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Paros
has been inhabited since 3200 B.C. and many objects of that period have been found in Saliagos, an islet situated between Paros and Antiparos. It is believed that back in the Ancient times, the two islands used to form a single land.
According to Greek mythology, the first to dominate the island was the Cretan Alcaios. He built a city situated on the same place Parikia, the actual capital of the island, stands today. He occupied the island for its central position in the Cyclades and its fertile plains. At that time, Crete was trading with Egypt, Assyria and the Balkans and the position of the island was of great strategic importance.
They turned the island into a naval station and gave it the name of Minoa, which was a title of honour given only to the royal Cretan |
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Around 1.000 B.C., the Arcadians occupied the island. There were led by Parios who gave to the island its definitive name: Paros.
During the 8th century B.C., Paros became a great maritime power and started trading with the Phoenicians. It even created a colony on the island of Thassos, which was rich in metal deposits. It was a flourishing period for Paros, both economically and culturally. The island was indeed the birthplace of many poets. The most famous was the lyrical poet Archilochus who is famous for being the first to use personal elements rather than heroics in his poems.
In those times, Paros was famous in all the Mediterranean for its semi transparent marble of high quality which was used for the creation of
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In 338 B.C. the Macedonian took control of the island. After the death of Alexander the Great, the island felt under the Ptolemie’s occupation. After that period Paros came under Mithridate’s rule, followed by the Roman occupation.
After the Romans, the Island was converted to Christianity and became a part of the Byzantine Empire. Many churches, monasteries and chapels were built at these times on the island. The most famous of them is the Church of Ekatonpiliani in Parikia. It is said that the church was built by St. Helena, the mother of Constantine the Great. This church is considered as the most important Byzantine monument in Greece.
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