Greece’s Island of Samos: The Birthplace of Philosophers and Gods
Greece’s island of Samos, the birthplace of mathematician and philosopher Pythagoras as well as astronomer Aristarchus, has a fascinating history tied to the myth of the Argonauts and the birth of Hera, the queen of the gods.
The first recorded settler on the island of Samos, located in the Greek Aegean Sea, was Angaios (Aggeus) from Arcadia, who had taken part in the expedition of Jason and the Argonauts in search of the Golden Fleece. Greek mythology has it that Samos was the birthplace of Hera.
According to another myth, sea nymphs or Nereids were the first inhabitants of the island. Nereids were deities that accompanied the god Poseidon and helped sailors fight the storms to travel safely out in the sea. One famous Nereid was the mother of Achilles, Thetis.
The name of the island derives from the son of Angaios, Samos or from the Phoenician root sama which means a place with high mountains. Indeed, two high mountains, Kerkis, or Kerketeas, and Ambelos (otherwise known as Karvounis) dominate the landscape.
The island is located at a strategic crossing of sea-lanes connecting mainland Greece with the east and Egypt. It is also very close to the Ionian cities on the opposite coast—modern day Turkey—from which it is separated by a narrow channel that is less than a mile wide. Its proximity to the Asian continent was profoundly significant for its development. Herodotus referred to it as the best city among both the Greeks and the Barbarians.
Ancient Samos occupied the site of the modern city Pythagorio, as excavations in the area have shown. Traces of the first establishment of people in the ancient city go back to the Neolithic 5th millennium BC and are located on Kastro Hill.
Migration of Ionians and development
During the migrations period around 1100 BC, Ionian Greeks from the region of Epidauros arrived on Samos, bringing with them the cult of the mother goddess, Hera. In the Geometric period, the island amassed fabulous wealth due to its trade connections with the East and the western Mediterranean.
Excavations of recent years have provided ample evidence of the high cultural level of this place in the Geometric period. Findings in the center of the ancient city and especially the Geometric cemetery of tumuli in the southwest section, indicate that the city saw great development from the 10th to the 7th century BC.
The artifacts found indicate the importance of the island as a cultural center. The influence of the Minoan, Mycenaean, Egyptian, and Mesopotamian civilizations is reflected in the findings.
During the Archaic period, Pythagorio reached its peak, specifically during the time of the tyranny of Polykrates, son of Aiakes. The most important works of that time are the aqueduct of Eupalinos and the great temple of Hera, known from Herodotus as the “double-ended tunnel” and “the largest of all temples ever seen by us”.
In the same period, the first phase of the city fortification was completed, with walls built in the polygonal system for a length of about four miles. When the island was seized by the Athenians, the fortification wall was demolished.
The wall was rebuilt around 300 BC, when the exiled Samians returned to their homeland after 322 BC following an edict of Alexander the Great. The last, limited repair of the walls was completed in 200 BC, when Samos was used as a naval station by the Ptolemaic fleet.
The architect Rhoikos, the artist Theodoros, the sculptor Geneleos, and the poets Anakreon and Ibykos are some of the most significant personalities who served brilliantly in the court of the tyrant. Born on the island at this same time was the great figure of philosophy and mathematics, Pythagoras.
Samos joins the Delian League
The island’s many forests provided wood that encouraged the construction of commercial and naval vessels and made Samos a sea power. A new type of vessel was constructed at that time, known as the “Samian” (Greek: Σάμαινα).
In the early 5th century BC, Samos joined the Ionian cities with its ships in the revolt against the Persians but withdrew before the naval battle of Lade, which was catastrophic for the Ionians. In 478 BC, Samos islanders joined the first Delian League, providing ships rather than paying tribute.
The naval power of Samos, however, aroused the suspicions of the Athenians, who, taking advantage of the conflicts between Samos and Mytilene over the fields of Anaia, attacked the island. After a nine month siege, the Athenians conquered Pythagorio in 439 BC. The hard terms enforced were catastrophic for the city.
During the 4th century, Samos was allied for a time with Sparta, but chiefly the island was under Athenian hegemony. After the island was taken by Timotheos in 365 BC, the Samians were sent into exile, and Athenian cleruchies were settled in their stead.
With the repatriation of the exiled Samians after 322 BC, the island was under the influence of the successors of Alexander the Great, Demetrios Poliorcetes, the Ptolemies of Egypt, and the kings of Pergamon among others.
Anthony and Cleopatra on Samos
From 129 BC and on, Samos belonged to the Roman province of Asia. Following the murder of Julius Caesar during the civil war that ensued, Samos went up in the ranks of the conspirators Casius and Brutus.
In 40 to 39 BC, Anthony spent the winter with Cleopatra in a luxurious villa on the hill of the Kastro. The winters of 30 BC after the battle of Actium (31 BC) and 19 to 18 BC were spent in the same place by Octavius Augustus. The Roman emperors Trajan, Tiberius, Claudius and Hadrian spent several winters in these same luxurious villas. Fine portraits or statues of some of these men adorn the Archaeological Museum of Pythagorio.
The ancient city and the Sanctuary of Hera suffered great destruction during the incursions of the Heruleans in 267 AD. In the 4th century AD, a Christian community was established on Samos.
The incursions of the Arabs in the 7th century AD resulted in serious problems on the island, and the inhabitants probably moved to the mountainous interior, where, to this date, the establishments of Lazaros and Loulouda are situated at Kastra.
The excavations
Excavation on the island began in 1902 to 1903 by the Archaeological Society at Athens under the direction of Panagiotis Kavadias and Themistocles Sofoulis. Extensive research was carried out in 1910 by Theodor Wiegand and Martin Schede under the aegis of the Königliche Museen zu Berlin.
In 1925, excavations continued, undertaken by the German Archaeological Institute in collaboration with the Greek Archaeological Society. Between the years 1939 to 1951, excavations were halted as a result of World War II. They resumed by German archaeologists after the war, while systematic research has been carried out during the last 40 years by the Greek Antiquities Service at Pythagorio and in areas outside the city.
Research made clear the advantageous position of ancient Samos on the map of the Greek world with continuous habitation from the Neolithic period to Byzantine times.
Excavation in the area of the ancient city during recent years has revealed the remains of an organized fortified city with slab-paved streets, squares, an agora, public buildings, shops, simple private houses and also villas with mosaic floors of high quality and wall-paintings.
Also found were extensive athletic installations with a gymnasium, stadium, palaistra, theater, efficient drainage network, baths and excellent water supply. Organized cemeteries, sanctuaries and temples dedicated to Artemis, Aphrodite, Dionysus, Cybele and eastern divinities such as Isis were uncovered, as well.
The development of the island led the historian Herodotus in the 5th century BC to write that the ancient city of Samos was the foremost of all cities, Greek and foreign. The poet Menander in the 4th century BC characterizes the island as “the island of the blessed people.”
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