Ios Skarkos

Location: Chora

Skarkos is an early Bronze Age settlement found in Ios. It is the most important prehistoric archaeological site of the Cyclades located only a few kilometers from the port of Ios and about one thousand years older than the famous Akrotiri of Santorini. Skarkos provided archaeologists with important information and significant evidence on how societies were organized in Cyclades during this period. It was built in a circular shape and on a high altitude so that its residents could overlook the port and the sea.

The village had a very well-organized street planning with squares and two storey buildings with stone-paved floors, fenced patios and defensive walls. Excavations discovered stamps and engraved symbols which show that people used them to declare their identity, as well as evidence of drainage system and cemetery. Several findings of the excavations are nowadays hosted in the Archaeological Museum of Chora; pottery, kitchen utensils, metal, stone and bone tools are some to name but a few. Furthermore, findings showed that the settlement probably had commercial transactions with neighbouring islands such as Milos and Santorini but also the mainland.

Skarkos is available for visiting and it has two entrances, one of which is also accessible by citizens on wheelchairs.