What Is Agistri Known For?

Agistri carries a name tangled up in Greek mythology, tracing back to a goddess who supposedly hid from local fishermen in the island's own sea caves.

Agistri is known first for that myth, tied to the goddess Aphaia, who took refuge in the island's caves to escape pursuit, with Artemis reportedly helping disguise her by weaving flowers into her hair. The island's ancient name, Kekrifalia, translates roughly to decorated head as a nod to that story, and it also carried the name Pityonisos, or Pine Island, in antiquity. Along with Aegina, Agistri once formed part of the mythical Kingdom of Aegina under King Aiakos, and Homer names it among the allies supplying Myrmidon warriors to the Trojan War, a mention later echoed by historians including Thucydides and Diodorus.

The island is equally known today for being widely considered the greenest in Greece, its roughly 13 square kilometers covered almost entirely by pine forest that reaches directly down to the shoreline in most places, a landscape distinct from the drier terrain found on most of its Saronic neighbors.

Agistri's history carries a real weight beyond mythology too. In 1772, 411 men on the island, led by a rebel named Mitromaras, attempted an uprising against Ottoman rule and were killed as a result. Their remains were later placed in a stone tomb known as the Monument of the Fallen, which still stands in the courtyard of the Agioi Anargyroi church in Skala, marking a somber chapter in the island's path toward eventual Greek independence.

Agistri connects easily by ferry to Aegina, both islands sharing the same mythological roots tied to King Aiakos and the ancient Kingdom of Aegina.