Lavrio

Lavrio, also known as Lavrion or Laurium, is a town in the southeastern part of Attica, Greece. Today, it is part of the busy Athens metropolitan area and serves as the center of the Lavreotiki municipality.

Long ago, during Classical antiquity, Lavrio was very important because of its rich silver mines. These mines helped provide money for the Athenian state, and the silver was mostly used to make coins. You can learn more by visiting the Archaeological Museum of Lavrio.

The town sits about 60 km southeast of Athens city center. It is located south of Keratea and north of Cape Sounio, with beautiful views of the island Makronisos to the east. The streets in Lavrio are arranged in a grid pattern, and the town has a port right in the middle. The EO89 road passes through Lavrio on its way to Sounio.

History

Further information: Thoricus and Mines of Laurium

The town of Lavrio stands where an ancient village named Thoricus once was. Its name comes from the famous Mines of Laurium nearby.

People first started mining here around 3200 BC. The mining became more organized in the 6th century BC. After a big battle called the battle of Marathon, a leader named Themistocles encouraged the people of Athens to use money from the silver mines to build more ships. The mines were owned by the government and many people worked there.

Later, during the Spartan occupation of Decelea, the mining slowed down. But people kept working the mines for many years. Today, you can still see old tunnels and places where miners washed the ore.

In the late 1800s, French and Greek companies started mining again, looking for lead, manganese, and cadmium. The mines are now remembered through the Mineralogical Museum of Lavrion, which shows many interesting rocks and minerals from the area.

Climate

Lavrio is in the southern part of the Athens Riviera. It has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification: BSh), which is close to a hot-summer mediterranean (Csa) climate.

Lavrio has mild winters and very hot summers. In summer, it is about 2 °C cooler than Piraeus and 4 °C cooler than downtown Athens. The driest months are July and August. The most rain usually falls in December and January.

Lavrio is in hardiness zone 10b. According to data from the National Observatory of Athens, it has never had a freezing temperature.

Facilities

The Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport is about a 30-minute drive from Lavrio. You can travel to Athens by car using the Lavrio/Sounio Leoforos Highway and then Attiki Odos. Another easy way is to drive to Koropi Train Station, park your car, and take the suburban railway or metro to Athens center.

Lavrio used to be the end point of the Athens-Lavrion Railway, but it stopped operating in 1957. There is also a town in Michigan named Laurium, Michigan.

Sports

Lavrio has a football club named Olympiacos Laurium. In the past, this team played in a lower division called the Gamma Ethniki. The town also has a basketball club called Lavrio B.C., which plays in the Basket League.

Twin towns

Lavrio has friendly connections with towns in other countries. One of these towns is Aleksinac in Serbia, and the other is Mangalia in Romania.