Alyki

**Because sea level relative to the land changed — a combination of the ground sinking and the sea rising.** ✅ **The first fact**: **the marble was cut above water** — nobody quarries stone while submerged; **so the terraces, steps and column sockets you now see underwater were dry** when they were worked. ✅ **The first cause — subsidence**: this region is **tectonically active**, **and the coast is slowly sinking** over the centuries through earth movement and earthquakes — **usually the larger factor** at drowned sites in the Aegean. ✅ **The second cause — global sea-level rise** since antiquity, **smaller here** but additive. ✅ **The result**: **the ancient shoreline lies deeper than today's** — so what was a loading quay for ships is now seabed. ⚠ **This is common in Greece**: many sunken towns and harbours (Pavlopetri, ancient Epidaurus). ✅ **What it means for you**: **you swim over a real worksite** — seeing **chisel marks** and the wedge slots the blocks were split along, **perfectly clear in clear water**.