Spilies

A small settlement always mentioned together with Kalamos, at the southern tip of the island, east of Kapsali. Permanent habitation is recent, dating only to the 19th century when the Sotirchos family—present on Kythera since at least the 15th century—took up residence. Despite recent habitation, this tiny settlement stands upon what is believed to be the earliest inhabited spot on Kythera. Evidence from the cave of Agia Sophia in Spilies attests to human presence since the end of the Late Neolithic-Subneolithic period, around 3000 BC, nearly a thousand years earlier than previously thought. Some scholars propose remains date to the Final Neolithic (5th millennium BC). Today, despite commanding sea views, Spilies remains a very small settlement with only a handful of houses and even fewer permanent residents.