Before Minoans?
8,800-Year-Old Settlement on Aegean Island Imbros Reveals Early Architecture Before the Minoans
Archaeologists have uncovered the earliest farming architecture ever found in a settlement in the Aegean Islands, placing the northern island of Imbros (Greek: Ίμβρος)—modern-day Gökçeada in Turkey—at the center of a story long dominated by Crete.
The discovery at the Uğurlu-Zeytinlik Mound reveals the first architectural remains linked to the Aegean’s earliest farming communities, dated to around 8,800 years ago. Scholars had no physical evidence of how the first farmers on the islands lived until now.
According to the researchers, the find provides the earliest footprint of permanent settlement in the Aegean, centuries before the rise of the Minoan palaces on Crete.
Round houses reveal Neolithic lifeways
Excavations uncovered five houses dating to about 6800 BCE. The buildings feature circular plans with recessed floors and reed-based wattle-and-daub walls. Archaeologists say these are the oldest known farming houses in the Aegean.
Prof. Dr. Burçin Erdoğu, who directs the excavation, called the discovery unprecedented.
“This type of architecture has been encountered for the first time in
the Aegean Islands, which makes it extremely valuable for us,” he said.
“The Uğurlu settlement, together with Knossos on the island of Crete, is the only settlement across the Aegean Islands belonging to the earliest farming communities.” His comments underscore how the find transforms the history of the Aegean world.
A bridge between Anatolia and Greece
Botanical remains indicate that the first settlers cultivated wheat, barley, and peas, which were brought from mainland Anatolia. Animal bones confirm the presence of sheep, goats, cattle, and pigs. Together, they demonstrate that agriculture and animal husbandry were firmly rooted on Imbros nearly 9,000 years ago.
Obsidian from the Greek island of Milos and flint from both Anatolia and the Balkans point to long-distance exchange networks, revealing that early islanders were integrated into broader Neolithic trade routes. Far from isolated, Imbros was a hub of interaction between Anatolia and the Greek world.
Rewriting Aegean prehistory
For decades, Knossos on Crete, Greece, stood alone as the earliest known farming settlement in the Aegean. The discoveries on Imbros now provide a second site of equal significance, showing that permanent settlement and architectural innovation reached the northern Aegean much earlier than once believed.
Archaeologists describe Uğurlu-Zeytinlik as a twin cornerstone of Aegean Neolithic culture. Together with Knossos, it proves that farming spread across seas as well as over land, linking Anatolia with the Greek islands.
The revelation challenges long-held narratives that placed the beginnings of Aegean settlement solely in Crete. Instead, it anchors Imbros in the earliest chapter of Aegean prehistory, a place where the first island farmers shaped their homes, exchanged goods, and laid the groundwork for the complex societies that would later flourish in the wider region.
LINK: https://greekreporter.com/2025/08/29/settlement-aegean-island-imbros-architecture-minoans/
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