy was among the strongest in the region.

In the second millennium, the Cycladic culture first came under the sway of the Minoans from neighboring Crete and then the Mycenaean Greeks from mainland Greece. In approximately 1025 BCE, the Ionians from an area in present-day Turkey conquered the island. However, as Naxian marble became an increasingly desirable construction material in the eighth century BCE, Naxos became sufficiently wealthy to begin its own colonization of neighboring islands. Naxian monuments were erected throughout the region, including the famed Delos marble lions and an ornate statue found at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi called the Naxian Sphinx that was dedicated in approximately 560 BCE. This era marked the height of Cycladic culture and Naxian influence.

In 499 BCE, Naxos was the site of a failed attempt by a combined Persian-Ionian force to conquer the island. The campaign failed miserably, leading to a split in the Ionian and Persian alliance. This contentious division provided the sparks for a revolt by the Ionians against the Persians and ultimately the beginning of the great Greco-Persian War that lasted from 499 to 449 BCE. Naxos was completely sacked by the Persians in 490 BCE. Naxos eventually fell under the control of the Athenians in the wake of a Greek victory. It remained a vassal of Greek forces until the Romans seized the island in 41 BCE. It was again conquered in the fifth century CE, this time by the Byzantines, who converted the populace to Christianity. The Byzantines fortified the island and constructed the first of the more than five hundred churches that exist on the island in the twenty-first century.

After the fall of the Byzantines, the parade of foreign powers exerting control over the island continued. The Venetians ruled Naxos from 1207 to 1537 CE. Under Venetian aristocrat Marco Sanudo, Naxos became the capital of the Duchy of the Archipelago. The Venetians under the Sanudo and Crispo dynasties further fortified the island and moved the capital to Hora. The Ottomans were next in line and conquered Naxos in 1537. The Crispos remained in power under the Ottomans until 1566, when the last ruler of the family was deposed. The Ottomans remained the ruling power of Naxos until 1829 when it became a part of the Greek state.

Naxos in Mythology

Greek mythology holds that Zeus, the leader of the Greek pantheon of Gods, was raised on Naxos. According to one version of his birth, Zeus was prophesied to overthrow his father, Cronus. To protect him, his mother Rhea gave birth to her son on Crete but hid him away on Naxos. In honor of his Naxian origins, the island's tallest mountain is named Mount Zas, in recognition of where Zeus was ostensibly raised. It was also on Mount Zas that an eagle provided Zeus with the power over thunder, which enabled him to later defeat his father and establish himself as the king of gods. The Naxians worshiped an incarnation of Zeus called Zeus Melosius, the patron god of sheep.

Zeus is said to have later fallen in love with Semele, a princess of Thebes. Zeus's wife, Hera, tricked Semele into asking Zeus to show her his divine presence. As she was only mortal, his pure divinity killed her. To protect their unborn son, Dionysius, Zeus stitched him into his thigh and brought him to Naxos. By some accounts, Dionysius was raised by nymphs in the cave of Kronos. Dionysius became the patron god of Naxos, and the Naxians worshiped him with a major shrine on the island.

Naxos is additionally the location where Theseus abandoned Ariadne after killing the Minotaur on Crete. Dionysius fell in love with her at first sight. To gain her hand, he visited Theseus in his dreams and convinced Theseus to leave immediately without Ariadne. Without Theseus as his rival, Dionysius married Ariadne, making the island their home.

Bibliography

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