Greece Trip #17: Milos Island's Ancient Amphitheater & Bad Behavior

 In today's blog, we'll take you to the ruins of an ancient Roman amphitheater on the Greek island of Milos and show what remains. Then we'll tell you about some bad behavior there (and not by ghosts).

 (Photo: All that's left of the stage of the amphitheater. Credit: TW)

There was a diagram that sketched out what the theatre looked like when it was built. There was a large stage with multiple columns on the stage, but today all that remain are the remnants of 4 columns. 

WHAT IS THE ANCIENT THEATRE ON MILOS? This amphitheater is located on a rocky slope, close by the famous catacombs that we highlighted in yesterday's blog. 

(Photo: The entire Amphitheater from a distance with the harbor of Klima in the background. Credit: TW)

WHEN WAS IT BUILT? - The Romans built during the Hellenistic period. The three centuries of Greek history between the death of the Macedonian king Alexander the Great in 323 B.C.E. and the rise of Augustus in Rome in 31 B.C.E. are collectively known as the Hellenistic period

HOW MANY PEOPLE DID IT HOLD? The Milos Amphitheater held as many as 7,000 people during performances, however, in its present condition, it can only fit around 700.

(Photo below: the front part of the stage area. Credit: TW)

WHAT IS THE CONDITION OF IT? It was destroyed during Roman times and rebuilt out of marble. Most of it is actually ruined and is not in the initial shape as it was hundreds of years ago. The ancient theater of Milos used to organize theater festivals.

WHAT ARE SOME HIGHLIGHTS? - Along with a stage and a few ornamental monuments, seven rows and five stairwells of marble have been carefully restored.

IS IT USED TODAY? - Yes, there are some cultural events.

WHERE IS IT LOCATED? The theatre is located close to the village of Tripiti, 5 kilometers from Adamas and 2 kilometers from Plaka. It is above the harbor of Klima. Klima is a famous village that is known for its bright colors. We'll explore the village in a later blog.

WATCH FOR A SIGN - On the way to the amphitheater, keep an eye out of the signpost showing where the “Aphrodite of Milos” statue was found. Also known as “Venus of Milos,” the famous statue now resides at the Louvre Museum in Paris. It was discovered near the Ancient Theater in 1820, and it's also believed to be from the Hellenistic period. The statue depicts the Greek goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite.

BAD BEHAVIOR - Previous blogs have noted some of the poor behavior of some of the grown men in our travel group and this site brought no exception sadly. When we were walking around the amphitheater, some of the guys in our group decided to stand in the middle of it, and mock the Greek actors, and sing in an off-key. After we left the  Amphitheatre, we met a woman at the Venus de Milo grotto who asked if we were part of the group. Reluctantly we said yes, but were embarrassed by them. She said they were insulting the Greek people and should be ashamed. She was glad at least we had an interest in history and respected the culture.

NEXT: THE DISCOVERY SITE OF THE VENUS DE MILO!