Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Brief history
Inhabited from the earliest times, ancient
Aegina
was a significant regional power as
early as the Bronze Age. It traded to the limits of the known world, maintained a
sophisticated silver coinage system (the first in Greece) and fostered prominent athletes
and craftsmen. The Aeginian fleet played a major role in the Battle of Salamis (see
p.329). After this, however, the islanders made the political mistake of siding with the
Spartans, giving Athens a pretext to act on long-standing jealousy; her fleets defeated
those of the islanders in two separate sea battles and, after the second, the population
was expelled and replaced by more tractable colonists.
Subsequent history was less distinguished, with a familiar pattern of occupation - by
Romans, Franks, Venetians, Catalans and Ottomans - before the War of Independence
brought a brief period of glory as seat of government for the fledgling Greek nation,
from 1826 to 1828. For many decades afterwards Égina was a penal island, and you
can still see the
enormous jail
undergoing restoration on the edge of town; the building
was originally an
orphanage
for victims of the independence struggle, founded by first
president Kapodhístrias in 1828.
5
Égina Town
ÉGINA TOWN
, the island's capital, makes an attractive base, with some grand old
buildings around a large, busy harbour. The Neoclassical architecture is matched by a
sophisticated ethos: by island standards this is a large town, with plenty of shopping
and no shortage of tempting places to eat and drink. Life revolves around the
waterfront
, where ferries come and go, yachts moor, fishermen tend their nets and
kaïkia
tie up to sell produce from the mainland.
The Markellos Tower
he restored
Pýrgos Markéllou
, or Markellos Tower, is an extraordinary miniature castle
which was the seat of the first Greek government after independence. Despite appearances,
it was built only around 1800 by members of the Friendly Society (see p.776) and the
local politician Spýros Márkellos. You can't go inside except during the occasional special
exhibition, but walking here, through the cramped inland streets, is enjoyable in itself.
Folklore Museum
Spýrou Ródhi 16 • Wed & Thurs 8.30am-2.30pm, Fri 8.30am-2.30pm & 4.30-7.30pm, Sat 10am-1pm & 4.30-7.30pm, Sun10am-1pm • Free
Égina's
Folklore Museum
is a lovely example of its type, housed in a nineteenth-century
mansion. Its upper rooms are packed with fine old furniture, traditional costumes, and
many of the trappings of island life a century ago, along with a small local historical
archive. Downstairs are rooms devoted to fishing, with model boats and fishing gear,
and to agricultural life, with a collection of the basics of village life.
Ancient Aegina
Daily 8.30am-3pm, museum closed Mon • €3
he site of
Ancient Aegina
lies north of the centre on a promontory known as
Kolóna
,
after the lone column that stands there. The extensive remains, centring on a Temple of
Apollo at the highest point, are well signed, and some reconstruction makes it easier to
make out the various layers of settlement from different eras. Near the entrance, a small
but worthwhile
archeological museum
houses finds from the site, along with
information on the island's ancient history. Highlights of the display include a room of
Minoan-influenced Middle Bronze Age pottery, rescued from a nearby building site.
The beaches
On the north edge of town, between the port and Kolóna, there's a tiny but
popular
beach
with remarkably shallow water. This was the site of the ancient city's
