L’Eubea “famosa per le navi”

Abstract

This paper focuses on ναυσικλeιτή Eὔβοια, the “Euboia famous for the ships”, mentioned in verses 31 and 219 of the hymn to Apollon. These words are usually seen as literary evidence supporting the currently wide accepted idea, mainly based on archaeological indicators, of a strong Euboean maritime power during the Geometric Age, widespread in the Mediterranean framework. But is that really so? Is there an actual connection between the mentioned verses and Euboea of the 9th and 8th centuries? And, if so, what does exactly “famous for the ships” mean?