Agios Nikolaos history guide

There is evidence of organized habitation which dates back to 8000 BCE, and the excavations of the 20th century have revealed an impressive civilization which took over the island and much of the Aegean during the Bronze Age.Agios Nikolaos harbour was still used during Roman times and the first Byzantine period but after this,it disappeared from history only to reappear in 1206 when the Genoans built the fortress of Mirabelo and gave its name to the town and bay. An earthquake destroyed the stronghold and no trace of it can be found.In the sixteenth century, the Venetians gave the town its present name, taken from the chapel of Agios Nikolaos on the peninsula of Limena.