Island Of Samos Research Articles

Mineralogy, geochemistry and physical properties of bentonites from the Western Thrace Region and the islands of Samos and Chios, East Aegean, Greece

AbstractGreece is a major bentonite producer, with Milos Island being one of the largest bentonite mining centres in the world. In addition to the bentonite deposits which are well known, various other occurrences exist in the islands of Chios and Samos, Eastern Aegean and in some areas of Thrace, in NE Greece. These bentonites are associated with volcanic activity and their age ranges from Lower Oligocene in Thrace, to Lower–Middle Miocene in Chios and to Upper Miocene in Samos. Although some of these materials have been utilized since ancient times (e.g.the Samian Earth), these bentonites have been mined only at a local scale. In this study the first data on the mineralogical and geochemical characteristics of these bentonites are presented.The Samos bentonites of UpperMiocene age are medium–lowgrade (40–70% smectite) and crop out in the SE margin of the Karlovasi Basin formed at the expense of acidic pyroclastic flows mainly in a subaeriallacustrine environment. They consist mainly of Ca-rich medium–high-charge montmorillonite, opal-CT and sanidine with minor quartz and locallymordenite. The Chios bentonites of Lower–MiddleMiocene agewere formed at the expense of trachyandesitic tuffs in a lacustrine environment in the Neogene Basin at theSEpart of the island. They consist mainly of Ca,Mg-rich high-charge montmorillonite (33–75%), similar to the SAz-1, and opal-CT, minor plagioclase, chlorite, plagioclase, carbonates and traces of talc and serpentine. In Thrace, LowerOligocene pyroclastic flows, tuffs and lavas of acidic-intermediate compositionwere altered to zeolites and bentonites in the sedimentary basins of the Feres-Pefka, Skaloma and Sappes areas. The parent pyroclastic rockswere altered to Ca-rich and in places,Na-rich, dioctahedralmontmorillonite or Fe-rich beidellite (Sappes area) and with minor opal-CT,mordenite, quartz, plagioclase and, in places, illite. The bentonites are medium–high grade (50–58% smectite in Feres-Pefka, 74–86% in Skaloma and 29–40% in Sappes).The bentonites havemoderate cation exchange capacity andmoderate/lowswelling index and viscosity and they are not suitable for the drilling and foundry industries. However, preliminary results show that after processing, most of the depositsmight be utilized in high added-value applications such as bleaching earths or in the synthesis of clay-based polymer nanocomposites.

The MossesAschisma carniolicum,Campylostelium strictumandTimmiella flexisetaon the Eastern Aegean Islands, New to Greece, and a Second Locality forSyntrichia latifolia

Abstract: Blockeel, T. L. 2016. The mosses Aschisma carniolicum, Campylostelium strictum and Timmiella flexiseta on the Eastern Aegean Islands, new to Greece, and a second locality for Syntrichia latifolia. — Herzogia 29: 52–58. The mosses Campylostelium strictum and Timmiella flexiseta, previously known from Macaronesia and the western Mediterranean region are reported new to Greece from the Eastern Aegean islands. The moss Aschisma carniolicum is also new to Greece, and an extant Greek site for Syntrichia latifolia on the island of Samos is confirmed. Some diagnostic characters for these species are illustrated from the Greek material.

Evolution of underground aqueducts in the Hellenic world

Historical and archaeological evidence shows that ancient Hellenes had developed underground aqueducts since the prehistoric times. However, innovative methods of underground aqueducts were developed in Hellas mainly during the Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic, and Roman periods. Since the well-known tunnel at the island of Samos, Hellas, was designed and begun its construction (ca. 550 bc) by Eupalinos of Megara (the first civil engineer in history), several underground tunnels (with and without well-like vertical shafts) were implemented in the country. The goal of Eupalinos tunnel was to transfer water into the town from a spring. This tunnel, representing the peak of ancient hydraulic technology, was dug through limestone by two separate teams advancing in a straight line from both sides of the mountain. Delivering fresh water to growing populations has been an ongoing problem since ancient times. Several underground aqueduct paradigms (e.g. Peisistration in Athens, Polyrrhenia in Crete), some of which are in use even today, are presented and discussed. After late Roman times and the Adrianic aqueduct a gap of about 1,700 years in construction of such hydraulic works is noted. However, a remarkable development of tunneling in Hellas appeared during the last 50 years due to the ‘cosmogony’ of the construction of infrastructure projects using modern technology, e.g. Evinos-Mornos aqueduct with 15 tunnels of 71 km total length and the diversion tunnels in Sykia to the Thessaly plain and Messochora of the Acheloos River of 17.5 and 7.5 km length, respectively. Also, very recently three small conventional tunnels and one tunnel boring machine (TBM) were constructed in Aposelemis aqueducts used for water supply of Iraklion and Agios Nikolaos cities in Crete. As a consequence, significant design and construction experiences were gained. Overall, it seems that underground aqueducts of modern societies are not very different in principle from those during antiquity.

Characterization of the Stones Used on Walls in Teos Hellenistic Period

Teos, one of the twelve Ion cities, is located in the of Si§acik neighborhood Seferihisar district, 60 km southwest of Izmir. The city, on the southern coast of the peninsula Erythrea and Izmir, is the bottleneck of the gulf sea of Samos. West of the city Erythrai (Ildiri), north Klazomenai (Urla), the south island of Samos is located in the southeast of the city of Colophon. The main city is on the black neck which is surrounded by filled gulf formerly named as Teos Gulf, now west of the gulf. In ancient times the city was surrounded by walls for defense purposes. The city walls provide important information about both political and economical structure of the city. Teos walls of Hellenistic Period around 65 hectares of area is surrounded by the city for about 4 km. In this study stone samples which were used in Hellenistic Period have been characterised. Stone samples have been analysed by the following methods: field observations (visual examinations), scanning electron microscope equipped with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray diraction and chemical analysis X-ray fluorescence methods. These methods provided us determination of stone properties. DOI: 10.12693/APhysPolA.129.517 PACS/topics: 81.05.Je

Pottery production and exchange at the Heraion, Samos during the late third millennium BC: First steps in the study of technology and provenance

This paper discusses the preliminary results of a pilot fabric study carried out on pottery from the Early Bronze Age II late-III (ca. 2500–2000 BC) levels at the Heraion settlement on the island of Samos, Greece. This is a time not only of marked social change, but also of an increasing body of evidence, which indicates the widespread movement of pottery within the Aegean and the coast of Asia Minor. The site of Heraion is important in a reconsideration of this period, as a centre with a local tradition of ceramic production, as well as being a key player in exchange networks within the eastern Aegean. In a first appraisal of the ceramic assemblage, a total of forty-four coarse, medium and fine ware samples were selected for microscopic analysis, representing a range of local pottery and suspected imports. Petrographic analysis complemented macroscopic observations and stylistic evaluations, and allowed characterisation of the samples with respect to textural and petrological properties, forming a firm basis for future analyses of pottery recovered from the site.

Alan Greaves. The land of Ionia: society and economy in the Archaic period

Ionia has been a key region in the political history of the ancient Greeks throughout the Archaic period. Although geographically it was peripheral to mainland Greece, located across the Aegean, it has been the epicenter of most events that have shaped ancient Greek culture. The region, more specifically the central part of the Western Anatolian coast and the islands of Chios and Samos, has been one of the focal points of Classical Archaeology practice since the 19th century. However, since then most of the effort has been confined to the excavation of temples and large town centers as well as the reconstruction of monumental buildings. In other words, Ionian archaeology mostly just fleshed out the past as offered by the literary sources.

Testing Dioscorides' medicinal clays for their antibacterial properties: the case of Samian Earth

Earths were medicinal clays reported by authors of classical antiquity. Today, there are no archaeological samples thereof, at least with irrefutable proof that they were used as medicines. Therefore, their mineral identity and potential pharmacological actions have to be investigated on the basis of field work, laboratory testing and analysis as well as scrutiny of the relevant ancient texts. This paper focuses on Samian Earth, from the island of Samos in the East Aegean, used in antiquity as an eye salve and for the cleaning of cloth. Previously, Samian Earth has been equated with kaolin but we suggest its composition was probably more closely associated with the local borates to be found in the proximity of bentonitic clays. Microbiological testing of hydrated layered silicates (kaolin and bentonite) from Samos and Melos in the Aegean in association with different borates (colemanite, tincalconite) was carried out against common pathogens, like Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Experimental results showed that even a few hundred ppms of boron/boric acid in the Samos bentonitic clays can have a significant effect on the reduction of bacterial colonies. This observation corroborates the assumption that the medicinal properties of the earths were integrally associated with the mineralogy of specific localities within the volcanic islands of their origin.

P.Oxy. XVII 2085 : un nuovo commentario di Teone?

P.oxy. Xvii 2085 contains parts of a hypomnema, with lemmata attributed to euphorion. This commentary can be ascribed to the Alexandrian grammarian theon, because it is focused on the island of Samos and the metonomasia of the river Parthenios/imbrasos, found in other sources arguably connected with theon’s commentaries on Hellenistic poets and Pindar.

Investigating behind the lining of the Tunnel of Eupalinus in Samos (Greece) using ERT and GPR

The 2.5‐km‐long Eupalinian Aqueduct in the island of Samos, Greece, comprises the most impressive sample of ancient Greek engineering surviving almost intact. The main construction is a tunnel 1036 m long and almost 1.8 m wide excavated from both ends into mainly the massif limestone. In some parts of the overall length of about 240 m, the tunnel is dressed by lining of archaic and Roman age. This is of remarkable quality, and presumably, it protected the parts of the tunnel that were affected by subsidence and cave‐ins. At some particular locations, it suffers deformations and other failures.Thus, prior to its restoration and protection measures design, an integrated geophysical survey was carried out on the faces of the supporting walls, consisting in ground‐penetrating radar and electrical resistivity tomography works. The survey aimed to investigate the structure at the unseen area behind the lining.The thickness of the lining walls was accurately assessed by the ground‐penetrating radar method and proved to be about 0.3 m–0.5 m on average. On the other hand, the width of the excavation behind the walls was predicted and checked at some particular locations with the electrical resistivity tomography works.

Depositional ages of clastic metasediments from Samos and Syros, Greece: results of a detrital zircon study

Siliciclastic metasediments from the islands of Samos and Syros, Cycladic blueschist unit, Greece, were studied to determine maximum sedimentation ages. Four samples from the Ampelos unit on Samos yielded age distribution spectra that range from ~320 Ma to ~3.2 Ga with a dominance of Cambrian–Neoproterozoic zircons (500–1,100 Ma). The youngest well-constrained age groups cluster at 500–550 Ma. Our results allow to link the Samos metasediments with occurrences showing similar age distribution patterns elsewhere in the eastern Mediterranean region (Greece, Turkey, Libya, Israel and Jordan) that record the influx of ‘Pan-African’ detritus. The lack of post-500-Ma zircons in the Samos samples is in marked contrast to the data from Syros that indicates Triassic to Cretaceous depositional ages. The samples from Syros were collected from the matrix of a meta-ophiolitic melange that is exposed near the top of the metamorphic succession as well as from outcrops representing the basal part of the underlying marble-schist sequence. The zircon populations from Syros were mainly supplied by Mesozoic sources dominated by Triassic protolith ages. Subordinate is the importance of pre-Triassic zircons, but this may reflect bias induced by the research strategy. Sediment accumulation continued until Late Cretaceous time, but the overall contribution of Jurassic to Cretaceous detritus is more limited. Zircon populations are dominated by grains with small degree of rounding suggesting relatively short sediment transportation. Available observations are in accordance with a model suggesting deposition close to the magmatic source rocks.

Evaluating the tourism activity in a destination: the case of Samos Island

The current consensus on Sustainable Tourism Development emphasizes the necessity for all tourist planning and policy making decisions to consider the impacts of tourism activity on all three dimensions of sustainability: economic efficiency referring to the capacity of an economy to be competitive, social justice aiming at the better distribution of produced welfare in the society and environmental preservation as the conservation of ecosystem’s capacity to provide humans with goods and services essential for their survival.A successful evaluation of the tourism activity presupposes the extensive examination of certain elements of the tourism product itself (expressed as characteristics of supply, demand and the organization of the tourist market), along a series of parameters related directly to the tourism products (effects), and indirectly to its implications for the destination (impacts). This paper presents a methodological framework for an integrated evaluation and monitoring of the tourism activity, in support of planners and policy makers towards both tourism and regional policy.A case study on the island of Samos in Greece is employed to demonstrate the scope of the methodology based on real data, its potential value but also its limits. The results of the study indicate that tourism remains the main developmental force in the island for over two decades without unfortunately, succeeding to deviate from the rule of decreasing tendencies, of similar mass tourism destination.

Hydrogeological Characteristics of Hellenic Aqueducts-Like Qanats

In ancient Hellas, water management began in the early Minoan Era (ca. 3200–1100 BC) and was related to the geomorphology, the geology, the topography, and the local climatic, hydrological, and socio-political conditions. Historical and archaeological evidences show that ancient Greeks had developed even qanat-related technologies since the Classical times. During democratic periods, the focus of water management was on sustainable small scale, safe, and cost effective management practices, and institutional arrangements, whereas in oligarchic periods, emphasis was on the construction of large-scale hydraulic projects, including aqueducts and/or qanats, mostly related to the public sectors. Aqueducts-like qanats are gently sloping, artificially constructed underground galleries, which bring groundwater from the mountainous area to the lowlands, where water is used, sometimes several kilometers away. It is worth noticing that no large-scale lifting techniques were available, and water was transferred from the source (usually a spring) by aqueducts (qanats) from a higher elevation to a lower level by gravity. Historically, the aqueduct-like qanat technology was developed by Persians in the middle of 1st Millennium BC, and spread towards the Arabian Peninsula and Egypt. The expansion of Islam led to diffusion of qanats in Mediterranean countries (e.g., Spain, Italy, and Cyprus). Much of the population of Iran and other arid countries in North Africa and in Asia depend on water supply by aqueducts-like qanats, even today. This technology is characterized by its durability and sustainability, although an aqueduct-like qanat is expensive, both in construction and maintenance. It is pointed out that, the technique of tunneling was used during the Classical period in ancient Hellas. Since the well known tunnel at the island of Samos, Hellas, was designed and constructed by Eupalinos (ca. 530 BC), several underground tunnels (with and without well-like vertical shafts) in order to convey water from one location to another one located in a lower level were implemented in this country. Several aqueducts (qanat) paradigms (e.g., in Athens, on islands of Crete and Rhodes, and in the area of Serres in north country), which are in use even today, are presented and discussed. Overall, it seems that water-related problems of modern societies are not very different from those during antiquity.

The fossil turtles of Greece: An overview of taxonomy and distribution

Turtle remains are common in the Miocene-Holocene deposits of Greece, and are a key focus of the growing research interest in Neogene herpetofaunas from the Aegean region. Some of the most important finds include one of Europe's stratigraphically youngest pleurodiran taxa, Nostimochelone lampra, from the Early Miocene of Macedonia, together with arguably the richest record of fossil tortoises from the Eastern Mediterranean. This incorporates the presently oldest definitive representatives of the quintessential genus Testudo sensu stricto from the Late Miocene of Attica and Macedonia, and numerous specimens of the colossal (carapace ∼2 m-length) testudinid Cheirogaster from Late Miocene-Late Pliocene sediments in southern and northern Greece, as well as on the eastern Aegean islands of Samos and Lesvos. Tantalising, but as yet unconfirmed Miocene accounts of the geoemydid Mauremys in Macedonia, and indeterminate emydid-like remains from Euboea, also provide potentially significant range extensions. Although hampered by a historically sparse documentation, the fossil turtles of Greece are a significant resource that record both assemblage changes and the origin of modern lineages.

Active faulting in the north-eastern Aegean Sea Islands

Abstract The distribution of seismicity, faulting pattern and its effect on local geomorphology is examined for the islands of Lemnos, Aghios Efstratios, Lesvos, Chios, Samos and Ikaria of north-eastern Aegean Sea, Greece. The main active faults on each island are described in terms of their geometrical characteristics and geomorphology. Faults that comply with specific criteria (geological age, effect on relief, their geometrical relationship to the active stress field) have been characterized as active. We evaluated and reviewed published information, augmented with new field data for onshore faults, while the effects of faulting on the sea-floor and their probable association with recorded earthquakes were used to determine offshore faulting. The relation of active faulting to the stress pattern has been examined as well. It is shown that as the deformation changes gradually from transtensional in the north to extensional in the south, so does the active faulting pattern. The effect of the westernmost splays of the North Anatolian Fault Zone, the largest of which is the ~ 300 km long, North Aegean Trough, is profound due to their close vicinity, causing shearing in good agreement with the modeled principal displacement zone deformation pattern. Faulting in the area is controlled by the distance from the main dextral principal displacement zones: the northern part of the area is directly affected by the North Anatolian Fault Zone and its splays, while this effect gradually weakens in the central and southern areas. The geomorphology responds to this faulting, causing the formation of fault-parallel gulfs near Lesvos and Lemnos and fault-defined shorelines in the rest of the islands. Ikaria exhibits a notable fault-controlled tilted topography as the result of footwall uplift.

Comparative Analysis of Carrying Capacity Indices for the Central Aegean Islands

1. Introduction Greece depends heavily on the tourist trade, as tourism is the main economic activity in Greece. The issue for a long term viable development in the Greek islands, is to find a creative and hopeful perspective through the carrying capacity assessment indicators. Sustainable development and its quantification procedure with specialised measurement instrument, consist a vital element for the environmental condition of the Greek destinations; as the tourist product is a blend of ecological, social and economic sub-systems [4,5]. For that reason an adapted amount of sustainable indicators is selected and a comprehensible methodological guide for their use is created, aiming to reliable measurement of selected parameters that are considered to be important for our region. We believe that using this approach, the local societies and the stakeholders involved as well, are able to understand the size of impact on the existing and mainly not renewable resources, in order to proceed with strategic planning and terms of sustainability for their future developmental course. The natural environment is crucial to the attractiveness of almost all travel destinations and recreation areas [6]. Coastal and marine areas are also important recreation resources for local residents as the tourists who spend much time with marine activities [7]. Coastal zone management is emerging as a deep concern of governments [8]. Through this study and its results the researcher will try to determine the destination status in order to improve tourism and suggest a plan, that will help these islands to become more competitive as tourist destinations. Carrying capacity assessment has become an indispensable tool for formulating policy and strategies in the tourist industry worldwide [9]. Countries and regions with considerable natural and cultural resources look towards tourism when stimulating their sustainable development activities [10]. The contribution of tourism sector to development needs to be clearly explained to allow countries to invest into tourism. Tourism is considered as a development factor [11] as is probably the best example among human activities in which the linkages between environmental quality and economic prospects are evident [12]. Tourism is a part of a general strategy towards sustainability there is little agreement on, or evidence of, how to achieve this. 2. General Characteristics The Cyclades are located at the south part of the Aegean sea. The Cyclades comprise about 200 islands and the major ones are: Amorgos, Anafi, Andros, Antiparos, Delos, los, Kea, Kimolos, Kythnos, Melos, Myk onos, Naxos, Paros, Folegandros, Serifos, Sifnos, Sikinos, Syros, Tenos, and Thera or Santorini. Most of the smaller islands are uninhabited [13]. Ermoupolis, on Syros, is the capital town and administrative center of the former prefecture. The islands are peaks of a submerged mountainous terrain, with the exception of two volcanic islands, Milos and Santorini (Thera). The climate is generally dry and mild, but with the exception of Naxos the soil is not very fertile: agricultural production includes wine, fruit, wheat, olive oil, and tobacco. Cooler temperatures are found in higher altitudes and mainly do not receive wintry weather. Samos was a prefecture in Greece, consisting of the islands of Samos, Ikaria and the smaller islands of Fournoi Korseon. In 2011 the prefecture was modified and the territory is now covered by the regional units of Samos and Ikaria. Its capital was the town of Vathy, in Samos. Cycladic islands represent one of the most popular destinations in Greece which is highly dependent on tourism. The purpose of this study is to examine the image Cycladic and Samos region islands, by analysing the of the interactions between tourism and environment by examining environmental indices [14]. The population of Cyclades is mainly concentrated in Syros (19.870) Naxos (18.988), Thira (13.960), Paros (12. …

A Cassowary Casuarius casuarius (Linnaeus, 1758) Record from Alexandria, Egypt, in 20 B.C. (Aves, Ratitae, Casuaridae)

The reverse side of the Artemidorus Papyrus, which was latest created early in the first century A.D. in Alexandria, features 47 drawings of animals by the same illustrator. In most cases, the Greek name of the animal is given. According to an Aristotelian heading, the papyrus shows terrestrial quadrupeds, birds, fish and whales. The taxa vary: one jellyfish, one mantis shrimp, five fishes s. l., six reptiles s. l., eleven birds and seventeen mammals. The work fits into the Hellenistic tradition of realistic animal illustrations. The papyrus was obviously produced and used as a pattern book. All the animals depicted are from Africa or the Mediterranean, except for eleven which can be said with certainty to come from India and four others which occur in both Africa and Asia. The Indian animals were presented to Princeps Augustus (r. 31 B.C. - 14 A.D.) in the summer of 20 B.C. in Daphne, Antioch and in the winter of 20/19 B.C. on the island of Samos by a delegation sent by King Poros of India (ruler of 600 kings), a Gujarati monarch hoping to establish trade relations with the Roman Empire. The delegation made its way to Rome via Antioch where it split for Samos and Athens accompanying Augustus, and via Alexandria, where a number of its animals were recorded on the Artemidorus Papyrus. Some of the species portrayed are also attested to by Strabo fide Nikolaos of Damascus. Others of the same exotic origin to be depicted in Alexandria include the four-horned antelope and the cassowary examined below. The complexity of the animal depictions on the reverse of this papyrus and the numerous details pinning it to historical events are enough to put paid to the notion that the Artemidorus Papyrus is a forgery. An asiatic bird named cornica which is described in an apocryph Plinius edition cited by medieval authors, unmistakeably is a cassowary, probably the same specimen.

The Balkans and the colonization of Europe: the post‐glacial range expansion of the wild boar, Sus scrofa

AbstractAim We focus on the biogeographical role of the Balkan Peninsula as a glacial refugium and source of northward post‐glacial dispersal for many European taxa. Specifically, we analysed the genetic structure and variation of wild boar (Sus scrofa) samples primarily from Greece, a region that has repeatedly served as a glacial refugium within the Balkan Peninsula.Location Continental Greece, the Aegean island of Samos and Bulgaria.Methods We analysed wild boar samples from 18 localities. Samples from common domestic breeds were also examined to take into account interactions between wild and domesticated animals. Phylogenetic analyses were carried out on a 637‐bp fragment of the mitochondrial DNA control region in 200 wild boar and 27 domestic pigs. The sequences were also compared with 791 Eurasian wild boar and domestic pig D‐loop sequences obtained from GenBank.Results Ninety‐four haplotypes were identified in the European wild boar data set, of which 68 were found in the Balkan samples and assigned to two previously described clades: the E1 European and Near Eastern clades. All of the continental samples clustered in the E1 clade and the samples from Samos fell into the Near Eastern clade, consistent with the island’s proximity to Asia Minor. Intriguingly, 62 novel haplotypes were identified and are found exclusively in the Balkans. Only six haplotypes were shared between wild boar and domestic pigs.Main conclusions Our data reveal numerous novel and geographically restricted haplotypes in wild boar populations, suggesting the presence of separate refugia in the Balkans. Our analyses support the hypothesis of a post‐glacial wild boar expansion consistent with the leading edge model, north and west from modern day Greece, and suggest little maternal introgression of Near Eastern and domestic haplotypes into wild Balkan populations.

A Review of the GenusCrypticusLatreille, 1817 in Greece with Description of a New Species (Insecta: Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)

The Greek species belonging to the genus Crypticus Latreille, 1817 (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae: Diaperinae) are revised. Types of C. (Crypticus) thessalicus Reitter, 1896 are examined and a new species is described from the islands of Samos, Lesvos and Kos: C. (Platycrypticus) brusteli sp. nov. A key to species, photographs of habitus, geographical informations and a distribution map are bringing.

“Trouble Comes in Threes”

Pop becomes entangled in an ever growing web of problems. His wife, Herikula, nags him to accompany her and their two daughters to the island of Samos for a long visit with her parents, although he cannot find anyone one to manage his café in his absence. Later at the cafe, a robber threatens Pop’s life with a gun, which Herikula takes as omen from God that he should take his family to Samos before something else bad happens to him. After finally finding someone to manage his café Pop discovers while in Samos that the manager is embezzling the café’s funds. Pop must cut his visit short to Samos to resolve yet another problem that he looks at from his characteristically philosophical perspective.

Encountering Gods and Goddesses: Two Pilgrimages to Greece

Encountering Gods and Goddesses: Two Pilgrimages to Greece Jill Dubisch Prologue A hotel room on the island of Samos, Greece. Close to midnight, the hotel quiet around us. The room is lit only by the flickering light of a candle that burns on a makeshift altar against the wall. My fellow watcher and I sit quietly, keeping vigil over the white shrouded forms lying on their beds before us. Occasionally one of them turns or sighs, or emits a muffled snore. Otherwise, all is still. Yet the room is filled with presence—with energy, with the rituals we had performed, perhaps even with the spirit of the gods we had invoked. Through our own actions and intentions, we—the watchers, the sleepers, and the others with us on the journey who had participated in these activities—had created a space quite different from that of any of the other rooms around us in this Greek resort hotel. How had I come to be here? How had any of the people in this room, or those who would come later to relieve the watchers in their nightlong vigil, come to be here? For this vigil was a journey within a journey, the end of a long pilgrimage that had brought us to this point and that had prepared us, spiritually and psychologically, for this night, a night of healing, of revelation, of transformation. We were a mixed group. Sharing a common interest in healing, spirituality, and personal exploration, we ranged from myself (an anthropologist and college professor) to practitioners of healing arts to individuals in transition in their lives to those in search of healing from psychological and physical ills. Our journey itself contained journeys—spiritual journeys into the self through meditation rituals at ancient sites, journeys back in time as we enacted scenes from the Iliad at ancient Troy, journeys into our own personal pasts as participants spoke of their experiences with the Vietnam War and of childhood and adult traumas, journeys into the world of dreams, both for those who underwent the rituals of dream healing and those who also experienced vivid and meaningful dreams in the journey’s course. And journeys of transformations, both sought and unanticipated. Pilgrimage in the new age This particular trip to Greece, the first of several such journeys in which I have participated as part of my research into contemporary pilgrimage and spiritual beliefs1 can be seen as part of the broad and diffuse spiritual movement commonly known as “New Age.” The ritual framework of pilgrimage is particularly suited to New Age practice, as its flexibility accommodates not only the traditional forms of spirituality with which it is usually associated but also to the construction of new forms. In New Age pilgrimage it connects participants not only with different spiritual realms, rituals, and beliefs, but also with like‐minded individuals who reinforce and contribute to the messages of the journey and to New Age views of the world more generally. In addition, such pilgrimage can effect healing and other personal transformations. Despite their common participation in this ancient ritual practice, however, the experience of pilgrims who undertake such journeys varies not only with the religious tradition in which a particular pilgrimage is embedded but also with such factors as ethnicity, gender, and class of the pilgrims, and this is true of New Age pilgrimage as well. Moreover, as many of the latter are organized and led by individuals with a particular vision of the shape and goals of the journey, such pilgrimage also varies according to the vision of the leader of a group. There are those who would object to the label “New Age” being applied to what they do—including a number of those on the journeys I discuss here. (Some would prefer “contemporary spirituality” or “the new spiritual movement.”) There are several reasons for the aversion to the term: the association of “New Age” with “fringy” or questionable practices such as channeling or belief in unidentified flying objects, the eclectic and often uncritical and naïve practice of drawing from any and all spiritual traditions and beliefs, and the commercialization of New Age. Yet a number of scholars have...