Milos: Out of this world

Haris Argyropoulos -

Without a doubt, Milos, the southwesternmost of the Cyclades, 86 miles from the port of Piraeus, is one of the most stunning of the island group, mainly due to its exceptional -- and at some places outlandish -- landscape and superb beaches.

Its main natural features are its large protected harbor -- the hollow of a volcanic crater akin to Santorini’s, which separates it into two almost equal parts -- and the broad variety of volcanic deposits and rocks that paint unique colorful scenes, particularly at sunset.

The island’s position, about halfway between mainland Greece and Crete, and its considerable deposits of obsidian -- a naturally occurring volcanic glass used to construct razor-sharp tools perhaps even before the Neolithic era -- made it an important center of early Aegean civilization.

A number of rare minerals, including bentonite, perlite, pozzolana and kaolin, are still mined in Milos and exported widely.
Excavations at the Bronze Age site of Phylakopi, on the northeastern coast, have revealed the existence of a great Minoan palace with several impressive frescoes, including that of the 16th century BC “Flying Fish” fresco.

Much later, in 415 BC, Milos’s importance set the scene for the fall of Athens as a moral stronghold -- as admitted by Athenian historian Thucydides -- when the islanders’ attempt to remain neutral during the Peloponnesian War led to the infamous massacre of all its males capable of bearing arms and the enslavement of the rest of the population.

A revival during the Hellenistic era produced what is Milos’s greatest claim to fame, the statue of the Venus de Milo, unearthed in 1820 and now in the Louvre in Paris.

Although Milos offers a wealth of unspoiled settings, the traditional preoccupation with mining has inevitably had some adverse aesthetic effect on the landscape and partly held tourist development in check. As a result, the island remains relatively uncrowded, despite its abundance of wonderful sandy beaches with azure waters -- numbering around 75 and most of them shaded by trees. Some are surrounded by intriguing geological formations, with white, red, yellow or black rocks, or simply offer sun umbrellas and beach bars.

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