Koukonisi is an islet in the harbor at Moudros, which is in the center of the Greek island of Lemnos. The islet is about 500 meters log and 300 meters wide and is currently joined with to the rest of Lemnos by way of a 300-meter-long causeway through marshy terrain. The harbor is probably most famous today as the place where the Armistice of Moudros was signed in 1918 aboard the HMS Agamemnon, ending hostilities between Britain and the Ottoman Empire two weeks before the Treaty of Versailles officially ended the First World War. But the legacy of this area actually goes back into prehistory.
Taking advantage of the natural protection offered by the harbor as well as by the islet itself, and also taking advantage of the strategic location of Lemnos as a well-placed stopover point in the north Aegean, a settlement flourished there throughout the Bronze Age — all the way from its beginnings at the end of the fourth millennium BCE up until the famous widespread collapse of Bronze Age civilizations in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean in the 12th century BCE. In its early phases, the site was contemporaneous with the prehistoric town at Poliochni, about 7 km to the southeast. But unlike Poliochni, Koukonisi seems to have flourished in the Late Bronze Age, with evidence of the presence of both Minoans and Mycenaeans during that period.
The prehistoric heritage of Koukonisi was first discovered in 1992, and some archaeological excavations were conducted during that decade. The most visible trace of those excavations can be found in the fenced-in pits covered by metal sheets at the highest point in the northeastern part of the islet. Even there, there isn’t much to see.
Tips for the Visitor
The island is located a 1-km walk north of the town of Moudros, which can be reached with a 10-km drive or taxi ride from the airport, or an hour-long ride on one of the infrequent buses from the main town of Myrina (where the ferries dock).
There are no paths on the island, and it is covered in wheat fields as well as fields of tall wild grass and weeds. As such, it’s not really worthwhile to trek through the weeds to see the very limited traces of the excavated area.
Location Map