{"product_id":"greek-island-wall-art-symi-dodecanese","title":"Symi Dodecanese Greece Print","description":"\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\"\u003eSymi takes its name from the nymph Syme, wife of Poseidon, and ancient legends associate the island with the Three Graces. In Homer's Iliad, the island is mentioned as the domain of King Nireus. Described as the most handsome man in the Achaean forces after Achilles, who sailed three ships from Symi to fight in the Trojan War.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\"\u003eSymi is part of the Dodecanese island chain, fifteen miles north of Rhodes. Its mountainous terrain dropping sharply into the Aegean on all sides. The island passed through the hands of the Byzantine Empire, the Knights of St John, the Ottomans, the Italians, and the Nazis before finally returning to Greece in 1948. Each power recognized what the ancients already knew. This island was worth possessing.\u003cspan class=\"inline-flex\" data-state=\"closed\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\"\u003eWhat dominates Symi today is its extraordinary neoclassical harbor architecture. In the space of three or four generations during the 19th century, the steep slopes above the harbor filled with hundreds of ornate pastel-colored mansions built by the island's wealthy merchant and sponge-diving families.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\"\u003eSymi reached the height of its prosperity in the mid-19th century, when its population swelled to 22,500 people and the island served as a major trading center for sponge export and shipbuilding across the eastern Mediterranean.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\"\u003eAt the end of World War II, the formal surrender of German forces in the entire region took place on Symi. The island that began its recorded history sending ships to the Trojan War ended the modern era's most devastating conflict on its own harbor front. \u003cspan class=\"inline-flex\" data-state=\"closed\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\"\u003eThe harbor town of Yialos is divided into the upper town of Ano Symi and the lower waterfront, connected by the steep Kali Strata staircase lined with neoclassical houses painted in warm pastel hues featuring intricate woodwork, carved balconies, and characteristic red-tiled roofs.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\"\u003eThe entire settlement has been declared a protected historical monument since 1970, with restoration guidelines enforced by the Greek Ministry of Culture ensuring that every building repaired must conform to its original neoclassical character. \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"ASKEŌ","offers":[{"title":"18x24 - [45x60 cm] \/ Option 1","offer_id":46261982986412,"sku":null,"price":89.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"18x24 - [45x60 cm] \/ Option 2","offer_id":46261983019180,"sku":null,"price":89.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x16 - [30x40 cm] \/ Option 1","offer_id":46261983051948,"sku":null,"price":69.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x16 - [30x40 cm] \/ Option 2","offer_id":46261983084716,"sku":null,"price":69.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0750\/1522\/5516\/files\/SymiMock1.jpg?v=1779039921","url":"https:\/\/askeo.store\/products\/greek-island-wall-art-symi-dodecanese","provider":"ASKEŌ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}