Ancient Towers on the Island of Siphnos

"KURZ, Siphnos scheint mehr als alle iibrigen Inseln ringsum mit Wartund Wachtthiirmen befestigt gewesen zu seyn und schon diess liisst auf den ehemaligen Reichtum und die hohe Bliithe der Insel schliessen."--Ludwig Ross, Reisen auf den griechischen Inseln des dgdischen Meeres I, 146. In August of 1837, Ross spent four days in Siphnos and in that time managed to visit and describe (along with many other things) five "watchtowers" and to inquire about four more. Ross' description of Siphnos is still the best account of the island we possess, and indeed it would be hardly surprising were it our only account of the ancient towers of Siphnos, for more than a hundred years of archaeological research has still produced no better guide to the islands than Ross. For the fact that we have further information on the Siphnos towers we can thank the happy coincidence whereby a native of the island chanced to become an archaeologist. Professor Iakovos Dragatsis, an Athenian of an old Siphniote family and a member of the Council of the Greek Archaeological Society, published in i88i a study of the wellknown tower of Agios Petros in Andros (Parnassos [i88i] 874ff), and in so doing was inevitably reminded of the towers of his own fatherland. He henceforth became an indefatigable explorer of Siphnos and its towers, 28 of which he indicated on the map published by his countryman Gryparis, for the Siphnos Society.? In 1915, on behalf of the Archaeological Society, he cleared several towers,