The Saronic Gulf occupies a central place in Greek maritime history, in part because of favorable sailing conditions and a strategic geographical situation (Fig. 7.1). It is partially enclosed by the land masses of the Argolid, the Corinthia, and Attica; as a consequence, winds, waves, and currents are moderate compared with more open areas of the Aegean Sea (Heikell 2002: 17, 29; Soukissian et al. 2002). The winds are reasonably consistent, especially in the summer months. The meltemi blows from the north to northeast, beginning fitfully in July and increasing to full strength in August to early September before diminishing thereafter. It generally blows in the Beaufort 3—5 range (gentle breeze to fresh breeze), though in peak season it reaches 5—6 (fresh breeze to strong breeze) and occasionally higher. Winter winds are less consistent and winds up to gale force are more frequent, though hardly common. Waves are rarely significant enough to be damaging to coastal areas or dangerous to maritime traffic, and there is a minimal effect from the currents of the Black Sea Waters, mainly in the form of some strong anticyclonic eddies at the mouth of the Gulf (Olson et al. 2007). These currents, combined with meltemi winds, can make for a bumpy ride departing the Saronic for the Cyclades (Heikell 2002: 29, 52). Isolated storms with associated squalls may arise at any time of year, though they are not common in the warmer months and they seldom last for more than an hour or two. The Saronic has relatively few dangerous reefs and rocks, excepting those quite close to shore and those in the narrows between small islands or between
7.1 Map of the Saronic Gulf region with important Bronze Age sites indicated. Pullen and Tartaron 2007: 147, fig. 14.1. Courtesy of the Cotsen Institute Press.
Islands and offshore islets. While these mean characteristics establish the Saronic as an inviting maritime environment, there are local variations and exceptions to each. To give two examples: hazardous shoal waters extend southwest from the harbor at Aigina town (ancient Kolonna) through the islet of Metopi to Angistri; and strong westerly to northwesterly winds can blow from the Gulf of Corinth to produce severe gusts along the western side of the Saronic south to Epidauros (Heikell 2002: 61, 74—75). Further, each anchorage has unique characteristics that vary during the course of the year; the reader is referred to the discussion of Kapsali Bay, Kythera in Chapter 4 For an account of typical Aegean variability.
Sea travel in the Saronic is enhanced by large and small islands and moderate distances throughout. No trip within the Gulf approaches the 100-kilometer daily range proposed in the previous chapter for Bronze Age sailing under normal conditions. Even paddled longboats of the EBA could complete virtually any one-way trip in a single day given the 40-kilometer range proposed by Broodbank (2000: 287—289), and many round trips were possible in a day or less (Fig. 7.2). There are many islands of all sizes in the Saronic, even if we discount the tiny rocks that could not accommodate even a small boat. There are two particularly large islands, Aigina and Salamis, and in this category we might also count the presqu'isle of Methana, attached by the narrowest of necks to the Peloponnesian mainland but behaving in most respects as an island. Just a bit smaller is the island of Poros, in this case separated from the mainland only
7.2 Comparative ranges of transportation modes in the Saronic Gulf region. Pullen and Tartaron 2007: 154, fig. 14.4. Courtesy of the Cotsen Institute Press.
By a narrow channel several kilometers south of Methana. Angistri to the west of Aigina is somewhat smaller than Poros, but after this there is a drop-off to very small and tiny islands with far fewer usable anchorages. Nevertheless, for the reasonably experienced sailor there is shelter and good anchorage within reach throughout the Gulf.1
The Saronic Gulf is a crossroads by sea and land. By sea, it is the entrance from the open Aegean to the land masses of western Attica and the northeastern Peloponnese. From the Cyclades, the Saronic is the sea passage to the Isthmus of Corinth, and by crossing that narrow neck of land, to the Corinthian Gulf and the West. The presence of Aiginetan pottery at coastal sites on the Corinthian Gulf in the MBA suggests that the Isthmus was already used for that purpose. The Isthmus was also the land connection from southern to central Greece. At various times in history, states centered at Aigina, Corinth, Athens, and Nauplion laid claim to control of the Saronic as a fundamental basis of their economic and political power.
World History
