Native name: Άκρα Σίδερος Nickname: Cape Mavramouri | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Vai beach in the center, Cape Sidero in the background. View from the south headland over the beach, eastern Crete. | |
 This N-S alignment of Crete depicts the NE promontory at the top. Left-to-right: Dionysades Islands, Sideros Promontory showing the joined "islands" Sideros (or Mavromouri) and Kyriamadi, the joined Itanos Peninsula, Elasa Island, and Cape Plakas. | |
  Cape Sideros Location of Cape Sidero | |
| Etymology | Uncertain. Possibly a connection to iron or stars, or to prehistoric words now lost, most likely a Venetian form, San Sidero, of Agios Isidoros, "Saint Isidore," which one uncertain. |
| Geography | |
| Location | NE Crete |
| Coordinates | 35°18′46″N 26°18′27″E / 35.31282°N 26.30759°E |
| Archipelago | Hellenic arc |
| Adjacent to | Sea of Crete |
| Administration | |
Greece | |
| Municipality (2011) | Siteia |
| Municipal Unit | Itanos |
Cape Sideros or Cape Sidero (Greek: Άκρα Σίδερος, romanized: Akra Sideros) is a cape at the eastern end of the island of Crete, Greece. Anciently it was known as Samonium or Samonion (Ancient Greek: Σαμώνιον), Sammonium or Sammonion (Ancient Greek: Σαμμώνιον),[1] Salmonium or Salmonion (Σαλμώνιον)[2] and Salmone (Σαλμώνη).[3] The cape shares the name Sideros or Sidero with the island-like peninsula of which it is a projection, but which had the name first remains unknown, as does the provenance of either name. Cape Sidero is often not confined to the peninsula Sideros, but might refer to the entire northeast promontory.
- ^ Strabo x.4.22 "The eastern promontory (of Crete) is Samonium" and "The shores then terminate in a pointed promontory, Samonium" along with a few other similar mentions strongly indicate Samonium is Cape Sidero. There is still a question of how much of the promontory Samonium was considered to be.
- ^ Strabo ii.4.3 states briefly "The distance from Rhodes to Cape Salmonium, which forms the eastern extremity of Crete, 1000 (stadia)." The statement leaves little room for doubt about the location of the cape, but one might plausibly question the then meaning of "the eastern extremity of Crete" and whether the one in today's world of GPS is the one matching Strabo's understanding. The difference between Samonium and Salmonium in the same author can be explained by an assimilation Salm>Samm.
- ^ Acts 27.7