
Lesvos (Mytilini)
The beautiful island of Lesvos (Mytilini or Mytilene) is characterized by its mild Mediterranean climate, charming traditional villages, notable examples of 19th century industrial architecture (mills, soap factories, tanneries) that impress all visitors.
Lesbos, is also known for the fossilized forest that covers the Sigri-Eressos-Antissa area. This protected natural monument since 1985 it is a forest ecosystem that fossilized 15-20 million years ago, due to intense volcanic activity in the area that included coniferous forests, and especially huge redwoods and pine trees. It is one of the rarest natural monuments in the world (the only ecosystem similar today is the coniferous forests in Arizona in northern America), visited by thousands of tourists. The Petrified Forest was declared a Natural Monument and a member of the Global Geopark Network. In the forest you can see hundreds of green, yellow and black trunks of conifers and other fallen or standing with giant root systems intact. Here is the thickest trunk in the world (circumference 13.7m) and the highest in Europe (7.02m).
It is the third largest island of Greece, after Crete and Euboea, with an area of 1,630 km and a coastline of 370 km. It has 90,000 inhabitants. It is famous for two products, ouzo and olive oil.
It took its name from the mythical hero Lesbos who came here with Lapithes of Thessaly and married Mythimna. During prehistoric times it was a very important cultural center of the North Aegean and it flourished economically and commercially during the archaic times, (centuries XVII and XVI AC.)
It is the homeland of the famous ancient poets Sapfo and Alkaios.
During the Greek War of Independence in 1821, many of the island’s residents were fighters and members of Filiki Etairia. Lesbos was liberated in 1912 by the Treaty of Lausanne. Many refugees from the coast of Asia Minor settled on the island after the Asia Minor catastrophe (1922), and the population exchange agreement.
Lesbos’s contribution to the arts and literature has been invaluable. Eminent personalities such as Arion, Terpandos, Theophrastus, Pittakos Mytilineos, Theophilus, Il. Venezis, Str. Myrivilis, Arg. Eftaliotis (Kleanthis Michailidis), G. Iakovidis and the plastic artist Str. Elefteriadis were born here.