Symplegaden

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The Bosporus around 1888

According to the Argonauts legend, Symplegaden (in the Greco-Roman saga “those who strike together”) are two mythological rock islands that lie at the confluence of the Bosporus with the Black Sea . One is on the Asian and the other on the European side of the strait. Also and actually they have the name "Kyaneen", which means the bluish ones in Greek, because of their blackish-blue stone color . According to the legend, the islands are not grown together in the sea, but swim in the sea. Once they drift towards each other and the sea tide swells in the middle with a terrible rage. Then again they drift apart and a narrow passage forms between them.

The Argonauts have to cross this bottleneck on their way to Colchis . On the advice of Phineus , Jason first lets a pigeon fly through between the rocks to find out how fast they would have to row: The pigeon comes through with little damage to the tail feathers, and when the rocks open again, the Argonauts themselves row quickly and come ( thanks to a last push by the goddess Pallas Athene ) with the loss of her rudder. According to the legend, the movement of the Symplegaden ceased from that time.

Even in ancient times, the Symplegaden were confused with the Plankten , two irregular rocks floating in the sea. The existence of the islands is doubted by archaeologists, since no evidence of archaeological or geological significance has been discovered so far.

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