Kalymnos is known as the center of the Greek sponge diving industry, which dates back to antiquity. The sponge and its usage is mentioned in Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey.
The sponge diving industry contributed immensely to the economic and social development of the island a few decades ago. The warm waters of the southeastern Mediterranean provide the best conditions for the growth of fine-quality sponge.
The early divers dove into the sea naked, carrying a flat stone weighing about 15 kilograms, in order to sink to the seafloor quickly. The mates of the divers in the boat would have spotted the presence of sponges on the seafloor with the help of a glass-bottomed cylindrical sight-glass. The divers would go up to 30 meters deep and stay there three to five minutes gathering the sponges in a net.
The very rewarding business in sponges got a boost after 1865 with the introduction of the compressor diving suit. The green machine to the left is a manually driven air compressor, connected to the dive suit via a long hose. The new technology enabled the divers to go to 70 meters deep and to stay down longer.
Gone were the days of the small boats in which the naked divers of Kalymnos ventured out to the sea. Now it was time for larger boats and large fleets to mine for sponges on a large scale.
According to Faith Warn, a British journalist and former resident of Kalymnos, the vast sponge diving fleet included 300 ships with 6 to 15 divers for each ship. The ships were launched from Kalymnos, often staying at sea for as long as six months and visiting places as far away as Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Libya, and Tunisia.
Compressor diving brought serious risk to the divers since Nitrogen saturation and Oxygen poisoning were not understood at the time. The diagnosis on board was simple; if the diver could smoke a cigarette after surfacing without getting sick he was considered OK. If he got sick he had to go back overboard and stay at a “recovery depth” for some more time.
Many divers got paralysed or even died of decompression sickness. According to Warn, the new diving method caused the death of around 10,000 divers between 1886 and 1910; another 20,000 divers were permanently disabled that same period.
Every household on the island had at least one family member who had either died or been paralysed. Therefore the spouses of the divers would be dressed in black during the time their husbands were out at sea.
If any crewmember had died during the six months at sea the returning vessel would fly a black flag in the mast. The body of the deceased would be left behind at sea. The (now) widow would be handed over his personal possessions and his wages.
However the rewards outweighed the risks. Commerce flourished and merchants made immense fortunes. The common people also benefited as free healthcare and education were made available to everyone.
Our Norwegian friends Laila and Astor docked in Pothia a few days later and we decided to rent a car to explore the island together.
Back in Pothia we drove up the mountain towards the Cross of Kalymnos where the Monastery of St. Peter, the Church of All Saints and the Monastery of St. Savvas is located. The latter is inhabited.
The next day we would hike to the Chapel of the Prophet Ilias on top of Kalymnos highest (676m) mountain. The trail starts in Chorio at the foot of the Castle of Chora (ancient Pothia).
The air on the trail was perfumed with the scents of the Mediterranean herbs of sage, thyme and oregano. There were a lot of fat juicy crickets on the trail as well. Surprisingly we only saw one lizard.
Homer states in the Iliad that Kalymnos, Kos, Nissyros, Kassos and Karpathos took part in the expedition against Troy with thirty warships.
Early fortifications were build by the Byzantines in the 11th century. The main reason was the raids of the islands by Tzachas, the Seljuk Türkish emir of Smyrna (present day Izmir) who rebelled against the Byzantines. The incursions led to the abandonment of the coastal areas and the inhabitants moved behind the ever expanding walls of the 5 forts on the island of which this one was by far the biggest.
In 1310 the island came under control of the Knights Hospitaler who further fortified the city in defence against the Ottoman Turks who eventually conquered it in 1522. Unlike Rhodes and Kos, during the Ottoman period (1522 – 1912), there was no Turkish immigration to Kalymnos.
The threat of piracy gradually eased after 1850 and the population slowly abandoned the city and moved back to the valley and built present day Pothia..
The Castle is marketed as one of the most famous attractions of Kalymnos, but…..is it?
The site was renovated starting Jan 1999 and completed in May 2001 funded by the EU at 1.115.053 euros. What a waste of money that was! Non of the improvements implemented at the time were in working order or still standing.
The visitor reception complex, including a café with court yard, a shop and exhibition rooms were dangerous to enter since the roofs were rotten and had partly collapsed. Restrooms had no water nor electricity. In fact, not a single copper wire could be found in the complex. Signboard with the obvious intend to explain what te pile of rubble in front of you was supposed to be, were either missing or not legible.
The only structures that are maintained are the 10 churches on the site. Volunteers, dedicated to their religion spend money, time and effort to keep the buildings in a respectable condition.
This photo of Vlichadia beach concludes our visit to Kalymnos. We would leave for Leros soon hereafter.
Thank you for reading our stories. Love Liza and Frits.
Thanks again Frits and Liza for a new s tory again with beautiful pictures.
Greets
Loek
Thank you Loek.