10 Amazing Facts About Akrotiri, the Bronze Age City Wiped Out by a Volcano

Nearly 4000 years ago, and 1500 years before Pompeii was buried by volcanic ash, the Bronze Age city of Akrotiri was destroyed by one of the most powerful volcanic eruptions in history. The discovery of the buried city on the modern-day Greek island of Santorini in the 1860s revealed the surprising sophistication of the city’s ancient civilization—but it also raised a number of surprising questions. Chief among them: Why have no human remains ever been found in the ruins? Let’s find out.

1. The Minoan eruption was the second largest volcanic eruption in history.
2. Akrotiri was buried under 60 meters of pumice.
3. Thera may have inspired the tale of Atlantis.
4. Workers building the Suez Canal discovered the buried city.
5. The excavation of Akrotiri revealed an advanced trading civilization.
6. There is some debate over whether Akrotiri was truly Minoan.
7. No human remains were ever discovered in Akrotiri’s ruins.
8. One victim of the Thera eruption has been found—but not in Akrotiri.
9. You can walk the streets of Akrotiri today.
10. Santorini is still volcanically active. 

The Minoan eruption was the second largest volcanic eruption in history.

In Bronze Age Greece, around 1645 BCE, a series of earthquakes triggered one of the most powerful volcanic blasts in recorded history now known as the Minoan eruption. The long dormant Thera volcano, in the Aegean Sea about 70 miles from Crete, burst into action and spewed tons of ash and pumice across the Mediterranean, causing much of the island to collapse and sending tsunamis in multiple directions. To give an idea of the vast scale of the eruption, the explosion formed a massive crater some 32 square miles in area. 

(The largest eruption in recorded history was the explosion of Mount Tambora in Indonesia 1815, which caused worldwide changes in climate patterns and contributed to Europe’s “year without a summer” in 1816.)

Akrotiri was buried under 60 meters of pumice.

The eruption devasted the island of Thera (now Santorini), formed from a half-sunken portion of the volcano’s caldera, and blanketed Akrotiri, a major city and an important stop on Mediterranean trade routes, in a thick layer of pumice. The disaster extinguished all life on the island and preserved the metropolis as if frozen in time. Evidence from the excavated city suggests that the region had been impacted by numerous earthquakes in the years before the volcano erupted, with many buildings clearly having been repaired in the years leading up to the blast. Some archaeologists believe this geological instability points to the town being partly abandoned by the time it was buried in ash.

Thera may have inspired the tale of Atlantis.

After the earthquakes and volcanic eruption, the island of Thera was left devastated. These dramatic events seem to match the basis for the legend of Atlantis. Plato first wrote about the mythical island and how the advanced society who lived there angered the gods, causing the entire island to sink into the ocean. Most historians agree that Plato was using allegory to warn against moral decline, but some investigators have actively sought to find the lost civilization, believing that the circular shape of Santorini and the destruction of the impressive settlement at Akrotiri could reflect the supposed fate of Atlantis. No conclusive evidence has been found, however, and several other sites have also been put forward as potential contenders. The most compelling evidence that Santorini is not Atlantis is Plato’s statement that the mythical land was located beyond Europe in the Atlantic Ocean.

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Workers building the Suez Canal discovered the buried city.

In 1867, as builders excavated volcanic soil from Santorini to be used for the construction of the Suez Canal in Egypt, they discovered a number of significant antiquities. However, another century passed before proper excavations could begin. Greek archaeologist Spyridon Marinatos led the dig and hoped to prove or disprove the idea that the Minoan civilization on nearby Crete had collapsed as a result of the eruption of Thera. 

He soon lost interest in that theory because, when he opened up the first test trenches, he was amazed to find perfectly preserved Bronze Age buildings standing two and three stories tall. Many were richly decorated with frescoes. Marinatos soon realized he had a much greater discovery on his hands than he expected.

The excavation of Akrotiri revealed an advanced trading civilization.

Archaeologists found fragments of pottery that suggested Akrotiri was first settled in the Neolithic period (in the 5th millennium BCE) and, by the time it was buried by the volcano during the Bronze Age, it had developed into a highly advanced maritime city. Huge storerooms within the city indicate Akrotiri functioned as an important trading post between mainland Greece, Crete, and the eastern Mediterranean. Goods such as olive oil, metals, and pottery were traded across the region in a network that also spread culture and ideas.

The architecture was also impressive: paved streets, two- and three-story structures, a sewer system, and well laid-out buildings with public squares in which people could gather showed the sophistication of the urban planners. In comparison, during this same period in Great Britain, most people lived in timber- and mud-framed single-story roundhouses, the roads were unpaved, and England did not get a working sewage system until the Romans arrived in 43 CE.

There is some debate over whether Akrotiri was truly Minoan.

From around 3000 BCE to 1100 BCE, the Minoan civilization flourished on Crete. The advanced culture is named after the (likely) mythical King Minos, who was said to have built the incredible palace at Knossos and its underground labyrinth inhabited by the legendary Minotaur. The Minoan civilization is remarkable as Europe’s first example of an advanced society, and archaeologists have uncovered a rich culture with beautiful art, palaces, and sophisticated writings all centered in Crete. The civilization declined in the decades after the eruption of Thera, which has led to some speculation that the disaster hastened its end.

Minoan influence spread though the civilization’s abundant trade in the region—but archaeologists debate whether Akrotiri, some 70 miles distant, can be classified as Minoan. Excavations at Akrotiri have revealed a cosmopolitan city that made use of similar architectural devices as those found on Crete, such as light wells to improve illumination in dark interiors and wooden columns to hold up the upper stories of buildings. The artwork and frescoes also show strong similarities to examples found in Knossos on Crete. Yet there is also evidence of influence from other near neighbors, such as the Cyclades, especially in the geometric patterns found on pottery. Ultimately, Akrotiri’s position allowed it to benefit from close links to other advanced cultures, allowing the city to develop into a unique and thriving cultural hub.

No human remains were ever discovered in Akrotiri’s ruins.

One of the most startling things about the excavation of the city of Akrotiri is that—unlike at Pompeii—not a single body has been found, despite extensive archaeological work at the site. Several theories have emerged to explain the mystery. 

Historians have posited that the multiple earthquakes prior to the volcanic eruption compelled residents to abandon the city, but the evidence of ongoing repairs to Akrotiri’s buildings seems to refute that idea and suggests people returned after the earthquakes. Another theory is that the earthquakes provided residents with enough warning that an eruption was coming, allowing them to evacuate. Some archaeologists believe that future excavation of the old port might finally solve the mystery because they would, theoretically, discover the bodies of those who died in tsunamis as they waited to escape Akrotiri by ship. 

One victim of the Thera eruption has been found—but not in Akrotiri.

There may be some evidence to back up the tsunami theory. Archaeologists believe that the disaster caused at least four tsunamis that washed layers of volcanic ash over the Turkish coast. At recent excavations in Çeşme-Bağlararası in Turkey, scientists from the University of Ankara worked through the debris from one of the ancient tsunamis and were amazed to discover the first known human victim of the eruption, located in a layer of ash beneath several pits believed to have been dug by those rescuing survivors. The skeleton’s position below the pits means that, sadly, the person had not been pulled alive from the ash.

You can walk the streets of Akrotiri today.

The archaeological site allows visitors to walk the ancient streets and view buildings and artifacts from the Bronze Age city. Many of the beautiful frescoes and most important artworks, however, have been removed to museums, such as the the Archaeological Museum of Thera in Fira, Santorini’s capital, and the National Archaeology Museum in Athens. The frescoes reveal incredible details of daily life in ancient Greece, like depictions of two young men boxing and a fisherman holding a bunch of fish he has just caught, that give modern visitors a connection to this long-gone civilization.

Santorini is still volcanically active. 

In the space of just a couple of weeks in January and February 2025, Santorini saw 1200 earthquakes ranging in magnitude from 1.0 to 5.2. Volcanologists monitoring the area have noted that there appears to be a huge reservoir of magma underneath Santorini and the nearby sunken volcano of Kolumbo, which moves between the two as seismic activity occurs. Like the ancient people of Akrotiri, many modern residents of Santorini opted to evacuate as the earthquakes increased in frequency. The volcano did not erupt—this time— and people were able to return to their homes.