Dokos () is a small

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

of the Argo-Saronic Gulf, adjacent to Hydra, and separated from the

Peloponnese The Peloponnese ( ), Peloponnesus ( ; , ) or Morea (; ) is a peninsula and geographic region in Southern Greece, and the southernmost region of the Balkans. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmus of Corinth land bridg ...

by a narrow strait called, on some maps, "the Hydra Gulf." It is part of the municipality of Ýdra (Hydra) in Islands regional unit and reported a population of 18 persons at the 2011 census. The island is populated only by some Orthodox

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

s and perennial

sheep Sheep (: sheep) or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are a domesticated, ruminant mammal typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to d ...

herders. The island is rocky, reaching a height of . During ancient times it was called Aperopia (Ἀπεροπία).

Archaeology

It has, since the ancient years, considered to be a strategic location. On the east side lie the ruins of a great

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

- Venetian Castle. During the Middle Ages, the island served as a refuge for Albanian settlers' animals. Dokos, according to archaeological studies, has been inhabited since the early Bronze Age. In 1975, Peter Throckmorton discovered a wreck near Dokos that has been dated to about 2150 BC, and may be the oldest shipwreck known.Hellenic Institute of Marine Archaeology (HIMA)

Historical population

References

External links

Official website of Municipality of Hydra
(in Greek)
Hellenic Institute Of Marine Archaeology
Islands of Greece Saronic Islands Landforms of Islands (regional unit) Islands of Attica {{Attica-geo-stub