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GREEK TREASURES :
THE OLIVE TREE IS NOT civilization. Deciphered in 1953 by English ar-
chitect Michael Ventris, along with John Chad-
JUST A SYMBOL OF wick, it brought a wealth of information to
light. Among them we have the first recorded
GREECE. IT IS PART OF mention of the word "ελαία" (olive) as "er-a-
wa" and "λάδι" (oil) as "e-ra-wo." At the same
ITS HISTORY, JUST LIKE time, olive cultivation evolved and the use of
wild and cultivated olives became widespread.
THE TREASURE IT HOLDS Extensive production of aromatic oil indicates
- in addition to people's advanced knowledge
WITHIN IT; OLIVE OIL. - extensive trade relationships, as evidenced
by imports of Phoenician coriander and am-
Η ΕΛΙΑ ΔΕΝ ΕΙΝΑΙ ΜΟΝΟ phorae with false mouths scattered through-
out the Greek region. Over time, the ageless
ΣΥΜΒΟΛΟ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΑΣ. tree becomes the symbol of Athens. Accord-
ing to mythology, Poseidon and Athena were
ΕΙΝΑΙ ΕΝΑ ΚΟΜΜΑΤΙ ΤΗΣ competing to become the protector of Athens.
The sea god offered the trident as a symbol of
ΙΣΤΟΡΙΑΣ ΤΗΣ, ΟΠΩΣ ΚΑΙ power, while the goddess of wisdom planted
the olive tree as a reference to fertility. Athe-
Ο ΘΗΣΑΥΡΟΣ ΠΟΥ ΚΡΥΒΕΙ na emerged victorious, and the first olive tree
she gifted to the city also evoked the ancient
ΜΕΣΑ ΤΗΣ, ΤΟ ΛΑΔΙ. cults associated with the Great Mother God-
dess - it is no coincidence that the olive tree is
linked to primal tree worship. From Athena’s
| first olive tree the sacred olive trees, her de-
GENERATION... FRESH Anti-theft devices "decorate" the bottles of ex- scendants, emerged. These trees were protected,
The new olive culture is represented by tra virgin olive oil on the shelves of supermar- and their destruction carried a death penalty.
boutique brands like Olvia in Lesvos (top) kets, as if they were jewellery. This is connect- Similarly significant was the wild olive tree of
and Archetypon in Messinia (opposite ed, on the one hand, to the meteoric increase Olympia, from which the kotinos was made,
page). / H νέα ελαιοκομία εκπροσωπείται in the price of olive oil and indirectly reflects the crown of the Olympic champions—the
από μπουτίκ brands, όπως το Olvia στη its timeless value. The prized loot of thieves in most prestigious prize a mortal could receive.
Λέσβο (πάνω) και το Archetypon στη supermarkets - it is ranked among their top The branch of an olive tree symbolises peace
Μεσσηνία (απέναντι σελίδα). three favourites - but also a nutritional treas- and the cessation of hostilities, but ultimately,
ure, olive oil represents the green gold with- what it tacitly conveys is the transition from a
in the symbolic tree of Greece. The olive tree, hunter-gatherer to an agricultural society, one
that has permanent settlement in an organised
which took root in the rugged soils of the coun-
T H E try, is the flesh of Greece’s history. In fact, the city. Aristaeus, the son of Apollo, is the first ol-
ive cultivator in history; in addition to this role
leaves of wild olive trees have been found in
fossils from Santorini and Nisyros dating back
he is also a mythical healer who, unsurprising-
T R E E 60,000 years. However, during the late Bronze ly, employed oil to heal wounds and illnesses. THIS PAGE: COURTESY OF OLVIA. OPPOSITE PAGE: COURTESY OF ARCHETYPON-PHOTOS BY ARIS KAMAROTOS
Age, the olive tree began to flourish and spread,
Christianity "interacted" with the olive primar-
ily through its mysteries. Holy anointing oil,
from Crete all the way to Spain. In the palace of
Zakros in 1963, archaeologist Nikolaos Platon
which is also associated with healing through
OF found a conical cup with olives in a well, likely Divine Grace, the baptism in which oil be-
a ceremonial offering to the gods. In fact, these
comes a means of purification as it is applied
olives, which had survived for centuries, with-
in the form of a cross on the baptised, and the
oil-soaked cloth used to wrap the baby after
ered when they were removed from the well's
water. This remarkable discovery captures the christening all become integral elements of re-
significance of the olive tree for the Minoans,
ligious worship. However, there is one aspect
as Linear A ideograms represent olive trees. In
that traverses antiquity and finds its place in
Christianity: oil is light. It is a light embodied
the palace of Knossos, the jars used to store oil
bear witness to the palace economy, at a time
by Ira Sinigalia
when Crete exported this precious commodity. in Minoan lamps and in the familiar candles
that stand beside the icons.
Today, the Mediterranean is at the centre of
In the Mycenaean world, the presence of the
LIFE olive tree is further established. The palace of climate change. Extreme weather conditions
and the dangerous bacterium Xylella fastidi-
Nestor in Pylos provides us with Linear B in-
osa threaten its olive trees. In the Salento re-
scriptions that unveil a mosaic of Mycenaean
74
THE OLIVE TREE IS NOT civilization. Deciphered in 1953 by English ar-
chitect Michael Ventris, along with John Chad-
JUST A SYMBOL OF wick, it brought a wealth of information to
light. Among them we have the first recorded
GREECE. IT IS PART OF mention of the word "ελαία" (olive) as "er-a-
wa" and "λάδι" (oil) as "e-ra-wo." At the same
ITS HISTORY, JUST LIKE time, olive cultivation evolved and the use of
wild and cultivated olives became widespread.
THE TREASURE IT HOLDS Extensive production of aromatic oil indicates
- in addition to people's advanced knowledge
WITHIN IT; OLIVE OIL. - extensive trade relationships, as evidenced
by imports of Phoenician coriander and am-
Η ΕΛΙΑ ΔΕΝ ΕΙΝΑΙ ΜΟΝΟ phorae with false mouths scattered through-
out the Greek region. Over time, the ageless
ΣΥΜΒΟΛΟ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΑΣ. tree becomes the symbol of Athens. Accord-
ing to mythology, Poseidon and Athena were
ΕΙΝΑΙ ΕΝΑ ΚΟΜΜΑΤΙ ΤΗΣ competing to become the protector of Athens.
The sea god offered the trident as a symbol of
ΙΣΤΟΡΙΑΣ ΤΗΣ, ΟΠΩΣ ΚΑΙ power, while the goddess of wisdom planted
the olive tree as a reference to fertility. Athe-
Ο ΘΗΣΑΥΡΟΣ ΠΟΥ ΚΡΥΒΕΙ na emerged victorious, and the first olive tree
she gifted to the city also evoked the ancient
ΜΕΣΑ ΤΗΣ, ΤΟ ΛΑΔΙ. cults associated with the Great Mother God-
dess - it is no coincidence that the olive tree is
linked to primal tree worship. From Athena’s
| first olive tree the sacred olive trees, her de-
GENERATION... FRESH Anti-theft devices "decorate" the bottles of ex- scendants, emerged. These trees were protected,
The new olive culture is represented by tra virgin olive oil on the shelves of supermar- and their destruction carried a death penalty.
boutique brands like Olvia in Lesvos (top) kets, as if they were jewellery. This is connect- Similarly significant was the wild olive tree of
and Archetypon in Messinia (opposite ed, on the one hand, to the meteoric increase Olympia, from which the kotinos was made,
page). / H νέα ελαιοκομία εκπροσωπείται in the price of olive oil and indirectly reflects the crown of the Olympic champions—the
από μπουτίκ brands, όπως το Olvia στη its timeless value. The prized loot of thieves in most prestigious prize a mortal could receive.
Λέσβο (πάνω) και το Archetypon στη supermarkets - it is ranked among their top The branch of an olive tree symbolises peace
Μεσσηνία (απέναντι σελίδα). three favourites - but also a nutritional treas- and the cessation of hostilities, but ultimately,
ure, olive oil represents the green gold with- what it tacitly conveys is the transition from a
in the symbolic tree of Greece. The olive tree, hunter-gatherer to an agricultural society, one
that has permanent settlement in an organised
which took root in the rugged soils of the coun-
T H E try, is the flesh of Greece’s history. In fact, the city. Aristaeus, the son of Apollo, is the first ol-
ive cultivator in history; in addition to this role
leaves of wild olive trees have been found in
fossils from Santorini and Nisyros dating back
he is also a mythical healer who, unsurprising-
T R E E 60,000 years. However, during the late Bronze ly, employed oil to heal wounds and illnesses. THIS PAGE: COURTESY OF OLVIA. OPPOSITE PAGE: COURTESY OF ARCHETYPON-PHOTOS BY ARIS KAMAROTOS
Age, the olive tree began to flourish and spread,
Christianity "interacted" with the olive primar-
ily through its mysteries. Holy anointing oil,
from Crete all the way to Spain. In the palace of
Zakros in 1963, archaeologist Nikolaos Platon
which is also associated with healing through
OF found a conical cup with olives in a well, likely Divine Grace, the baptism in which oil be-
a ceremonial offering to the gods. In fact, these
comes a means of purification as it is applied
olives, which had survived for centuries, with-
in the form of a cross on the baptised, and the
oil-soaked cloth used to wrap the baby after
ered when they were removed from the well's
water. This remarkable discovery captures the christening all become integral elements of re-
significance of the olive tree for the Minoans,
ligious worship. However, there is one aspect
as Linear A ideograms represent olive trees. In
that traverses antiquity and finds its place in
Christianity: oil is light. It is a light embodied
the palace of Knossos, the jars used to store oil
bear witness to the palace economy, at a time
by Ira Sinigalia
when Crete exported this precious commodity. in Minoan lamps and in the familiar candles
that stand beside the icons.
Today, the Mediterranean is at the centre of
In the Mycenaean world, the presence of the
LIFE olive tree is further established. The palace of climate change. Extreme weather conditions
and the dangerous bacterium Xylella fastidi-
Nestor in Pylos provides us with Linear B in-
osa threaten its olive trees. In the Salento re-
scriptions that unveil a mosaic of Mycenaean
74
