- BOOK NOW
- CONTACT US
HISTORY
The history of a queen
Prehistoric findings in the areas of Halandriani and Kastri prove that Syros has been inhabited since the 3rd millennium BC and also had a great commercial activity while various evidence for the existence of metallurgy plans bears witness to the island’s relationship with Asia minor. During the 2nd millennium Syros is found under the rule of the Phoenicians, of Minoan Crete and the Mycenae while in the 1st Millennium the island passes to the hands of the Ionians. From the 7th to the 3rd century B.C. there are traces of settlements and rural areas in different parts of the island.
In the classical and Hellenistic period Syros joins the Athenian Alliance with its own currency and administration while during the Hellenistic period findings of temples are brought to life like the one of the philosopher of antiquity Pherecydes between Richopos and Platy Vouni in Ano Syros. The cosmologist Pherecydes was born and died on the island in the 6th century BC. He was a teacher who taught in Samos some of the greatest scientists of ancient times such as Pythagoras, and is said that he spent most of his life inside a cave.
The cave survives to the day in a magical landscape where earth and sky become one, where the view to the sea can only be described as miraculous. Apart from being a great philosopher Pherecydes was also the inventor of the first solar clock, also known as the Sunflower of Pherecydes. The sunflower looks like a sump or well that could be used in antiquity for the irrigation of water. In fact it is an ancient and expensive solar observatory that marks the time and the 4 seasons of Syros depending on the motion of the Sun. This prehistoric Sunflower is located in the village of San Michali.
The copper coins found on the island from the Roman times and the issuance of silver coins in the 2nd century BC show commercial development while the invading pirates during the Byzantine period cause the abandonment of the island. Soon Syros becomes part of the Theme of the Aegean Sea and the first Catholic settlement of Ano Syros is created under the rule of the Venetians.
