ABSTRACT
The island of Thera (modern-day Santorini) is well known for its volcanic activity which has reshaped the island numerous times. The most famous of the eruptions took place in the Late Minoan IA/Late Cycladic I period and is often called the ‘Minoan’ eruption due to its presumed link with the demise of the Minoan civilisation on Crete. The eruption was the largest in the last 10,000 years and has been classified as > 7 on the Volcanic Explosivity Index score. Following an earthquake, the inhabitants of Akrotiri rebuilt their town, but left it for good shortly before the fatal eruption. The eruption occurred in three or four phases and covered the island in 60 m of ash and lava. The impact of the eruption was widespread: ash deposits have been found on Greek islands, Crete and Turkey, large pumice rafts floated around the Eastern Mediterranean, tsunamis quickly reached Crete (e.g. Palaikastro) and the Levantine coast and Egypt. Most likely, the northern hemisphere experienced a degree of cooling, the so-called volcanic winter phenomenon. As regards dating the event, scholarship is divided into those supporting the ‘high’ chronology (which relies on radiocarbon dates) and those believing in a ‘low’ chronology (which is based on historic synchronisms with other cultures, most predominantly Egypt). Dendrochronology and ice core evidence have contributed greatly to the debate but remain currently inconclusive. Radiocarbon evidence of short-lived samples as well as the infamous olive tree found buried underneath the ash supports a ‘high’ chronology date in the late 17th century BC. The dating incontrovertibly denies a direct causal link between the eruption and the decline of the Minoan civilisation. However, scholars believe that long-term socio-political, economic and psychological effects of the eruption may have contributed indirectly to the Cretans’ demise.
