Thera eruption and the Late Bronze Age Aegean crisis

Record summary

The Bronze Age eruption of Thera, or Santorini, is a major archaeological and geological case involving ash, tsunami deposits and disruption to Aegean societies. It is frequently compared with the decline of Minoan influence and wider Late Bronze Age instability, although the eruption’s exact date and causal relationship to political changes remain debated. The lead is useful for examining how volcanic catastrophe becomes entangled with migration, trade interruption and later mythic memory. Researchers should distinguish physical effects from broad claims that the eruption directly destroyed Minoan civilization.