Thera

Fülszöveg

Thera
Pompeii of the Ancient Aegean

CHRISTOS C. DOUMAS
"On a summer's day, some thirty-five centuries ago, the central mountain of the beautiful Aegean island of Kalliste burst open with dramatic suddenness to shower its villages and the thriving town on its southern shore with volcanic ash and pumice. . . . That island we now call Thera, and its once-thriving town, near the modern village of Akrotirl, has lain buried from the Late Bronze Age of around 1500 BC until the present century. Its rediscovery by the late Professor Spyridon Marinatos and its subsequent investigation by him and by Professor Christos Doumas constitutes one of the great archaeological finds of our era, rivalling in its importance those at Roman Pompeii. . . ."
from the general editor's foreword
Ancient Akrotiri is now recognized to be the most completely preserved prehistoric site in Europe, perhaps even in the world. Excavations since 1967 have unearthed from beneath the mantle of volcanic debris... Tovább

Fülszöveg

Thera
Pompeii of the Ancient Aegean

CHRISTOS C. DOUMAS
"On a summer's day, some thirty-five centuries ago, the central mountain of the beautiful Aegean island of Kalliste burst open with dramatic suddenness to shower its villages and the thriving town on its southern shore with volcanic ash and pumice. . . . That island we now call Thera, and its once-thriving town, near the modern village of Akrotirl, has lain buried from the Late Bronze Age of around 1500 BC until the present century. Its rediscovery by the late Professor Spyridon Marinatos and its subsequent investigation by him and by Professor Christos Doumas constitutes one of the great archaeological finds of our era, rivalling in its importance those at Roman Pompeii. . . ."
from the general editor's foreword
Ancient Akrotiri is now recognized to be the most completely preserved prehistoric site in Europe, perhaps even in the world. Excavations since 1967 have unearthed from beneath the mantle of volcanic debris entire streets, houses and even their contents, left just as they were by the fleeing inhabitants. Most remarkable of all are the many frescoes, more complete than those from Minoan Crete and still breathtakingly fresh 3,500 years after they were first painted. Illustrated here in full color, they show fishermen, priestesses, children boxing, ships at sea, battle scenes and wild animals in exotic landscapes, thus revolutionizing at a stroke our knowledge of life in the Bronze Age Aegean.
The frescoes and other preserved remains would alone secure Akrotlri's International fame; but Professor Doumas demonstrates in addition how crucial the recent excavations are to a reassessment of the possible link between the eruption of Thera, the collapse of Minoan Crete and Plato's myth of Atlantis.
With 123 illustrations, 15 in color
On the jacket Wall-painting of the "Antelopes" from Room Beta 1 at Akrotiri. National Archaeological Museum, Athens. Photo Hannibal. Vissza