Provenance of Ballast Stone Retrieved From Panormos Harbour on Naxos, Greece

ABSTRACT In the ancient harbour of Panormos on south‐east Naxos, Greece, stones from 15 ballast piles have been sampled and documented. Hand specimen examination, thin section microscopy and geochemical analyses of representative samples indicate that 12 of the 15 ballast piles contain volcanic rocks from Santorini. Ceramic finds in one of the piles are datable to the period between the 5th and 8th centuries ad . The presence of material originating from Santorini in the ballast material suggests that there has been a previously undocumented trade connection between the two islands in the Late Roman period.