ABSTRACT
For much of the Byzantine, Venetian and Ottoman periods, the Aegean Islands were historic backwater. This changed in the 18th and 19th centuries when more travellers were visiting the islands to explore the archaeological and mythological roots of the Classical Greek civilisation. Prominent visitors were Wheler, Spon, Tournefort, Murray and Bent. From the 19th century onwards, the Greek islands became ever more popular holiday destinations for northern Europeans. Archaeological investigations began in earnest in the 19th century. Fouqué explored Thera and discovered Akrotiri. Tsountas excavated many Cycladic cemeteries, and foreign schools played a major role in excavating iconic sites, such as Phylakopi on Melos, Ayia Irini on Kea, Heraion on Samos, Seraglio on Kos and Ialysos on Rhodes. From the 1970s onwards, field surveys became popular. Both absolute and relative chronologies are in use. Looting of cemeteries and the creation of forgeries has been a major issue affecting in particular Cycladic marble figurines currently in international museums – most of which do not have a secure provenance.
