I spent yesterday doing some mapping for the #Despotiko Excavations & got to see the restored buildings without their webs of scaffolding!

Now uninhabited, the island was once a major Cycladic sanctuary! Learn more about what makes it special below
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#archaeology #greece

Maybe I was hasty in calling the island uninhabited. Without any water, it’s still home to 100s of sheep & their shepherd!

This current population is a part in the history of the sanctuary, which was discovered because the animal pens were built from archaic blocks & sculpture! – bei Despotiko

Under study by Yannos Kourayos since 1997, excavations have uncovered a spectacular sanctuary.

Cult activity may have begun as early as the 9th century, but by the 6th century it was at its peak. Like other Archaic sanctuaries, this meant big architecture, sculpture, & more! – bei Despotiko

The sanctuary was sacred to Apollo, but also shows cult activity to Artemis, & Hestia Isthmia. – bei Despotiko

The main cult building sits on the west end of the sanctuary, with its five doors and prostyle colonnades oriented east.

The two rooms at the north were side-by-side temples to Apollo & Artemis, while the southern rooms were hestiatoria for cult banquets! – bei Despotiko

A large semicircular altar stood in front of the temple, and other buildings were built all throughout the sanctuary & on the neighboring islet of Tsimintiri!

Many of these buildings are being recorded now for the first time, & we’ll all look forward to learning more about them! – bei Despotiko

Much of the site was destroyed in the 5th century, but it continued to function into the Roman period—when it became a settlement. This occupation fluctuated through the Byzantine & Frankish periods, but a pirate raid in the 17th c. marked the final major occupation of the site. – bei Despotiko