Editing Milos (section)

===The Bronze Age===
The first settlement at [[Phylakopi]] ([[Greek language|Greek]] Φυλακωπή) arose in the [[Bronze Age]], flourishing as the extraction of obsidian was in the decline. The first settlers were [[tuna]] fishermen.<ref name=abulafia/> Lying on the north-east coast, 1896 excavations by the [[British School at Athens]] and later in 1973 by the British archaeologist [[Colin Renfrew]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://snaccooperative.org/ark:/99166/w6kp93vv|title=Renfrew, Colin|access-date=2023-09-13}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.in2greece.com/english/places/summer/islands/milos/archaeological-site-of-phylakopi.html|title=Archaeological Site of Phylakopi|access-date=2023-09-13}}</ref> revealed a town wall and a [[Minoan civilization|Minoan]]-inspired structure, dubbed the Pillar room, which contained fragments of vivid wall paintings. The famous fresco of the flying fish<ref name=fish>[http://www.ou.edu/finearts/art/ahi4913/aegeanhtml/cyptg.html Flying fish] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151022133000/http://www.ou.edu/finearts/art/ahi4913/aegeanhtml/cyptg.html |date=2015-10-22 }}</ref> was found in the ruins of the Pillar room and was executed with delicate colouring and graphic observation of nature in the graceful movement of a fish. Stylistic similarities to Minoan [[fresco]]es are suggested, and it could perhaps have been the work of a Cretan artist.<ref>CAH pg. 448</ref> Part of the site has been washed away by the sea.

The antiquities found at the site covered three major periods, from the Early [[Cycladic culture|Cycladic period]] to the [[Mycenaean Greece|Mycenaean period]]. At the site much pottery was excavated, with several changing styles and influences over the site's long occupation. In the early occupation of the site, there are many similarities and imports from other Cycladic islands and the settlement was very small. During the [[Middle Bronze Age]] however, the site expanded significantly and the expansion of Minoan Crete saw an influx of Minoan pottery into the Cyclades, particularly at [[Akrotiri (prehistoric city)|Akrotiri]] on [[Thera]], though much found its way to Phylakopi. The quantities found at the Cycladic sites have been taken to suggest a Minoan control over the region, though it could also be the consumptive nature of the islanders adopting Cretan fashions. There is more than just pottery at Phylakopi however, the eruption of the Thera volcano saw a reduction in Minoan presence in the Cyclades and it is at this time that Mycenaean involvement on the islands increases. At Phylakopi (and unknown in the rest of the Cyclades) a [[megaron]] structure, which is typically associated with the Mycenaean palaces, such as those at [[Tiryns]], [[Pylos]] and [[Mycenae]] has been discovered. This has been taken to suggest that the Mycenaeans conquered the settlement and installed a seat of power for a governor. The evidence is not clear, though again it could be a legacy of the islanders adopting foreign elements into their culture. Particularly unexpected was the discovery in the 1970s of a shrine at the site, which contained many examples of [[Aegean Islands|Aegean]] figurines, including the famous "Lady of Phylakopi". The shrine is unprecedented in the Bronze Age Cyclades and has provided a valuable insight into the beliefs and rituals of the inhabitants of Phylakopi. The site was eventually abandoned and was never reoccupied.