The Aegean archipelago
The Aegean is at the convergence of three tectonic plates (Anatolian,
African and Eurasian) and has therefore developed major faults systems,
resulting in the formation of the South Aegean Volcanic Arc (Higgins
2009). However, even though plate tectonics have strongly shaped the
paleo-evolution of the Aegean archipelago, its recent history has been
mainly affected by the Pleistocene climatic fluctuations (Sakellariou
and Galanidou, 2016). Compared to the magnitude of the geographical
changes caused by the sea-level oscillations during the last 150 Ka BP,
the importance of the tectonic changes occurring at the same time scale
is mostly negligible (Simaiakis et al. 2017). During the LGM (26.5 – 19
ka BP), the global sea level was ~135 m lower than
present and locally > 140 m lower in the Mediterranean
(Lambeck and Purcell 2005, Clark et al. 2009, Lambeck et al. 2014).
Subsequent sea-level rise caused dramatic changes in the Aegean basin
with most of the marine transgression observed during 16-11 Ka BP, when
sea-level rise rates were 12 m/1 Ka (Simaiakis et al. 2017). This led to
a major reduction of total island area by ca. 70% in the Aegean basin
and to a rapid increase of Aegean islands. Large islands
(>20 km2) were rapidly shrinking and
becoming isolated during that time (20% and 40% per 1 Kya,
respectively - Simaiakis et al. 2017). Islands emerged near the coast of
Turkey and Greece that were formerly peninsulas, the western connection
between the Peloponnese peninsula and the mainland was lost and the
Cycladic paleo-island fragmented into the Cyclades islands group
(Figures 1 and 2).