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Modern Description: Mount Oros, known as Panhellenion to the ancients, dominates the scene from behind. The barren, rocky mountain (531m) has a pure shape which was a conspicuous landmark for mariners in the Saronic Gulf. The gathering of clouds on its peak is said to be a sure sign of rain, a phenomenon noted in Antiquity. Legend also relates how Aiacus, the mythical early king of Aegina, successfully interceded with Zeus, on the advice of the Delphic Oracle, to bring rain to end a drought which had afflicted the island for many years. The summit is reached in 50 minutes by a path from the saddle on the western side of the mountain. At several points and levels just beneath the summit, to west and to east, there are outcrops of ancient wall, which belong to a Mycenaean sanctuary of the 13th century BC. To the north of the chapel (dedicated to the Analipsi, or Ascension) on the peak is evidence of a podium (possibly for a temple or shrine) of later construction. The summit commands splendid *views over the whole of the island, which from here appears to be in the midst of a vast lake encircled by an almost continuous coast-line, formed by Attica, the Peloponnese and the islands of the northern Cyclades.
Wikidata ID: Q2031433
Trismegistos Geo: 60761

Info: McGilchrist's Greek Islands

(From McGilchrist’s Greek Islands, © Nigel McGilchrist 2010, excerpted with his gracious permission. Click for the books)

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