he first walk which one should describe in Naxos is what has become a traditional stroll at the Palatia or Portara or the Baths of Ariadne: that is, on the islet in front of the harbour which you spot as soon as you arrive in Naxos, as the huge marble gate, the Portara, captures your eye. In the 3rd millenium BC there was a settlement near the islet and it is conjectured that the Palatia was the acropolis of this Cycladic village.

What we can see today are the foundations and the huge portal of the "hundred- foot" temple which begun around 530 BC by Lygdamis, tyrant of Naxos, but never completed.

he Portara was built with four single blocks of marble, each of a length of over 6 metres and weighing 20 tons. Winches and scaffolding were used to put them in place. The threshold of the portal is higher than the floor of the temple, a pheonomenon who occurs elsewhere only in the case of the temple of "Twin" Apollo at Miletus. The temple was planned to be rectangular with pillars on the two short sides.

The Portara exactly faces Delos and this is seen as a reference to Apollo, the temple being indentified as the Delion ( temple of Delian Apollo), although some scholars associate it with Dionysus. Apart from its historical and archaeological significance, the islet of Palatia is unique in the Aegean as a spot from which to enjoy the sunset and gaze at Paros and, when the horizon is clear, Delos, Mykonos and Syros.

Photos and text taken from "Naxos - Today and yesterday" (Toubis Editions)

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