Rock of Icarus

On Ikaria’s eastern side, near today’s spa town of Therma, lie the ruins of the spa city of Thermae, famed in antiquity for the therapeutic properties of its springs. Surviving are sections of bathing facilities from Helleno‑Roman times, traces of the ancient aqueduct and scattered pottery fragments that bear witness to the area’s heyday during the Classical and Hellenistic period. During those periods Thermae flourished thanks to the exploitation of the hot waters; in later centuries a large part of the city sank due to powerful earthquakes, causing ground subsidence. Today, parts of the ancient spa city lie underwater and divers have located building remains, with the roofs of some still visible from the surface. The presence of thermal springs kept Thermae’s fame alive, linking the place to wellness and therapy to this day.