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This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law. Greece: From Century bY Abstract: Due to its geological and Michael Fytikas geodynamic conditions and recent and Georgia Margomenou Leonidopoulou Raffaele Cataldi historical volcanic activity, Greece is rich in thermal springs, fumaroles, and hydrothermal minerals. Active volcanoes and natural manifestations inspired the formation of many INTRODUCTION myths and deeply influenced the beliefs of ancient Greeks. Impressive volcanic eruptions occurring in GEOTHERMAL ENERGY ms BEEN ACKNOWLEDGED rn GREECE prehistoric and ancient times were for thousands of years. The etymology of the word “geother- recounted in a number of legends and myths or described scientifically by mal,” is, in fact, Greek. Many natural manifestations were many Classical authors, who also formed in recent geological and historical times, including attempted to interpret their origin. thermal springs, fiunaroles, hot grounds, and hydrothermal Thermal springs greatly impacted the mineralizations. Volcanic eruptions and phreatic explosions also lifestyle of ancient Greeks: countless people frequented them, mainly for took place on some Greek islands during prehistoric and the waters’ curative properties. To historic epochs; they were mentioned in mythology or described express gratitude to the healing divinities of thermal waters for in the works of ancient and modern authors. In areas with successful treatments, many users left relatively recent volcanism, many eruptive rocks (lavas, ignim- gifts or built monuments in the spring areas. In particular, temples to brites, some pyroclastics, and obsidian) were used by early Asclepius were erected near many Greeks for tools and artifacts or for building and lining materi- thermal springs all over Greece. als, millstones, and other useful items. Thermal springs afforded Volcanic activity on some Greek the ancient Greeks the opportunity to establish curative centers; islands led to the formation of obsidian and valuable hydrothermal at the same time, the presence of natural manifestations and the by-products, the exploitation of occurrence of active volcanoes and frequent earthquakes which contributed greatly to local economic development. spawned myths, legends, and religious sentiments. 69 The strong hydrothermal activity in certain volcanic areas resulted in many valuable minerals and deposits-kaolin, iron oxides, sulfur, pozzolana, perlite, and travertine-which were exploited for a number of practical uses. The abundance of these products and their increased use in Antiquity resulted in their export to nearby Mediterranean areas. Extraction and trade of hydro- thermal by-products in Greece and other geothermal localities of the Southern Mediterranean date to the 3rd or 2nd millennium B.C. (Cataldi and Chiellini, 1995). The continuous development of land and sea trade and the colonization of many such areas by the Minoans, Phoenicians, Mycenaeans, and other ancient Mediterranean peoples during early historic times facilitated the commercialization of hydrothermal products. Extensive colonization and trade during both the Classical period of Greece and Roman times enhanced contact among Mediterranean peoples, further fostered the use of hydrothermal compounds, and contributed substantially to the development of the economy and culture in many areas. Aegina, Milos, Kimolos, Thera (present-day Santorini), Nisyros, Yiali, and Kos are the main islands of the active volcanic arc of Southern Greece. Western Thrace, Samothraki, Limos, Lesbos, Chios, Samos, and Patmos in the Northeastern and Eastern Aegean are the areas of Tertiary volcanism that display similar characteristics in their volcanic and hydrothermal products. ACTIVEVOLCANOES IN MYTHOLOGY AND ANCIENTH~STORY THECULTURAL BACKGROUND VOLCANIC ACTIVITY IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPRESSIVE NATURAL PHENOMENA THAT CAUGHT THE attention and excited the imaginations of prehistoric people in many areas of Greece. Depending on the degree of cultural evolution and the type of phenomenon-xplosive eruptions, lava fountains, fbmarolic activity, volcano-tectonic earthquakes, or thermal manifestationsi-the early Greeks who observed them felt surprise and astonishment or fear and terror. These experiences were recounted fiom father to child and thus handed down orally through many generations. This resulted in a gradual distortion of what actually happened and its impact on the area concerned. Afterwards, these stories spread over the whole of ancient Greece, intermingling with similar stories originating hmdifferent geothermal areas and eventually forming a common knowledge base regarding the “significance” of these impressive natural events. A halo of 70 Map of the main geothermal sites in ancient Greece and other localities mentioned in the text. grandiosity and a sense of the supernatural have thus been associated with such events since prehistoric times. Simultaneously,thick veils of mystery shrouded them in many areas of Greece. In this way, legends and myths developed specifically related to those phenomena, substantially enriching Greek mythology. In historical Antiquity, however, besides myths and legends, scien- tific descriptions of the various manifestations of the Earth’s heat started to appear in works of geographers and historians, while other thinkers began to speculate on the origin and nature of such phenomena. 71 VOLCANOESIN GREEK MYTHOLOGY GREEKMYmoLoGY CENTERS AROUND THE 12 GREAT OLYMPIANS: ZEUS (THE OmIPoTENT father), his wife Hera, Aphrodite (goddess of love and beauty), Apollo (god of the sun and music), Ares (god of war), Artemis (goddessof the hunt), Athena (goddess of wisdom and battle), Demeter (goddess of the harvest and field), Hephaestus (blacksmithto the gods), Hemes (messengerof the gods), Pluto (god of the underworld), and Poseidon (god of the sea). Except for Pluto, who lived in Hades, the gods resided on the top of Mount Olympus, about 3000 meters high, located between Thessaly and Macedonia, about 400 km north-northwest of Athens. Hephaestus (son of Zeus and Hera) was the divinity of fire and volcanoes. Etymologically, Hephaestus means “the one who burns,” “the one who shines.” Perhaps less well known is the legend that Hephaestus was born rather ugly and that, after seeing him and being taken by an irrepressible wrath, Zeus violently hurled him far fiom Olyrnpus. After a flight of many hundreds of kilometers, Hephaestus fell on an island which, according to one version of the legend, was Limnos in the Northern Aegean or, according to another version, the island of Sicily in Southern Italy. As a god, Hephaestus could not die, but the fall injured one of his legs and he became lame. He lived alone for many years, trained himself in the use of fire and smelting,and finally created a well equipped workshop in the deep crater that had formed as a result of his fall. At the same time, a cunning Hera eventually had her son readmitted to the Olympic court. Beside being ugly, Hephaestus was surly. But he was not bad, was very industrious, creative, and, most importantly, had an outstanding skill for melting, forging, and casting metals. Therefore, he became the much sought metalworker and blacksmith of the gods. On special occasions, but with the necessary intercessionof one of the gods, he could also manufacture arms and metallic goods for demigods and very important mortals. Due to his metal-working ability and since he was always at the gods’ disposal in his art, Hephaestus gradually gained the sympathy of all of the inhabitants of Olympus and even suc- ceeded in Winning the favor of Aphrodite, whom he married. The marriage menage, however, was all but smooth! According to different versions of the legend, Hephaestus might have had several metal laborato- ries and workshops, most of which were located inside volcanoes. One version states that 72 Hephaestus’ main workshop was on the volcanic island of Limos; however, since only extinct volcanoes exist on this island (Fytikas et al., 1999,the most reliable version of the legend is that the main (if not the only) workshop was located inside the Etna volcano in Eastern Sicily. The popular belief in early historic and ancient times was that steam, gas, and ash escaping from the top and high slopes of certain mountains of Greece and other Mediterranean areas were nothing but the smoke formed inside Hephaestus’ workshop(s), released into the atmosphere through underground chimneys. Ancient people also