We spent our last full day on Naxos touring the center and north sides of the island. The narrow, winding, vertigo-inducing roads took us to the mountainside towns of Moni and Apirathos and the seaside town of Apolonas.
Something you'll find on Naxos is an abundance of small chapels. They are everywhere, on hillsides, tucked into valleys, and even perched on seemingly-inaccessible hilltops. Chapels are always white in colour, which stands out against the island's background. White with bright blue trim is a colour scheme typical for buildings on the island.
A less common sight is a kouros, which is an ancient, free-standing sculpture, usually of a nude male youth. There are three on Naxos, the largest being the 10-meter-long kouros just outside the town of Apolonas. It has been dated as being from the 6th or 7th century BC. It lies on its back near an old marble quarry. This being Naxos, little has been done to promote access: there is no parking lot and no explanatory signage. It's just lying there, a few steps off the road. In the photo Paul is standing next to the statue to give a sense of its size.
I'll miss Naxos as it's a very charming town, not too big and not too small, and it's a port so there is always change: the light, the boats, the people. The people we've met, from the Avis lady—what a sweetheart!—to the hotel proprietor, to the little old lady we talked to on the far side of the island, everyone has been friendly and welcoming. I've also learned a bit about the struggles they are dealing with, the economic stresses and the doctor shortage, yet they are carrying on, working hard, and putting their best face forward. Avtio, Naxos.
WHILE DRIVING TO THE SMALL village of Apollonas on the island of Naxos, you'll be rewarded with dazzling seaside mountain views of the sea. Once you get to the village, take a walk up a short hill and you'll find an archaeological treasure lying within one of Greece's oldest quarries.
There, a 35-foot-long (10.7-meter-long) marble statue of Dionysus waits in stillness, just as it has for thousands of years. The enormous, unfinished depiction of the god of wine weighs more than 88 tons (80 metric tons) and dates from between the seventh and sixth centuries BC.
The statue is a kouros, a type of free-standing statue of a naked young man that dates to the Archaic period of Ancient Greece. It was originally believed to pay homage to Apollo until the 1930s, when archaeologists noticed its beard and realized the figure was actually Dionysus.
It's made of rough-hewn marble and is unfinished, cracked, and abandoned, but you can still see hints of the carvers handiwork. You can easily make out the shape of the body, head, beard, and ears. If you look closely, you can even see the holes left behind by the sculptors chisels, pickaxes, and hammers.
There are various theories floating around as to why the colossal kouros was never finished. The most plausible and well-regarded one is that it was too heavy to transport.
Know Before You Go
Look for the brown historical signs on the side of the road before arriving to the village and pull your car carefully off the road. The curb/edge of the road is very deep, so be careful if you are in a small car as you will damage your undercarriage. If you're lucky, you'll see wildflowers along the path. atlasobscura.com
WHILE DRIVING TO THE SMALL village of Apollonas on the island of Naxos, you'll be rewarded with dazzling seaside mountain views of the sea. Once you get to the village, take a walk up a short hill and you'll find an archaeological treasure lying within one of Greece's oldest quarries.
There, a 35-foot-long (10.7-meter-long) marble statue of Dionysus waits in stillness, just as it has for thousands of years. The enormous, unfinished depiction of the god of wine weighs more than 88 tons (80 metric tons) and dates from between the seventh and sixth centuries BC.
The statue is a kouros, a type of free-standing statue of a naked young man that dates to the Archaic period of Ancient Greece. It was originally believed to pay homage to Apollo until the 1930s, when archaeologists noticed its beard and realized the figure was actually Dionysus.
It's made of rough-hewn marble and is unfinished, cracked, and abandoned, but you can still see hints of the carvers handiwork. You can easily make out the shape of the body, head, beard, and ears. If you look closely, you can even see the holes left behind by the sculptors chisels, pickaxes, and hammers.
There are various theories floating around as to why the colossal kouros was never finished. The most plausible and well-regarded one is that it was too heavy to transport.
Know Before You Go
Look for the brown historical signs on the side of the road before arriving to the village and pull your car carefully off the road. The curb/edge of the road is very deep, so be careful if you are in a small car as you will damage your undercarriage. If you're lucky, you'll see wildflowers along the path. atlasobscura.com
WHILE DRIVING TO THE SMALL village of Apollonas on the island of Naxos, you'll be rewarded with dazzling seaside mountain views of the sea. Once you get to the village, take a walk up a short hill and you'll find an archaeological treasure lying within one of Greece's oldest quarries.
There, a 35-foot-long (10.7-meter-long) marble statue of Dionysus waits in stillness, just as it has for thousands of years. The enormous, unfinished depiction of the god of wine weighs more than 88 tons (80 metric tons) and dates from between the seventh and sixth centuries BC.
The statue is a kouros, a type of free-standing statue of a naked young man that dates to the Archaic period of Ancient Greece. It was originally believed to pay homage to Apollo until the 1930s, when archaeologists noticed its beard and realized the figure was actually Dionysus.
It's made of rough-hewn marble and is unfinished, cracked, and abandoned, but you can still see hints of the carvers handiwork. You can easily make out the shape of the body, head, beard, and ears. If you look closely, you can even see the holes left behind by the sculptors chisels, pickaxes, and hammers.
There are various theories floating around as to why the colossal kouros was never finished. The most plausible and well-regarded one is that it was too heavy to transport.
Know Before You Go
Look for the brown historical signs on the side of the road before arriving to the village and pull your car carefully off the road. The curb/edge of the road is very deep, so be careful if you are in a small car as you will damage your undercarriage. If you're lucky, you'll see wildflowers along the path. atlasobscura.com
