Cyclades

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Cyclades

The Cyclades (Greek Κυκλάδες) are a Greek island group in the Aegean Sea, south-east of the mainland of Greece; and an administrative prefecture of Greece. They are one of the island groups which constitute the Aegean archipelago. The name refers to the islands around (κυκλάς) the sacred island of Delos.

The Cyclades comprise about 220 islands, the major ones being Amorgos, Anafi, Ándros, Antiparos, Delos, Ios, Kéa, Kimolos, Kythnos, Mílos, Mykonos, Náxos, Páros, Folegandros, Serifos, Sifnos, Sikinos, Síros, Tínos, and Santorini (Thira). Most of the smaller islands are uninhabited.

Ermoupolis, on Síros, is the chief town and administrative center of the prefecture.

The islands are peaks of a submerged mountainous terrain, with the exception of two volcanic islands, Milos and Santorini (Thera). The climate is generally dry and mild, but with the exception of Naxos the soil is not very fertile: agricultural produce includes wine, fruit, wheat, olive oil, and tobacco. Cooler temperatures are in higher elevations and mainly do not receive wintry weather. In transportation, the Cyclades is the only prefecture in Greece that is not linked with a state-maintained highway or a highway number. All of the roads in the island complex are secondary or provincial.

History

The significant Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age Cycladic culture is best known for its schematic flat female idols carved out of the islands' pure white marble centuries before the great Middle Bronze Age ("Minoan") culture arose in Crete, to the south: these figures have been looted from burials to satisfy a thriving Cycladic antiquities market since the early 20th century.

A distinctive Neolithic culture amalgamating Anatolian and mainland Greek elements arose in the western Aegean before 4000 BCE, based on emmer wheat and wild-type barley, sheep and goats, pigs, and tuna that were apparently speared from small boats (Rutter). Excavated sites include Saliagos and Kephala (on Keos) with signs of copper-working, Each of the small Cycladic islands could support no more than a few thousand people, though Late Cycladic boat models show that fifty oarsmen could be assembled from the scattered communities (Rutter), and when the highly organized palace-culture of Crete arose, the islands faded into insignificance, with the exception of Delos, which retained its archaic reputation as a sanctuary through the period of Classical Greek civilization.

Archaeology

The first archaeological excavations of the 1880s were followed by systematic work by the British School at Athens and by Christos Tsountas, who investigated burial sites on several islands in 1898 - 1899 and coined the term "Cycladic civilization". Interest lagged, then picked up in the mid-20th century, as collectors competed for the modern-looking figures that seemed so similar to sculpture by Jean Arp or Constantin Brancusi. Sites were looted and a brisk trade in forgeries arose. The context for many of these Cycladic figurines has been mostly destroyed and their meaning may never be completely understood. Another intriguing and mysterious object is that of the Cycladic frying pans. More accurate archaeology has revealed the broad outlines of a farming and seafaring culture that had immigrated from Asia Minor ca 5000 BCE. Early Cycladic culture evolved in three phases, between ca 3300 - 2000 BCE, when it was increasingly swamped in the rising influence of Minoan Crete. The culture of mainland Greece contemporary with Cycladic culture is termed Helladic.

In recent decades the Cyclades islands have become extremely popular with European and other tourists, and as a result there have been problems with erosion, pollution, and water shortages.

Area codes

22810 - Syros, including Kythnos, Serifos and Syros islands

22820 - Andros

22830 - Tinos

22840 - Paros and Sifnos islands

22850 - Amorgos and Naxos islands

22860 - Folegandros, Ios, Santorini and Sikinos islands

22870 - Kimolos and Milos

22880 - Kea Island

22890 - Mykonos

Municipalities and communities

Municipality	YPES code	Seat	Postal code	Area code
Amorgos	3101	Amorgos	840 08	22850-2
Andros	3103	Andros	845 00	22820-2
Ano Syros	3105	Ano Syros	841 00	22810-8
Drymalia	3107	Chalkio	843 02	22850
Ermoupoli	3109	Ermoupoli	841 00	22810-2
Exomvourga	3108	Xinara Naxou	842 00	22850-5
Ios	3112	Ios	840 01	22860-9
Kea	3113	Kea	840 02	22880-2
Korthio	3115	Ormos Korthiou	845 02	22820-6
Kythnos	3117	Kythnos	840 06	22810-3
Milos	3118	Milos	848 00	22870-2
Mykonos	3119	Mykonos	846 00	22890-2
Naxos	3120	Naxos	843 00	22850-2
Paros	3123	Paros	844 00	22840-2
Poseidonia	3124	Episkopi Posidonias	841 00	22810-4
Serifos	3125	Serifos	840 02	22810-5
Sifnos	3127	Sifnos	840 03	22840-3
Thira	3111	Thira	847 00	22860-2
Tinos	3129	Tinos	842 00	22830-2
Ydrousa	3130	Gavrio	845 01	22820-7
Community	YPES code	Seat	Postal code	Area code
Anafi	3102	Anafi	840 09	22860-6
Antiparos	3104	Antiparos	840 07	22840-6
Donoussa	3106	Donoussa	843 00	22850-5
Folegandros	3131	Folegandros	840 11	22860
Heraklia	3110	Heraklia	843 00	22870-7
Kimolos	3114	Kimolos	840 04	22870-5
Koufonissa	3116	Koufonissa	843 00	22870-7
Oia	3121	Oia	847 02	22860-7
Panormos	3122	Panormos	842 01	22830-3
Schoinoussa	3128	Schoinoussa	843 00	22870-7
Sikinos	3126	Sikinos	840 10	22860-5

External links

West Cyclades News" : West Cyclades News Portal (in Greek Language)
Jeremy B. Rutter, "The Prehistoric Archaeology of the Aegean" : especially Lessons 2 and 4: chronology, history, bibliography
Captain Barefoot's Naturist Guide To The Greek Islands: this website has extensive accurate up-to-date information on the beaches in the Cyclades, especially where clothing optional sunbathing is commonly practiced.
Cyclades Photos

The Cyclades | Archipelagoes | Islands of Greece | Prefectures of Greece

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History

Archaeology

Area codes

Municipalities and communities

Further reading

External links